Tag: credit report

CREDIT REPORT FROM EQUIFAX: HOW THIS ONTARIO TEACHER’S CREDIT SCORE TOOK AN AWFUL MASSIVE HIT TO ZERO

Post author By Brandon Smith
Post date June 2, 2021

We hope that you and your family are safe, healthy and secure during this coronavirus pandemic.

Ira Smith Trustee & Receiver Inc. is absolutely operational and Ira, in addition to Brandon Smith, is readily available for a telephone consultation or video meeting.

Credit report from Equifax: What is the Equifax Credit Score?

A credit report from Equifax Canada Co. shows your recent credit history as well as the Equifax credit score. This credit score is the most widely recognized one in Canada. It is used to determine an individual’s creditworthiness and is used for a host of purposes, including the ability to get a mortgage or credit card. This score is commonly used as a predictive model for lending decisions.

Equifax Canada is one of two credit bureaus in Canada. The other one is TransUnion Canada. Each one uses their own proprietary credit model to produce a credit score on you using their credit scoring algorithms. Consumer credit reports are not always accurate. It is up to you to make sure that it is. But even when you notice something strange it is not always so easy to quickly clear up an obvious error.

In this Brandon Blog, I will tell you the story of Angela Monaghan, an Ontario high school teacher. I will tell you how a very rare error caused her two years of grief when her credit score took a massive credit score drop down to zero!

Credit report from Equifax: What is a Consumer Credit Reporting Agency?

Consumer credit reporting agencies are businesses that collect and analyze information from customers of other businesses, primarily companies that have extended credit to you, but also from public records. The CRA’s primary goal is to provide you with an accurate and complete report of your credit information and its protection.

What is your credit report from Equifax?

You should know what goes into your credit report from Equifax Canada Co. or TransUnion Canada and how your financial behaviour may impact you and your credit. When you think of credit, you should think of Equifax Canada Inc. and TransUnion Canada. They are the two Canadian credit bureaus that hold your Equifax credit report, which is a snapshot of your credit history.

They provide information about what you owe, who you owe it to and what your balances and payment history look like. In addition, their databases reflect your consumer behaviour and determine the risk level associated with any individual that a credit report is requested for because you are applying for any type of credit and permitted that bank or company to do a credit check on you.

A credit report normally includes:

your name
age and current address
your job and where you work
what debts you have
your paying habits (do you usually pay on time or are your payments late, do you only make minimum payments)

A credit report does not include: a bankruptcy discharged more than 7 years ago unless you have declared bankruptcy more than once. Your credit report, summarizing all this information into a consumer credit score, affects your ability to get credit, which can affect your ability to buy a car or home.

The Ontario Consumer Reporting Act (OCRA) is the legislation that regulates consumer credit reporting in Ontario.

What is the Ontario Consumer Reporting Act?

The Ontario Consumer Reporting Act (OCRA) is the provincial legislation that regulates consumer credit reporting in Ontario. The OCRA creates the rules under which a consumer reporting agency operates. Examples are:

how a consumer’s credit report can be used
when someone can request a credit report
what consumers can do if their files contain any wrong or incomplete information and many more issues are covered by this provincial law.

OCRA recognizes that businesses, landlords and employers need to have the correct information.

At the same time, it makes sure that:

agencies collect, maintain and also report your debt and personal information sensibly and as accurately as possible
your right to recognize what is being reported concerning you and also to whom
your right to remedy details regarding yourself that are inaccurate.

A party who is convicted of purposefully supplying a consumer reporting business with false or incorrect or deceptive information could be fined up to $25,000 or sent to prison for up to 1 year, or both.

Credit report from Equifax: The Angela Monaghan TransUnion Canada story

A Tiny, Ont. high school teacher, Angela Monaghan still keeps in mind the moment she went to her neighbourhood Canadian Tire in the summer season of 2019. She went there to make an application for a new store credit card to use for expenses related to the school orchestra.

The request was promptly rejected. The application had been flagged because according to her credit file, she recalls the Canadian Tire employee, matter-of-factly stating that she was dead.

The one that had actually passed away was her late husband who had passed away from cancer. Yet as she tells her story, she later uncovered a reporting mistake that indicated she, rather than her late husband, had been declared as dearly departed on her TransUnion credit record by a reporting error.

As soon as the consumer reporting agencies are alerted of someone’s death, they position a death notice on their credit report. This step is meant to stop identity theft. However incorrect death reports do take place periodically. Identity thieves and other criminals always try to use a deceased person’s identity for their own illegal gain.

It took her virtually 2 years from when she became aware of and reported the error to TransUnion to have it officially and fully corrected. During that time, she claims she needed to cope with a TransUnion credit report of zero!

Credit report from Equifax or TransUnion: Be proactive

What happened to Angela Monaghan is very frustrating. After the loss of her husband, this is the last kind of trouble she needed. But you can be proactive. You don’t have to wait until you apply for credit to find out if there is an error on your credit report.

The consumer reporting agencies allow you to apply for your own credit report once a year for free.

How Do I Get My Free Credit Report?

You can request your free credit history report by one of several techniques: credit report by phone, by mail or in person. If you’re asking for your credit report by phone, you will need to enter your Social Insurance Number. You’ll need to send acceptable identification validating that you say who you are and your mailing address if you are asking the credit bureau by mail. Photo identification such as your driver’s licence can identify both you and your current home address at the same time. This is one type of acceptable documents.

Everyone qualifies to receive a free credit report annually from each of the two Canadian credit report reporting companies.

How do I confirm my identity?

In addition to the above, identity confirmation is done by responding to a series of individual and financial questions, where one of the possible answers to each question is a fact about yourself. They will only send you your free credit report by mail.

How much does it cost to order my credit report?

As I already stated, Equifax Canada and TransUnion Canada each allow you to order your credit report once annually for free. So if you really wanted to stay on top of reviewing the information the credit bureaus have on you, you could order from each of them once a year, 6 months apart.

Correct an inaccuracy on your Equifax credit report: How do I dispute my credit report from Equifax?

Credit reports matter. Let us assume that you have been checking your credit report from Equifax regularly and you find something you believe is a credit report error or potential inaccuracy and should be removed from your file. The error can be as drastic as the one Angela Monaghan had or something a little less distressing, yet still troubling. If you find such an error, you need to initiate an investigation.

What are the steps to dispute information on your credit report from Equifax? There are two ways to submit your dispute info to Equifax for free – online submission or by mail. You of course have to file supporting documentation to prove your dispute is valid.

Once you’ve successfully filed your dispute by mailing the Credit Report Update Form or completing the Equifax Online Dispute, there will be an investigation of your dispute. When reviewing your dispute, if they can make changes to your credit report based on the information you provided, they will do so.

People ask me how long will my investigation take? Equifax states that their dispute process is completed in 5-20 business days. However, they also say that due to COVID-19, investigations and dispute resolutions are experiencing longer than normal processing times for dispute investigations. After their investigation is complete, a confirmation letter or email will be sent to you with the results and outcome of the investigation.

We see their time estimate is not always accurate. It took Angela Monaghan two years to correct the fact that she was not deceased! If you dispute an item and the investigation did not resolve the dispute, you have the right to add a statement to your credit file that is 400 words or less, free of charge, explaining the nature of your dispute.

Spot identity theft early. Review your credit reports.

Inaccuracies on credit reports can be simple errors, or much worse, you could be a victim of identity theft. So much of our financial lives and financial history is stored in computer databases. Computer hackers steal and sell such personal information which is why identity theft continues to be on the rise. As a matter of fact, an Equifax data breach by hackers took place from mid-May through July 2017. Amongst the stolen information were Social Insurance numbers.

With such theft, thieves use your personal information to open up credit card or loan accounts, run up each credit card balance to their respective credit card limit to purchase goods and never pay a cent. When the debts go into arrears, you start getting calls from collection agencies and your credit rating takes a drastic reduction. One of the more common signs of identity theft is a credit card opened up in your name without your knowledge. Having this happen to you could be devastating to you, especially if you have a consistent payment history of paying your credit card in time every month and all of your other debts on time.

It is up to you to confirm that you are not the one who opened these accounts. It is a painstaking and sluggish procedure. You will most likely have to ask for a copy of the real application from the financial institution and match up your genuine signature against the one given on the application to confirm it was not you. It will certainly take some time, however ultimately, you will get it corrected.

There is also one more means to keep up to date with what is happening with your credit report from Equifax, however, it will cost you some cash.

What is credit monitoring?

If you use credit cards, you may one day either be or know someone who is, a victim of identity theft. Bank cards and other types of credit scams are a serious problem, as well as one that is promptly growing as more individuals utilize plastic, including debit cards, e-Transfers or online bill payments to settle their debts. A credit tracking solution can help you stay one step ahead of credit card fraud.

Both Equifax and TransUnion, along with many credit card issuers and financial institutions, provide credit report monitoring solutions. Equifax calls their product Equifax credit watch™. Transunion Canada also has a subscription-based credit monitoring service.

