Credit Score Improvements
The CFPB (Consumer Financial Protection Bureau) shared a concern to the credit industry regarding medical debt and consumers. The director of the CFPB stated that 58% of the debt and collections on people’s credit reports is medical debt. As a result, the credit bureaus have agreed to alter the data reported on a consumer’s credit report regarding medical debt. Specifically, the changes that have been agreed to are as follows:
- Effective July 1, 2022, paid medical collection debt will no longer be included on a consumer credit report.
- Unpaid medical collection debt must be one year old before it appears on a consumer’s report. This timeframe used to be six months and will now allow consumers more time to work with insurance and/or healthcare providers to address their debt before it is recorded on your credit file.
- As of March 30, 2023, credit bureaus will no longer include medical collection debt under at least $500 on credit reports.
Finally, we recommend that you check your credit report annually at www.annualcreditreport.com. The ability to request your free annual credit report, check for errors, and dispute erroneous content is a consumer’s right, and is essential to ensuring that your credit report reflects your correct credit history! If you have any questions regarding your credit, let’s talk…… We are always here to help!
Is a Home Renovation in Your Future
Have you been tossing around ideas on how you might be able to either expand or update your current home but not really sure where to start? Whether it be updating your kitchen and bathrooms, finishing out a basement, outdoor living area or adding dramatically more space to your home, we can help. With inventory levels at all-time lows, you may decide it makes more sense to find a home on a great lot, in a great location and then just renovate to fit your needs. A renovation loan is a mortgage, just like any other mortgage, but where a regular mortgage is based on the current condition and value of the property, a renovation loan is based on the future value and condition of the property. A renovation loan can be used for either purchasing or refinancing a home and it includes additional funds to complete necessary repairs and/or desired improvements. The loan closes on the property in its current condition, the renovation funds are placed in escrow (like a savings account), work begins immediately after closing, and the money is paid out of escrow as the work is completed. We have been doing renovation loans for years and have a number of different products depending on your situation, that can make this a reality for you. We have designed an educational platform for you to get more information on how this process works from start to finish, just go to www.familyga.com/renovation. When you’re ready to start talking specifics, give us a call and we will walk you through the numbers so you can get a better feel for how this might work for your unique situation.