The vast majority of my clients have great credit scores. For the others, it has been a tough financial ride due to lost jobs, prolonged unemployment, aging parents that need money, college student who need tuition, and unpredicted medical bills. If you’ve done the best you can paying your bills, and now something’s gotta give, do your best to orchestrate your credit decline.
Credit Explanations: Dos and Don’ts
In the past, when borrowers have applied for credit, lenders have asked borrowers for “letters of explanation” as to why someone had negative remarks on a credit report. Lenders want to see letters that make sense, that provide a common thread or logical explanation. If you’re in a position where you have to sacrifice your credit rating, keep the situation isolated in time and “logical”, because later you may have to write a letter to explain it.
Do: You want your letter to sound like this: “I had great credit. Due to circumstances beyond my control, I had a lousy payment history for a short time, and I have maintained a perfect payment history since that date.”
Don’t: You don’t want to write a letter like this: “I had great credit. Then I had to miss some payments, and then I had great credit, and then I had to miss some payments, and then….”
Plan and manage “the credit disaster” as best you can. It might help you in the future.