These solutions monitor your credit activity and give you a regular report with alerts after certain updates to your credit file, such as a credit inquiry. If fraud is suspected, you will get an initial fraud alert.

You can think about using this service if you:

believe you’ve been the victim of fraud;
if you have actually been affected by an information breach; or
you just wish to guard in real-time against identity theft.

This service will help you see if somebody is trying to apply for credit in your name. You will be able to spot identity theft in more or less real-time. However, you usually are required to spend money to get this type of protection. Monitoring things twice a year using your free credit reports in most cases should be enough for the average person.

Credit report from Equifax summary

I hope that you found this credit report from Equifax Brandon Blog informative. Many people feel that they are trapped in a cycle of credit card debts, unsecured lines of credit, tax debt and generally an unmanageable level of debt. Some of this may have come about because you are a victim of identity theft. You may want to do something about those debts but you aren’t sure what to do.

If you are concerned because you or your business are dealing with substantial debt challenges and you assume bankruptcy is your only option, call me. It is not your fault that you remain in this way. You have actually been only shown the old ways to try to deal with financial issues. These old ways do not work anymore.

The Ira Smith Team utilizes new modern-day ways to get you out of your debt difficulties while avoiding bankruptcy. We can get you the relief you need and so deserve.

The tension put upon you is big. We know your discomfort factors. We will check out your entire situation and design a new approach that is as unique as you and your problems; financial and emotional. We will take the weight off of your shoulders and blow away the dark cloud hanging over you. We will design a debt settlement strategy for you. We know that we can help you now.

We understand that people and businesses facing financial issues need a realistic lifeline. There is no “one solution fits all” method with the Ira Smith Team. Not everyone has to file bankruptcy in Canada. The majority of our clients never do. We help many people and companies stay clear of bankruptcy.

That is why we can establish a new restructuring procedure for paying down debt that will be built just for you. It will be as one-of-a-kind as the economic issues and discomfort you are encountering. If any one of these seems familiar to you and you are serious about getting the solution you need, Contact the Ira Smith Trustee & Receiver Inc. group today.

Call us now for a no-cost consultation.

We will get you or your business back up driving to healthy and balanced trouble-free operations and get rid of the discomfort factors in your life, Starting Over, Starting Now.

We hope that you and your family are safe, healthy and secure during this coronavirus pandemic.

Ira Smith Trustee & Receiver Inc. is absolutely operational and Ira, in addition to Brandon Smith, is readily available for a telephone consultation or video meeting.

Brandon Blog Post

SOFT CREDIT CHECK: TWEAKS YOU CAN DO TO MAKE IT HARD AND HAPPY

Post author By Brandon Smith
Post date May 3, 2021

We hope that you and your family are safe, healthy and secure during this COVID-19 pandemic. Ira Smith Trustee & Receiver Inc. is absolutely operational and Ira, in addition to Brandon Smith, is readily available for a telephone consultation or video meeting.

If you would prefer to listen to the audio version of this Brandon Blog, please scroll to the very bottom and click play on the podcast.

Soft credit check introduction: What is a credit score?

When you apply for a loan, or to rent someone’s house, condo or apartment, the bank or landlord will very likely do a credit check on you. What will be of importance to them, amongst other things, is your credit score.

A Canadian credit score is a three-digit number used to indicate the creditworthiness of a debtor, based upon the info in their credit report. It is determined by looking at several factors, including if you usually pay your bills on time, just how much of your readily available credit you use, the number of charge cards you have, as well as your basic level of financial debt. The score ranges from 300 to 900 and also represents the chance that you will pay every one of your expenses on time.

There are two methods that either you or a potential lender can do a credit check on you: soft or hard. Keep in mind that even a potential landlord can fall into the category of prospective lenders. They will be advancing your credit in the form of their property. They are entrusting the tenant to take possession of their property, in return for paying for that privilege every month. In that way, a landlord is also extending credit to a tenant.

Have you ever wondered what the difference is between a soft credit check and a hard credit check? Well, in this Brandon Blog I am going to explain the difference between them for you.

Overview: Hard vs. Soft inquiries on your credit report (And Why They Matter)

The hard inquiry is a credit check that will show up on your credit report. These types of inquiries are typically the result of applying for a new loan, credit card or insurance quotes. A hard inquiry will typically stay on your credit report for up to 3 years.

A soft inquiry, on the other hand, is a credit check that does not show up on your credit report but is visible to creditors. A soft inquiry could be the result of checking your own credit score or shopping around for a new cell phone or cable plan.

More details: What is the difference between hard and soft credit inquiries?

What is a soft credit check you ask? A soft credit check request is something you can do at the beginning of your search for a loan. It will help you to know what your credit score is to help you get better loan rates, special promotions or offers a bank may be running or even help you secure that loan for which you might not qualify if your credit score was outside of an acceptable range. Knowing that information upfront can help you negotiate better for that loan deal you want.

A soft credit check is a surface-level credit inquiry that is used to get a preliminary assessment of your creditworthiness. These take place when you check your credit report or when a lending institution checks your score to pre-approve you for special deals. Soft checks do not influence your credit rating.

A hard credit check is basically a check performed by a company to find out your credit history and score. A hard credit check is different than a soft credit check. Hard checks are performed by companies that decide whether or not to lend you money. Sometimes, a hard check is also referred to as a hard credit inquiry. While a hard check is more informative than soft pulls, it can also adversely affect your score if too many checks are performed.

Sometimes you will enter into a contract for a product or service that requires you to provide authorization on the credit applications to access your credit report and credit score. Whether you are applying for a cell phone contract, to a credit card company, or applying to mortgage lenders or for auto loans, the company is going to check your credit report and score. Knowing what is a “hard credit check” can help you decide if it is worth it to use the service or not.

How could a hard credit check affect your credit score when a soft credit check will not?

Many consumers have a good credit score, but when you are one of the millions of consumers who do not, it can be difficult to get that coveted loan or credit card. To make sure that you do not have to deal with a hard credit check, you should make sure that you have no missed payments on your credit reports and that you have a diverse mix of credit (credit cards, store cards and installment loans, for example).

A hard inquiry can harm your credit score, but usually by just a few points. But how much your score is affected can depend on your specific financial situation.

Having too many inquiries on your credit report especially within a short period of time may also have an impact. And if your credit report shows multiple credit applications within a short period of time, it might appear to lenders that your finances have changed negatively.

When you apply for credit, as I mentioned, a hard credit score check is the way a potential lender can take a deep dive into your credit history. A putative lender would do so to determine if they should approve you for the credit you are applying for. This is different from a cursory soft credit check so a lender can tell you if you might qualify for a special deal or are doing your own self-assessment.

If you’ve ever before been denied for financing, denied an apartment, or had your car loan application rejected, you probably went through a hard credit check and the financial institution or landlord you approached was not happy with your results.

Soft credit check: How your initial credit limit is determined

The normal question individuals typically ask is why their credit line is not higher. In fact, the question is so usual, some credit card companies have their own applications that you can use to forecast your credit line. Nonetheless, as you may anticipate, the response is not quite as straightforward as the credit card issuers would like you to believe.

Your credit rating is an important metric in establishing what your credit line will be set at. If you have an inadequate credit rating, expect a lower credit limit and various other unfavourable terms. On the other hand, a high credit score offers you the opportunity to shop around to find the best credit card agreement and credit card issuer for you.

Soft credit check: Who creates your credit report and credit score?

Each time you make an application for a credit card, a car loan or home mortgage, your credit report is evaluated by the loan provider you are applying to. Your credit report is a document of the financial commitments you have actually currently incurred (credit cards, personal loans, lines of credit and mortgages) and your payment history. It is obtained from one of the two credit bureaus in Canada.

By now you should understand that the higher your credit score, the better your chances are to be approved for the loan or credit card you are applying for. This is because your credit rating will be seen as a lower threat to default, and therefore the bank will feel more positive that you will pay off any credit extended to you.

TransUnion and Equifax Canada are the two credit bureaus in Canada that contain your credit information. Lenders will use one of these two businesses to do the soft credit check or the hard credit check on a potential borrower or existing customer requesting additional or new credit.

These are private businesses that collect, store and share details concerning just how you use debt. Equifax Canada and TransUnion just collect information from creditors concerning your financial experiences in Canada.

Can a lender do a soft credit check or any type of inquiry without my permission?

If you are applying for credit from a financial institution or another type of lender, you will be asked to provide the authorization for them to do search one of the two major credit bureaus in Canada on you as part of their normal credit process. A lender cannot perform a hard credit pull without your OK.

No pre-authorization is required to do soft pulls. Perhaps you wish to just discover if you meet the requirements for a unique promo they may are promoting on one or more of their credit products. Or, possibly the loan provider wants to get a quick picture of your credit file to see if it is worth investing the time running you through their credit application process. The lender can get a response to both issues by carrying out a soft inquiry on you. That they can do soft credit pulls on their own.

Soft credit check: How long inquiries stay on your credit report

Your credit rating is a snapshot of your financial life, and it is important for obtaining credit, renting an apartment, even getting a job. But what happens if you want to buy a house, apply for a job, or apply for a loan and you have a negative or positive inquiry on your credit report? It is important to know how long an inquiry will remain on your report.

The rules surrounding credit inquiries and how long they stay on your Canadian credit report are a little different than in the US. In the US, hard inquiries generally stay on your record for 2 years. In Canada, there is no specific set amount of time that they stay on your report. The length of time a new inquiry is reported is determined by the business that requested the inquiry. According to Equifax Canada, a hard inquiry may not drop off your report for up to 36 months.

Home & Car Insurance Savings From Good Credit Scores

If you’ve ever shopped for auto insurance or homeowners insurance, you’ve no doubt been pressured to buy coverage you don’t need or a policy that seems like the insurance costs are just too high? If that sounds like you, don’t be ashamed! To avoid this, you should first know your credit score, since that will be the key to getting the best insurance rates.

A good credit score does more than simply affect the interest rates you pay on loans – it also affects the rates you pay on your insurance. This is because insurance companies consider your credit score when setting the rates you pay because it correlates to your likelihood of filing a claim and the likelihood of that claim being paid.

In addition, your mortgage company, your landlord and your car dealership will check your credit score when renting property, leasing a car or deciding how much of a down payment you can afford.

Can prospective employers perform a credit check on me?

If the job application you signed gives a potential employer permission to do a hard inquiry on you, then they can. Bad credit history can have many consequences that far exceed a simple refusal to get a loan. It can prevent you from getting a job, and destroy your self-esteem. How do you know if your bad credit is affecting your life? The first step is to find out what’s on your credit report.

The next step is to realize that your negative financial situation didn’t happen overnight. Your financial problems are a result of both bad luck and poor judgment.

Most of us have been there: you’re ready to start your career, turn over a new leaf and begin a new chapter in your life, but you get rejected for a job because one of the background checks turns up a bad credit report. And you are confused. You didn’t know that your report included bad credit information. And you didn’t know that you could fix a bad credit report.

But you can. As I already mentioned, it starts with you doing a soft inquiry on yourself and finding out what the bad information is. Or, once a year, for free, you can do a hard inquiry on yourself and really drill down to find out what negative information is causing the roadblock to your moving forward in life. I highly recommend that you do so as the start to improving your financial situation.

Soft credit check a summary

I hope you enjoyed the soft credit check Brandon Blog post. You may be very upset and frustrated over the current pandemic situation and your personal financial problems. You may even be downright depressed. The entrepreneur may be very frustrated that the company can no longer pay all its debts as they come due.

There may be sufficient value to take care of the secured creditor, but nothing for anyone else, including the unsecured creditors. There may be some business units that should not survive, but if cut out, the business will be viable. A receivership might very well accomplish the goals for the entrepreneur also. I have many times structured a receivership process, in order to meet the goals of the entrepreneur, while satisfying the requirements of the secured creditor.

Are you worried because you or your business are dealing with substantial debt challenges and you assume bankruptcy is your only option? Call me. It is not your fault that you remain in this way. You have actually been only shown the old ways to try to deal with financial issues. These old ways do not work anymore.

The Ira Smith Team utilizes new modern-day ways to get you out of your debt difficulties while avoiding bankruptcy. We can get you the relief you need and so deserve.

That is why we can establish a new restructuring procedure for paying down debt that will be built just for you. It will be as one-of-a-kind as the economic issues and discomfort you are encountering. If any one of these seems familiar to you and you are serious about getting the solution you need, contact the Ira Smith Trustee & Receiver Inc. group today.

Call us now for a no-cost consultation.

We will get you or your business back up driving to healthy and balanced trouble-free operations and get rid of the discomfort factors in your life, Starting Over, Starting Now.

Brandon Blog Post

CREDIT REPORTING BODY: WILL THE STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS ERASE MY DEBT?

Post author By Brandon Smith
Post date October 16, 2019

What is a credit reporting body?

A credit reporting body is also known as a credit bureau or credit reporting agency. It collects, saves, makes use of and reveals personal credit scores about individual consumers. The bureau refines these details to report on the credit rating or creditworthiness of a person. Businesses considering extending credit to people subscribe to and make use of such a credit reporting body.

One thing the bureaus do is report a listing and condition of your debts. More on this below. People with financial problems who come to see me many times are confused as to how a credit reporting agency operates. Many times people are confused between the credit reporting agency’s reporting of debts where the creditor can no longer sue. The reason they can’t sue is because of the statute of limitations in Ontario (again, more on this below). Yet, the debt is still listed by the credit bureau.

I recently came across an Ontario court decision, that describes perfectly why debts can still be listed on your credit report, even though the creditor has run out of time to sue you.

What are the major credit reporting agencies in Canada?

In Canada, there are 2 such reporting companies for consumers: Equifax and TransUnion. For companies, one of the most prominent credit reporting company is Dun & Bradstreet Canada.

How do I get a free copy of my credit file?

You are able to get your complimentary credit report once every 12 months from each of the two nationwide rating companies. If you need a current report more often than that, you can pay TransUnion or Equifax to get it. You can get your credit report by phone, fax, online or in person. Each credit bureau provides instructions on how to do it.

There are also two online services that will provide you with your credit score and report for free. They are Borrowell and Credit Karma Canada.

The Court case

This court case was somewhat unique in that it was a small claims court case. The 10-page decision clearly shows that a statute of limitations will not erase the debt. The case is Harvey v Capital One Bank, 2019 CanLII 69716 (ON SCSM).

Mr. Harvey sought $25,000.00 against Capital One Bank for purportedly posting to the credit reporting body firms, defamatory details impacting his professional reputation. Mr. Harvey admits he owed money to Capital One however asserts the debt can no longer be pursued, as it is beyond the 2 year limitation period for enforcement according to the Ontario Limitations Act, 2002, S.O. 2002, c. 24, Sched. B. Capital One Bank confessed it reported the debt but was fully justified in doing so according to the Consumer Reporting Act, RSO 1990, c. C.33.

The agreed statement of facts

Mr. Harvey and Capital One Bank submitted an Agreed Statement of Facts:

Mr. Harvey had two Capital One Bank accounts. The account concerned was opened up on or about March 5, 2009. The second account was opened on or around June 2018.
Mr. Harvey was contacted by collection firms acting on behalf of Capital One from 2015 to 2018 in an attempt to collect the debt.
Capital One provided disclosure regarding the terms of the account when Mr. Harvey was originally authorized. He received duplicates of the account statements created, which were accurate, consisting of the balance owing, repayments, interest and fees or charges. All rates of interest and various other fees were correctly applied.
Mr. Harvey was advised many times that his failure to pay the outstanding balance would be reported to the credit reporting body companies and it can adversely affect his credit rating.
Mr. Harvey paid $200.00 on the account in question on October 27, 2014. He failed to make the minimum payment due on December 4, 2014. He as well failed to make any type of subsequent repayment, other than for a $200.00 payment around August 20, 2018.
When Capital One charged off Mr. Harvey’s very first account on June 2015, the balance owing was $841.78.
All details about the Capital One debt in the credit reports generated by Mr. Harvey were accurate and true, with the exception of one amount of $1,449.00 for a different Capital One account which Mr. Harvey would not admit to. In his testimony, he deposed that he has no particular memory of the components of that account or any understanding of the accuracy of the information.
Other non-Capital One credit accounts referenced in Mr. Harvey’s credit record included unfavourable credit history reports. Some of his other non-Capital One credit rating accounts had actually been charged off and sent to a debt collector.
Mr. Harvey acquired a brand-new Canadian Tire Bank MasterCard around January 2019 with a $300.00 credit line, a brand-new FIDO cell phone account around September 2019, a brand-new credit line for a car loan of $22,465.00 around September 2019 and also a new Capital One MasterCard with a credit line of $300.00 around June 2018.

Capital One Bank’s evidence

Capital One’s evidence was straight forward. Credit cards revolve and are reported to the credit reporting body companies on a regular monthly basis. There is a standard conventional rating system used by all financial institutions when reporting to the reporting agencies:

Rating score	Meaning
R1	Indicates settlement on time or 1 to 30 days delinquent.
R2	31 to 60 days delinquent
R3	61 to 90 days overdue
R4	120 days overdue
R5	121 to 150 days overdue
R6	Does not exist
R7	Used only for credit counselling and bankruptcy
R8	Repossessions
R9	Account has been charged off

Mr. Harvey’s Capital One debt was reported to the credit bureaus in conformity with the legislation. By April 9, 2015, the account, 5 months overdue, was completely limited, meaning it cannot be re-opened to make purchases. An R5 score was reported to the credit reporting body companies. By May 9, 2015, it was 6 months overdue. R5 was reported once again.

Once it is 180 days past due, the account is charged off and also an R9 rating is reported. When an account is charged off, it is still reported to the credit reporting agencies and remains an R9 score. After the account was charged off, Capital One engaged various collection companies as normal to attempt to collect the debt.

As the account remains overdue, Capital One continues to report to the credit bureaus up until reporting becomes statute-barred after seven years, based upon the date of the very first payment missed. That was December 4, 2014.

This 7-year reporting period is based on legislative provisions for credit report coverage. After seven years, Capital One makes one final entry in the record which erases the entire line from the credit bureau history. The credit reporting body companies have a similar procedure so they will remove this information also.

The Court’s analysis

The Court’s analysis was simple. It rejected all of the plaintiff’s submissions. The Court stated that the plaintiff never even produced any evidence in support of his claim that he has suffered damages through a loss of reputation.

The Court correctly analyzed the situation. The Deputy Judge found that by Mr. Harvey’s own admission the debt was never paid and stays outstanding. Capital One is not insisting on a claim to title; it is asserting its right to report an unpaid debt throughout the 7-year reporting period under the Ontario Consumer Reporting Act. The Ontario Limitations Act and Consumer Reporting Act serve completely different legislative purposes. They are also not in conflict.

The Court sided with Capital One’s position that the case relied upon by Mr. Harvey entails an argument concerning a right vs. a remedy. In Ontario, the limitation period acts to limit the remedy to sue but not the right to be repaid.

The Court’s decision

Capital One Bank lost the right to sue Mr. Harvey after the 2-year period expired. However, on a mutually exclusive basis, it had the right to report the outstanding amount owing for a 7-year period under different provincial legislation.

The Court further stated that the ramifications to companies extending credit to others might be harmed if such information was inaccessible, merely because the creditor did not commence legal proceedings for repayment of the debt prior to the 2-year limitation period. A person’s failure or refusal to pay their debts is vital details for other creditors, to whom that very same borrower has looked to for more credit.

The Court, therefore, found in favour of Capital One Bank and awarded costs against Mr. Harvey.

Summary

This case perfectly answers the question many people ask me when they come for their free consultation. The question is either: (1) Why is this debt still showing up on my credit report because it is too late for the credit card company to sue me?; or (2) Does the statute of limitations erase my debt? As seen in Mr. Harvey’s case, the limitation period and the reporting period are two different and separate issues.

Do you have way too much debt? Prior to you getting to the phase where you can’t make ends meet and your credit report looks awful, reach out to a licensed insolvency trustee (previously called a bankruptcy trustee). In fact, if you understand that you can’t pay your financial debts, contact us.

We understand the pain and stress excessive financial debt can trigger. We can aid you to get rid of that discomfort as well as address your financial problems offering prompt action and the ideal plan.

Call Ira Smith Trustee & Receiver Inc. today. Make an appointment with one of the Ira Smith Team for a free, no-obligation consultation and you can be on your way to enjoying a carefree retirement Starting Over, Starting Now. Give us a call today so that we can help you get back to stress and pain-free life, Starting Over, Starting Now.

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Brandon Blog Post

DEBT CONSOLIDATION IN CANADA: DEBT CONSOLIDATION CANADA REVIEWS

Post author By Brandon Smith
Post date September 18, 2019

Introduction

In Brandon’s Blog, I will be talking about both the advantages and disadvantages of debt consolidation in Canada. Generally, when we hear the words “debt consolidation”, we recognize that we are talking about a loan. We are taking on a new loan, in order to repay several or many smaller outstanding balances.

What is the smartest way to consolidate debt?

People have several choices when it comes to consolidating debt. It always involves borrowing. The theory is that either:

your credit score is good enough so that you can get an unsecured loan; or
you are choosing to offer security for the loan.

The primary objective of settling your debt through this kind of borrowing is to decrease the rate of interest you are currently paying. It is very common for people to have debts spread among various credit cards.

For example, you may have amounts outstanding on 5 credit cards. You are pushing the upper limits of your approved credit. The average annual interest rate you are being charged among those credit cards is 19.9%. If you can get a home equity line of credit at say, an annual interest rate of 5.5%, the benefit is obvious. So it would be a smart choice to offer security to get a consolidation loan.

If you didn’t want to or didn’t have security to offer, you may have a good enough credit score to get an unsecured personal loan. Let’s say you could get this kind of loan at an annual interest rate of 8%. The rate may sound high in today’s interest rate environment, but it is a lot better than 19.9%. So this too would be a smart way to go.

But as I will discuss below, there is a difference between being smart about debt consolidation and settling for what makes sense!

Is it a good idea to get a debt consolidation loan?

If you can get this kind of loan and you are wise about it (more on that in a little bit), I say yes. In the example of the 5 different credit cards I gave, you are juggling multiple debts carrying a high rate of interest and are running out of credit room. The debt consolidation loan will lower the interest you are paying dramatically and will term out your payments.

You will stop being a juggler. That is an advantage.

Should I get a loan to pay off my credit cards?

In a typical debt consolidation funding, you need to get a fixed, not variable, interest rate. You also need to have a fixed repayment schedule which offers you a set time to pay it off. You do not want a variable rate of interest or a revolving line of credit. You want the loan to be automatically reduced with every payment you make, with no chance of increasing the loan for any reason.

That is the kind of loan you need to pay off your credit cards. It is that predictability and certainty that you need to work into your life. If you can get that kind of loan to pay off your credit cards, then that is an advantage and you should.

What happens when you consolidate your debt?

What happens depends on the type of loan you get to consolidate your debt. The various types of loans I have seen people get are:

an unsecured personal loan from their bank
a home equity line of credit or second mortgage
A credit card balance transfer at a promotional interest rate of either a 0% or a special introductory very low rate
in more recent times, a peer to peer loan

I already spoke about the benefits of either a home equity line of credit or an unsecured personal loan. When it comes to a balance transfer, you can obtain introduction rates that are as low as 0% or 1.99% for a specific period of time, such as 12 or 18 months. You need to have sufficient credit available on such a new balance transfer credit card to assume the total debt spread among the 5 credit cards. With banks competing for your business, it may be possible.

What happens when you are able to consolidate your debts into one loan is that you achieve simplification in your life. You now have just one settlement to make. It’s much less to keep an eye on.

Simply put, simplicity is an advantage. As long as you stay current in your new loan payment, you are working towards paying off your total debt.

How does debt consolidation affect your credit score?

Initially, debt consolidation could improve or at least maintain your credit score. Falling behind on credit card balances hurts your credit score. Paying off those loans and being current on your new debt consolidation loan can improve your credit score. However, there are some traps that you cannot fall into. If you do, then you will not have ended up fixing anything and will end up worse off.

So a debt consolidation loan in itself does not hurt your credit score and could improve it as long as you meet the repayment terms of your new loan. A discussion of the traps leads us into a discussion of the disadvantages of this kind of loan. It is important to recognize that it is not a loan that is the problem, it is the person’s behaviour.

Does a debt consolidation loan look bad?

I would rather have a new loan showing up on my credit report, than have my 5 credit card loans going bad on my credit report. A debt consolidation loan is only a loan. Debt consolidation in itself is not bad, it doesn’t look bad. An experienced financial or credit person looking at your credit report will know what you have done. However, it will also show them that you have been able to get a new loan. So it shows that a lender feels you are a good credit risk. None of that is bad.

What is bad, are the traps that you could fall into. If you fall into one of them, it could be bad for you. This is all about your behaviour, not the consolidation loan.

The disadvantages of debt consolidation in Canada

I will discuss the disadvantages of the type of loan and by behaviour.

Home equity line of credit

If you get a home equity line of credit (HELOC) that is anything other than a fixed interest rate loan that is not a revolving line of credit, you could fall into a trap. You are looking for simplicity and certainty. If your interest rate can rise if the prime rate charged by your bank rises, then you are not getting the full benefits.

Granted a 5.5% loan isn’t going to rise to a 19.9% interest rate, but your room for interest rate increases may be small. If a 1% or 2% increase in the interest rate would make the difference between you being able to afford the repayment and not being able to make them, you will constantly be worried about it in an increasing interest rate environment.

You also want to make sure that the HELOC is not a revolving line of credit. Once you make a payment, you want the principal portion of a paydown by each payment to be permanent. You cannot be enticed about the ability to borrow more on the line. Remember, you took on this loan to pay off debt, not to either remain at the same debt level or to increase it.

So having to pay more interest or being able to go deeper into debt are two traps to avoid with this kind of loan.

A credit card balance transfer at a promotional interest rate

As I mentioned earlier, normally these zero or very low-interest promotional rate is for a fixed period of time. So if you can repay the whole amount, in the monthly payments required, within the time period given, it is a great thing. However, if you can’t, then your promotional interest rate goes up to probably at least the average 19.9% rate in our example. Now you are back to where you started.

Maybe you missed a payment; either because something got in your way or inadvertently. Normally when this happens, you immediately lose your promotional interest rate and a fee is charged. That is a disadvantage.

You may have used this method because you were being chased by a bank for your business, but could have used one of the other methods at the time. If that is the case, and you plan for replacing the promotional interest rate loan balance before it reprices, with one of the other methods, then great. However, if you don’t, then you are back to where you started. Maybe not worse off (see more below), but certainly no better, other than for the principal you were able to pay down.

An unsecured loan

Just like a HELOC, if the unsecured loan cannot revolve and has a fixed rate of interest, that is a good thing. If it does revolve and you have not paid down any principal, and/or your interest rate rose, that is a trap. That is a disadvantage.

Do consolidation loans work?

This is where we talk about the biggest trap or the greatest benefit. It all comes down to answering this one question. Has your behaviour changed?

Debt consolidation in Canada is a terrific device when your behaviour changes. The first step to changing your spending behaviour is to budget. I have written several of Brandon’s Blogs on the topic of the need to have a proper household budget and stick to it.

But what if your behaviour doesn’t change? Did you close out the 5 other credit card accounts when you did the debt consolidation loan? Or, did you keep them open and keep running up the balances for spending greater than your income, while paying down your debt consolidation loan?

They were paid down to zero when you consolidated them. Now you have run them back up and have only made the minimal necessary payments. So, once more, you have overspent and are now back to the same stress-filled life as before. There is only one thing different now – you owe even more money, so your life has worsened. Your credit score is probably worse now too.

So if you change your financial behaviour, debt consolidation works well. If you don’t, then it doesn’t either.

What can you do now that a debt consolidation is no longer an option?

There are various options available. Most will negatively impact your credit score and provide a worse credit report. However, when you have run out of options, perhaps a lower credit score stopping you from taking on more debt might be a good thing. Maybe the fact that no one will loan you more money is what you needed as a wake-up call to once and for all get back on track.

The options include:

***Credit counselling* *and budgeting***

Many people require aid with things such as:

budgeting
accomplishing certain financial objectives
a spending plan
learning how to use credit wisely

Often times as soon as this assistance is received, people can continue by themselves with no more troubles.

A consumer proposal or Division I Proposal

A consumer proposal and also a Division 1 proposal are alternatives to bankruptcy. Although equivalent in numerous facets, there are some substantial differences. Consumer proposals are used by people whose debts aren’t greater than $250,000, not consisting of any kind of financial debts registered against your home. Division 1 proposals are for both companies, and for people debts exceed $250,000 (again leaving out home mortgages).

A consumer proposal is a procedure under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. B-3) (BIA). With the licensed insolvency trustee (Trustee) you make a proposal to:

pay your creditors a portion of what you owe them over a certain period of time not greater than 5 years.
prolong the time you have to pay what you promise to pay in your accepted proposal.
a mix of both

Payments are made to the Trustee. That cash pays the administration fees of your proposal and distributes money to your creditors. When you have made all the required payments, the balance of your debt that you did not pay is written off and discharged forever (with certain exceptions outlined in the BIA).

These are your realistic options, once a debt consolidation in Canada option is no longer viable.

Summary

I hope this Brandon’s Blog has provided you with some insight into when debt consolidation is a useful tool and its advantages. I also hope you can see where it could also be a trap for some people. If debt consolidation relieves the pressure on you because of the state of your finances AND motivates you to budget and bring your spending in line, then it is a good thing.

If it does not change the necessary behaviour pattern that got you into financial trouble in the first place, then things will only get worse. Is it now time for you to take a positive step in the right direction to free yourself from your debts?

Are you in financial distress? Do you not have enough money to pay your creditors as your bills come due?

If so, call the Ira Smith Team today. We have decades and generations of experience assisting people looking for financial restructuring, a debt settlement plan and to AVOID bankruptcy.

A restructuring proposal is a government-approved debt settlement plan to do that. We will help you decide on what is best for you between a restructuring proposal vs bankruptcy.

Call the Ira Smith Team today so you can eliminate the stress, anxiety, and pain from your life that your financial problems have caused. With the one-of-a-kind roadmap, we develop just for you, we will immediately return you right into a healthy and balanced problem-free life.

You can have a no-cost analysis so we can help you fix your troubles. Call the Ira Smith Team today. This will allow you to go back to a new healthy and balanced life, Starting Over Starting Now.

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Brandon Blog Post

COLLECTION AGENCY ONTARIO: HOW DO COLLECTION AGENCIES WORK IN ONTARIO?

Post author By Brandon Smith
Post date August 19, 2019

If you would prefer to listen to the audio version of this collection agency Ontario Brandon’s Blog, please scroll to the bottom of this page and click on the podcast

Introduction

In many of the free consultations I provide, the issue of collection agency Ontario arises. More often than not, people and companies that are insolvent, experience harassing phone calls from debt collectors.

In fact, in certain corporate bankruptcy or receivership matters that I handle, there are certain situations where I hire a collection agency. They can be very effective in collecting amounts owing to the insolvent company.

The purpose of this collection agency Ontario Brandon’s Blog is to answer the top 4 questions that I am asked about collection agencies.

1 – How do collection agencies work in Ontario

In Ontario, debt collectors need to be signed up and should adhere to the guidelines outlined in the Collection and Debt Settlement Services Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. C.14 and its regulations.

The Ontario Ministry of Government and Consumer Services registers and controls these firms.

Ontario registered collection agencies must first send you a personal letter by mail or email. Their letter should include:

details on just how much you owe as well as the kind of product and services that put you in debt
the name of the business/individual you owe money to
the amount of the debt on the day it was initially due and payable and, if different, the level of debt presently owing
advice that a breakdown of the present amount owing will be offered upon demand
the name of the collection agency and also the individual collector that is requiring payment of the financial debt
that the debt collector is registered in and as a collection agency Ontario
the contact details of the debt collection agency, including the complete mailing address, phone number and, if applicable for communication, their email address
a disclosure statement, which discusses your legal rights and the steps you can take if you believe the debt collection company has broken the law

After the agency sends out the letter they need to wait six days prior to their next effort to get the payment of the financial debt.

Collection agencies work on a commission basis. They get to keep a percentage of the debts collected on behalf of their respective clients.

2 – Can a collection agency sue you in Ontario?

The short answer is yes.

A collection agency, once it gets approval from its client, the party that feels you owe them money, can sue you. If it is a large amount of money, they will definitely hire a lawyer to do it. If it is a smaller amount that can be handled by Small Claims Court, they might hire a lawyer, a paralegal, or just have one of the collectors do it him or herself in Court.

The rules of the Court will apply. The collection agency will issue a Statement of Claim against you. You will then have the time the Court allows to file your defence. The Court will look at all the evidence before it and render its judgment. If you are found liable for the debt, then the collection agency can attempt to enforce the judgment against you. They will try to garnishee your bank account and/or a portion of your wages.

Keep in mind that in Ontario, the Limitations Act, 2002, S.O. 2002, c. 24, Sched. B has a fundamental restriction of 2 years. Anyone has specifically two years, starting from the day you first recognized or should have known, that a loss occurred, to file a claim and sue. The two year period would start running the day the person trying to collect a debt from you first contacted you about your being in default.

For example, a credit card company writes to you telling you that you are in default and asks that you pay up in full or else they will take further action against you. You don’t reply or pay, and they write to you again threatening legal action. Again you don’t respond or pay, and then you get a letter from a collection agency. The collection agency then sues you.

The collection agency is only the agent of the credit card company. The debt they are collecting is not their own, it is the debt of the credit card company. So, the first date the credit card company knew of a loss is not the first time you are contacted by the collection agency. It is the first time you are contacted by the credit card company. That is the day you start counting the two years from.

If the collection agency begins its lawsuit against you more than 2 years after the date the credit card company first advised you that you are in default, it is too late.

3 – How long can a collection agency collect on a debt in Ontario?

This is always a fascinating question for me. Even if the 2-year statute of limitations kicks in, all that means is that you cannot be sued any longer. It does not mean that you no longer owe the money. Most normal people, if they know they can’t be sued, will not pay. However, since the collection agency works on commission, it does not mean that they will necessarily stop calling you to ask for the money, even though they can no longer sue you.

You will always owe that debt. The Ontario Court of Appeal confirmed this in the case of Grant v. Equifax Canada Co., 2016 ONCA 500 (CanLII). In that case, the Court ruled that if you owe money, even if it is too late for you to be sued, it can still show up on your credit report in Ontario. The Court of Appeal went on to say just because a creditor misses the deadline or chooses not to sue within the two-year period it doesn’t mean that the debt still isn’t owed.

The only way in Ontario short of paying off the debt, or a lesser settlement amount, is to file either a consumer proposal or assignment in bankruptcy. Once you successfully complete your consumer proposal or get your discharge from bankruptcy, that debt and all other unsecured debts are wiped out. They are discharged. However, if the only debt you are not paying is the one the collection agency is trying to collect, an insolvency filing may be a very drastic and unnecessary step.

To find out for sure, you would have to consult with either a lawyer or a licensed insolvency trustee (formerly called a bankruptcy trustee).

4 – How do I stop a collection agency?

The only real way to stop a collection agency in Ontario is to either pay off the debt in full or arrange for a debt settlement and pay it. The settlement can be an immediate payment for less than the total amount owed, or paying off some amount over time.

If you cannot make a settlement with them that you can afford to pay and live up to, then you the only other way is to do an insolvency filing. As I mentioned above, in the case of an individual person, that would be either a consumer proposal or filing for bankruptcy. In the case of a company, it would be either a restructuring proposal or bankruptcy.

Are you on the edge of insolvency? Are bill collectors hounding you? Are you ducking all your phone calls to the point where your voicemail box is always full?

If so, you need to call me today. As a licensed insolvency trustee we are the only professionals licensed, recognized as well as supervised by the federal government to give insolvency assistance. We are also the only authorized party in Canada to apply remedies under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act (Canada). I can definitely help you to choose what is best for you to free you from your financial debt issues.

Call the Ira Smith Team today so we can get free you from the stress, anxiety, and discomfort that your cash issues have created. With the distinct roadmap, we establish simply for you, we will without delay return you right into a healthy and balanced problem-free life, Starting Over Starting Now.

Call the Ira Smith Group today.

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Brandon Blog Post

ANNUAL CREDIT REPORT CANADA REVIEW: A DEBACLE REQUIRES 1 IN 6 CANADIANS TO QUICKLY NEED IT

Post author By Brandon Smith
Post date July 31, 2019

Annual credit report Canada: Introduction

On Monday, July 29, 2019, Capital One Financial Corp. (Capital One) reported a huge data breach. On the same day, Capital One announced that the FBI arrested a suspect, Paige A. Thompson. She is a Seattle software engineer. It is reported that the breach concerns 100 million individuals in the United States and approximately 6 million people in Canada touched in some capability by this violation. There are about 37 million people living in Canada. That is why I say that 1 in 6 Canadians will want an annual credit report Canada.

In Canada, Capital One issues and administers the Costco and Hudson’s Bay MasterCard. So, if you have one of those credit cards, then you have a high probability of having had your information hacked.

Annual credit report Canada: What Capital One said

Capital One claims there were no credit card account numbers or login details swiped. They also state that most of the Americans and Canadians impacted were from small companies that requested a bank card from 2005 through 2019. The jeopardized information consisted of information typical to such applications. Names, addresses, zip and postal codes, phone numbers, email addresses, dates of birth and annual income.

However, Capital One also admitted that for its US customers, 140,000 Social Security numbers for bank card clients and also 80,000 connected savings account numbers were also exposed. For Canadian customers, about 1 million social insurance numbers were obtained by the hacker.

Capital One’s press release has tried to downplay the data breach by saying how low the number of stolen data was. But that is still a great deal of stolen personal details for 106 million people in North America. I bet none of those people think that it was not a big deal!

Capital One said they are going to make free credit monitoring and identity protection available to everyone involved. I am sure that many attorneys will be asking a simple question: In the wake of the Equifax data breach, what did Capital One do to reinforce its cybersecurity? I am sure more will be reported on this over time.

Annual credit report Canada: What to do immediately if you might be affected

If you have ever applied for a Capital One card over that 14-year span, you could be affected. As I mentioned at the beginning, about 1 in 6 Canadians are at risk. No statements or other evidence has come out yet as to what Ms. Thompson did with the information, if anything if it was me, I would take certain steps to protect myself. Identity theft is what I would be most worried about.

The very first thing I would do is change my login credentials and password to my Capital One online account. Depending on what email address I use for that account, I would consider whether that email account was essential for me or could I use a new one. If essential, I would make sure that I had sufficient cybersecurity over the email account. In either case, I would make sure that I had proper security on any computer or device I might use to access my Capital One account.

In Canada, there are two credit reporting agencies or credit bureau Canada; Equifax Canada (Equifax) and TransUnion Canada (TransUnion). Unfortunately in Canada, unlike in the USA, you cannot put a freeze on your credit report. A freeze would require anyone wanting to access your credit files to first get your permission on a case by case basis.

However, in Canada, you can put a fraud alert on your credit report. I would contact both Equifax and TransUnion to see if they would let me put such an alert on my credit report. The alert would be that you believe you are a victim of the Capital One data breach in 2019. It is possible though that unless I could prove that a problem already existed, they may not let me. However, that would not stop me from trying.

I would also order my free annual credit report Canada to make sure that there are not any items showing up that you never applied for.

These are the three things that I would do immediately.

Annual credit report Canada: There are other things I would also do to protect myself

Next, I would watch my credit card statements very carefully when they arrive each month. I would look for any suspicious transactions and investigate them. If there were any, I would, of course, report them to the credit card issuer immediately. No doubt they would shut down my card and issue a new one to me.

If my information was sold or otherwise shared by the hacker, I would expect to receive phishing scam emails. I would be most vigilant not to succumb to any of them. I would mark them spam immediately, without clicking on any of the links.

I might also expect to receive scam phone calls to at least the phone number(s) I provided to Capital One. I would never share personal information over the telephone with someone calling me, even if it sounds legitimate. I would ask them for their company employee and contact details and then hang up. I would then do my own sleuthing to determine if that phone call was real or someone trying to pull a scam on me. You cannot rely on your caller id, since spoofing software exists to create a phony number resembling a legitimate company.

If you receive any calls from a credit card company or collection agency about an overdue account that you do not recognize, that to is a result of identity theft. Criminals take out credit cards and loans in the name of the person whose identity they stole. You don’t find out about it until the bank calls or writes you about your delinquent account.

Finally, both Equifax and TransUnion allow you to obtain an annual credit report Canada. I would not request both an Equifax Canada free credit report and a TransUnion Canada free credit report at the same time. Rather, I would first get, say, a TransUnion free credit report immediately and keep it as my baseline.

Then, 6 months later, I would request my Equifax free annual credit report Canada to compare. I would be looking for any credit inquiries from parties that I never made a credit application to or don’t currently have a credit line with. I would use this alternating procedure for a while to make sure nothing funny was going on in my credit files.

Conclusion for annual credit report Canada

I hope you enjoyed this annual credit report Canada Brandon’s Blog. Are you the victim of identity theft? Has your stolen information been used to run up debts in your name? Are you on the verge of bankruptcy? Do not wait till it is far too late to understand how you can restructure your financial affairs and avoid bankruptcy. You do not need to be one more person or company declaring bankruptcy in Canada.

As a licensed insolvency trustee (formerly called a bankruptcy trustee), we are the only specialists certified, accredited and overseen by the federal government to provide insolvency guidance and to apply remedies under the BIA. We will certainly help you to choose what is best for you to release you from your debt problems.

Call the Ira Smith Team today so we can get rid you for you the stress, anxiety, pain and discomfort that your money issues have created. With the distinct roadmap, we establish simply for you, we will without delay return you right into a healthy and balanced problem-free life, Starting Over Staring Now. Call the Ira Smith Team today.annual credit report canada

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Brandon Blog Post

BORROW WELL REVIEW GUIDE: BORROWELL REVIEW FREE CREDIT SCORE METHOD

Post author By Brandon Smith
Post date May 13, 2019

If you would prefer to listen to the audio version of this Brandon’s Blog Borrow Well Review please scroll to the bottom and click on the podcast

Introduction

Have you ever before wondered what your credit score is and what your credit history looks like? I’m certain if you ever before looked for a home mortgage, a loan, to rent a home or apartment or applied for an insurance policy, you recognize that your credit rating ends up being crucial. The loan provider, landlord or insurance provider will certainly decide on you based upon your credit history. This Brandon’s Blog is about the totally free credit report system of Borrowell Inc.; a Borrow Well review.

Inspecting your credit rating has actually generally been a really laborious job and nobody really liked to do it. With the surge of consumer FinTech over the last couple of years, two businesses have actually seen a method to produce an on the internet industry for personal loans in Canada; 1. Credit Karma Canada; and 2. Borrowell Inc. Credit Karma Canada is owned by its United States parent. Borrowell is a 100% Canadian owned firm.

Borrow Well review

I have previously blogged about Credit Karma Canada. Borrowell runs in a comparable way. Borrowell’s goal is quite straightforward. They wish to assist Canadians to make fantastic choices concerning credit and debt. They began life as a consumer lender. Borrowell thought that customers wanted personal loans. They started the firm making loans for people with excellent credit.

Borrowell discovered that it was pricey to obtain customers. Their customer acquisition cost was very high. It was a tough issue to fix. What they did was come to be the 1st business in Canada to supply credit scores absolutely free. They assumed this would be a wonderful method to obtain clients and promote what Borrowell did. They thought that it would certainly be an excellent method to make loans.

How it works

The trouble was that they were thousands of people a week inspecting their credit report, however, few of them either desired or fit the Borrowell standards for, loans. Borrowell found that people desired various financial products and not everyone had good credit. So they invested most of 2017 in developing a marketplace.

They developed an online forum for around 40 various financial institutions and other lenders. That enabled a person to get their credit score with Borrowell, and then they can after that be taken into the sales funnel. Borrowell would after that advise of products, solutions, and pointers customized for every person from their forum of lender members. Borrowell earns a fee on loans made and other financial product sales.

They wound up discovering a high level of product market fit for roughly half a million direct customers that first examine their credit report with Borrowell. Canadians now had a very easy way to regularly see their credit score and inspect their credit history.

Utilizing the Borrowell system does not influence your credit report, unlike when you apply for a loan and the potential lender performs a credit check on you. In order to ask you the setup questions, and to have the ability to provide you with your cost-free credit report and record, Borrowell acquires information from one of our two credit reporting companies, Equifax.

Borowell additionally browses particular public document data sources to try to find various other details such as:

Bankruptcy: A legal process used by people and companies looking for particular relief from all or some their debt.
Civil Judgment: A non-criminal judgment in a court, calling for the person or company to make full or partial restitution.
Registered Items: Other things found in public documents, like a lien against your car or truck or a home mortgage or other loan registered against your house.

Know that you are in the Borrowell sales funnel

In order to stay top of mind, Borrowell updates you on your credit rating on a monthly basis and if it has actually changed for better or for worse. This is, obviously, advantageous for any person trying to enhance their credit history. Borrowell will inform you monthly the result of the activities you are taking to boost your credit score.

Borrowell will also help you recognize what variables are affecting your credit score. In this way, they inform you what you need to do to boost your credit rating. This is particularly great for anybody trying to learn about finances and general money matters. Borrowell also provides recommendations on just how to improve your credit rating.

So their system helps you to learn about:

payment history
credit usage
bad comments on your credit report
account inquiries
your credit score and report
tips for improvement

Borrowell offers you a very easy way to see just how you’re doing financially, just how much money you have invested between credit cards and automobile and various other loans. It likewise

To learn what goes into calculating your credit score and what it all means, check out my blog, WHAT IS A GOOD CREDIT SCORE IN CANADA? THE UNTOLD CREDIT SCORE SECRETS.

Is there any drawback to the Borrowell app?

The positive side is that this is a very easy and effective method of looking into yourself in a reliable way none of our Canadian banks have actually done. Nonetheless, I likewise have some worries.

The financial partners in the Borrowell financial marketplace have to pay a fee. That charge needs to be accounted for in the price of the financial products sold. If there is competition amongst marketplace financial members, this may keep pricing consistent and competitive within the various credit score buckets. Perhaps this marketplace also gives people access to financial products they otherwise may not be able to find or get on their own.

It is safe to presume that people using this system are working on boosting their credit score. The financial partners might be costing their products for those that have actually not attained sufficient credit strength to go and negotiate the price they will be paying with any Bank. So for those with a good credit rating, this may mean that the cost of any kind of financial product via the Borrowell portal could be greater than otherwise readily available to them if they spent the time investigating.

My main concern is more generic. It would be the same as with any system like this. They maintain a great deal of highly personal and sensitive information on Canadians which they regularly update.

There are many criminals around the world who would like nothing better than to hack the Borrowell database in order to get at this information to further their devious and illegal schemes. Stealing your identity, or identity theft is, of course, the big one.

Think no further than September 7, 2017, when Equifax announced that months-long illegitimate access to its credit-report databases had led to the breach of personally identifiable information of over 148 million people, nearly all in the USA. That is the real danger I am talking about. As I mentioned, that is a danger with any computerized system storing highly sensitive information, not just a Borrowell issue.

Borrow Well Review: Do you have a negative credit report?

I hope this Borrowell review has helped you gain a better understanding. Question: Have you lost the ability to borrow because of a bad credit score? Are you having trouble making your monthly payments? Is your business dealing with financial challenges that require to be addressed immediately?

Call the Ira Smith Team today if so. We have years and generations of experience helping people and businesses seeking financial restructuring or a debt negotiation strategy. As a licensed insolvency trustee, we are the only specialists acknowledged, accredited and overseen by the federal government to supply insolvency advice and implement solutions to help you to remain free from bankruptcy.

Call the Ira Smith Team today so you can end your anxiety, anxiousness, and discomfort today. With the roadmap we establish one-of-a-kind to your scenario, we will promptly return you right into a well balanced, healthy and carefree life.

You can have a no-cost evaluation to help you to fix your credit and debt difficulties. With you, we will discover your monetary pain factors and make use of an approach to free them from your life. This will definitely enable you to start with a clean slate, Starting Over Starting Now.

Tags Bankruptcy, bankruptcy trustee, borrow well review, borrowell, borrowell app, borrowell inc, borrowell review, credit history, credit karma canada, credit rating, credit report, credit score, credit usage, Equifax, free credit score, Ira Smith Trustee, licensed insolvency trustee, payment history

Brandon Blog Post

WHAT IS A GOOD CREDIT SCORE IN CANADA? THE UNTOLD CREDIT SCORE SECRETS

Post author By Brandon Smith
Post date April 3, 2019

What is a good credit score in Canada: Introduction

I have previously written reviews of the two main companies that can give you your credit score for free in Canada. The two are Credit Karma Canada and Borrowell. It is one thing to know what your credit score is. But what does that number mean? Do you have control over how to increase your credit score? To answer those questions, you must know the topic I am writing about in this Brandon’s Blog. What is a good credit score in Canada?

Your credit rating

There are three main points you need to learn about your credit rating. In Canada, your credit score is a number between 300 and 900. Lenders use this to forecast just how likely you are to be responsible with the money they are considering providing you. Will you pay back the cash you are asking they fund you?

The greater your score number, the more probable you are to be an excellent wager to be able to pay back what you owe. Your credit history is composed of five elements:

Your payment history composes 35%.
How much debt you owe comprises 30%.
The length of your history makes up 15%.
10% comes from the sorts of loans or credit cards you have.
Just how often you typically apply to borrow has a 10% effect.

A better understanding

Let’s drill down on this a little more. The greatest chunk is your repayment history. This checks out whether you’re making your payments on time. If you’re late on repayments, exactly how often are you late or are there financial obligations in the enforcement and collection process. How much debt you owe takes into account how much debt is owed and how much borrowing room is still available to you.

The length of your borrowing history considers how long you’ve had your loan products for. The longer you’ve had them the better it is for your history. Types of credit look at the range of items you have. A brand-new application is when you ask for a new loan. New loan applications stay on your report for three years. Applying many times decreases your score.

The theory is that if you keep applying, you are having 2 problems. The first is that you keep needing new loans for some reason. The second problem is that you must keep being turned down in order for you to need to keep applying.

Hard and soft hits

When you apply for a new loan, the potential lender performs a check on you. This produces what is known as a hard hit which can negatively impact your score. When you pull your own reports, such as through Credit Karma Canada or Borrowell, this makes what they call a soft hit. This won’t negatively impact your score.

How often should I check my score?

You might be wondering do you need to look at your own score monthly? I am here to tell you that you don’t. Your rating adjusts throughout the month based on the five items I spoke of above. So your rating can look different from month to month.

If you’re exercising excellent credit rating behaviour a new report will certainly show that. Likewise, if you are not acting responsibly, your report and your score will show that. What I do recommend you do is check your rating by pulling an annual credit report. You do this to ensure that your record is exact and there are no errors in it.

The most effective time to check the accuracy of your report would certainly be prior to you making a huge purchase for something like a home or vehicle. You recognize that your lender will certainly perform a check. It is to your benefit to make sure everything on your rating profile looks good and is error free.

In that situation, where a lot is riding on the precision and completeness of your report, you would go directly to the two main score rating companies in Canada; Equifax Canada and TransUnion Canada. You will certainly have to pay for them to generate an Equifax or TransUnion score and history report for you. What you pay them to understand that your record is precise and totally error-free is worth that peace of mind.

4 things you must know about your score

To summarize, the 4 things you must know about your score are:

Your credit score in Canada is a number between 300 and 900.
Lenders use your credit score to forecast just how likely you are to be responsible with the credit they are considering providing you.
The greater your credit score number, the more probable you are to be an excellent wager to be able to pay back what you owe.
Your credit history is composed of five elements:
1. your payment history composes 35%;
2. how much debt you owe comprises 30%;
3. the length of your credit history makes up 15%;
4. 10% comes from the sorts of credit you have;
5. just how often you typically apply for new credit has a 10% effect; and
6. lastly, you don’t need to check the credit score all the time.

You might have a concern about, and ask yourself, is Credit Karma Canada safe? Is Borrowell safe? The answer is yes, but you still may have a concern. You are providing each of them with very personal information about yourself when you first sign up for their respective services. Then they do on a regular basis perform a credit score check on you. These are soft hits, so it won’t affect your score. However, they are updating your private personal information which stays on their database. Anytime such sensitive information is on a computer server, there is, of course, a danger from hackers.

The reason they regularly check your credit situation is so they can then send you an email about any change to your credit score – good or bad. They do this for two reasons. The first is to alert you about their latest finding of your credit report. The second reason is to give you a reason to go to their website. Their hope, of course, is while you are on their site seeing the change to your credit score, perhaps you will stay and look at some of the products they offer to produce revenue for themselves.

What is a good credit score in Canada: What about you?

I hope this what is a good credit score in Canada blog has helped you gain a better understanding. Question: Have you lost the ability to borrow because of a bad credit score? Are you having trouble making your monthly payments? Is your business dealing with financial challenges that require to be addressed immediately?

Call the Ira Smith Team today if so. We have years along with generations of experience aiding people and companies looking for financial restructuring or a debt settlement plan. As a licensed insolvency trustee, we are the only professionals recognized, licensed and supervised by the Federal government to provide insolvency advice and services to assist you to stay clear of bankruptcy.

Call the Ira Smith Team today so you can end your stress, anxiety and pain today. With the roadmap we develop unique to your situation, we will swiftly return you right into a balanced, healthy and carefree life.

You can have a no-cost assessment to assist you to repair your credit and debt troubles. With you, we will uncover your financial discomfort points and use a method to rid them from your life. This will absolutely allow you to begin a fresh start, Starting Over Starting Now.

Tags annual credit report, borrowell Canada, credit history, credit karma canada, credit rating, credit report, credit score, Debt, Equifax Canada, good credit score, Ira Smith Trustee, is credit karma canada safe, licensed insolvency trustee, repayment history, transunion canada, what is a good credit score in canada

Brandon Blog Post

FILING FOR BANKRUPTCY IN CANADA: INTENSE MENTAL HEALTH & DISCHARGED BANKRUPTCY

Post author By Brandon Smith
Post date June 20, 2018

Filing for bankruptcy in Canada: Introduction

With filing for bankruptcy in Canada, if a person’s discharge is opposed, there must be a court hearing. At the hearing, the court will decide if the discharge will occur. Once the discharge is granted, the person will be relieved of his or her debts as of the day he or she filed for bankruptcy (with certain exceptions) and will be free to start rebuilding his or her credit rating and financial future.

Filing for bankruptcy in Canada: Court of Appeal for Ontario decision

The purpose of my blog is to describe a March 2018 Court of Appeal for Ontario decision, Kuczera (Re), 2018 ONCA 322 (CanLII). This is an important decision in how mental health issues intersect with the bankruptcy discharge process.

Mr. Kuczera’s financial problems began with a costly and hotly contested divorce proceedings. With his debts mounting and the divorce proceedings continuing, Mr. Kuczera filed a consumer proposal. As a result of the ongoing family law battle, his mental health deteriorated and he became clinically depressed. He was no longer able to cope with life and was unable to work.

Filing for bankruptcy in Canada: Defaulting on the consumer proposal

Up to this point, he was making the consumer proposal payments. His default in the consumer proposal caused it to be annulled. The consumer proposal was his attempt to get out of bankruptcy, as he first used filing for bankruptcy in Canada with an assignment in bankruptcy first. So, Mr. Kuczera now remained an undischarged bankrupt.

filing for bankruptcy in canada

Filing for bankruptcy in Canada: The bankruptcy discharge hearing

Mr. Kuczera represented himself in Bankruptcy Court on his discharge hearing. He tried to show the Registrar in Bankruptcy that he tried his best to live up to all of his bankruptcy obligations to the licensed insolvency trustee, but due to his mental health issues, he could not. Unfortunately, his evidence was only a basic report from his psychiatrist.

The Registrar did not grant an absolute discharge. Rather, based on the evidence in front of her, she ordered that a discharge be granted only after payment of the outstanding balance under the consumer proposal, and one other minor condition. The Registrar went on to state that he was held responsible for his situation.

Filing for bankruptcy in Canada: Appeal of the Registrar’s decision

Mr. Kuczera was able to hire a lawyer to appeal the Registrar’s decision to a Judge sitting in Bankruptcy Court. The Judge refused to consider fresh evidence in the form of more descriptive psychiatric reports supporting the summary findings presented at the original discharge hearing. The Judge dismissed Mr. Kuczera’s appeal.

Filing for bankruptcy in Canada: Appeal of the Judge’s decision

He now had his lawyer appeal the Judge’s decision to the Court of Appeal for Ontario. The Court of Appeal disagreed with the approach of the appeal judge. The Court of Appeal could not understand why the appeal judge would not allow the more detailed reports from Mr. Kuczera’s treating psychiatrist. These new detailed reports were further to the summary report provided to the Registrar.

The Court of Appeal went on to say that neither the Registrar nor the appeal judge gave proper weight to the psychiatric evidence. It also went on to say that a discharge condition requiring Mr. Kuczera to pay the payments due under the consumer proposal would not be “difficult”, as described by the Registrar. Rather, the Court of Appeal said that it would be “crushing”.

filing for bankruptcy in canada

Filing for bankruptcy in Canada: What the Court of Appeal found

So the Court of Appeal found that:

the appeal judge erred by not considering the fresh psychiatric report evidence;
The need for the bankrupt to pay the balance of the consumer proposal payments would be crushing; and
The fresh psychiatric evidence was compelling.

Given the length of time that Mr. Kuczera remained in bankruptcy, and considering the above factors, the three-judge panel in the Court of Appeal for Ontario unanimously agreed that Mr. Kuczera gets his absolute discharge from bankruptcy.

Filing for bankruptcy in Canada: Mental health issues

Mental health issues are at the forefront of the news. Most recently, both Kate Spade and Anthony Bourdain committed suicide because of mental health issues. I believe that as society recognizes mental health issues as a legitimate illness or disability, you will see it influencing Bankruptcy Court decisions. That certainly was the case for Mr. Kuczera.

Filing for bankruptcy in Canada: Debt after your bankruptcy discharge

After receiving your bankruptcy discharge, NOBODY can try to collect this debt again. Discharged debt cannot appear on your credit report as anything other than a zero balance. Sometimes collection agencies report a discharged debt to the credit bureaus, hoping you will pay off the debt and not correct the information with the credit bureaus. The debt will still incorrectly appear on your credit report.

Filing for bankruptcy in Canada: Discharged debt and your credit report

When discharged debt re-appears on your credit reports, it affects your credit score and can result in higher interest rates or credit denials. Sometimes debt collectors buy discharged debt, knowing they can’t collect on it, but hoping you don’t know that.

These debt collectors may tell you that the discharge doesn’t apply to them because they are not the original creditor. Don’t be fooled. Creditors who attempt to collect a discharged debt are violating a court order. The court can stop them, and they may even have to pay damages.

Discharged debt should not show on your credit report except as a zero balance – Monitor your credit report and be proactive. A discharged debt is not valid and is not collectible.

Filing for bankruptcy in Canada: Do you have too much debt?

I hope that you have found this information helpful. Bankruptcy is the last thing we try to do for a person in financial difficulty. If caught early enough, we can get involved in a debt settlement restructuring program for you.

The Ira Smith Team knows that you are worried because you are facing significant financial challenges. The stress placed upon you is enormous. We understand your pain points.

Contact the Ira Smith Team today. We know how to solve your financial challenges, remove your pain and put things back on a healthy path. Contact us today for your free consultation so that we can save your life, Starting Over Starting Now.

Brandon Blog Post

AFTER BANKRUPTCY DISCHARGE CANADA: LIVE WELL AFTER A BANKRUPTCY DISCHARGE

Post author By Brandon Smith
Post date May 23, 2018

after bankruptcy discharge canada

After bankruptcy discharge Canada: Introduction

The purpose of my blog is to provide ideas and suggestions on how a person can fulfill one of the aims of the Canadian insolvency system. That is to carry out successful financial rehabilitation and live profitably and happily after bankruptcy discharge Canada.

After bankruptcy discharge Canada: You are not alone

In 2017, 122,198 Canadians went for either bankruptcy or a restructuring proposal. The split was roughly even. These people and their families underwent significant financial and emotional pain. In January and February 2018 together, 19,082 Canadians went for either bankruptcy or a restructuring proposal. The split favoured restructuring proposals slightly.

After bankruptcy discharge Canada: Your financial slate is now clean

Your financial slate is wiped clean. However, your credit score has taken a beating. Now is the time to not squander the opportunity you have for financial rehabilitation. Notation of your bankruptcy stays on your credit report for 7 years after your bankruptcy discharge. In the case of a restructuring proposal, the notation remains on your credit report for 3 years after successful completion of your financial restructuring.

After bankruptcy discharge Canada: My 10 step program to live profitably after a bankruptcy discharge

So how can a discharged bankrupt hop on a rapid course to a bankruptcy rebound? Here are my suggestions:

Use your bankruptcy experience to improve your financial education. Take a course on practical money management.
You won’t have any credit cards so you have to rely more on cash. Use an envelope system so that every payday you segregate your cash into envelopes, each marked with an essential family expense. Make sure the cash is used only for those essential purposes and no cheating. No borrowing from the envelopes!
Points 1 and 2 above lead naturally into the next point. Sit down with the entire family and work out a monthly budget. Your total expenses cannot be more than your total income, after income tax, for the month. If everyone is involved in setting it up, then they will all understand if you just can’t afford something in a certain month. Also, they will all be helping you stay on budget.
You do need to find a way to start rebuilding credit. Obtain a secured credit card. Not the drug store variety, but the kind issued by a real credit card company. You have to deposit funds with the credit card issuer and then you get a credit limit equal to the funds deposited. Use that credit card each month, but pay off the FULL balance each month. The credit card company then reports to the credit reporting agencies that you are using credit wisely. Over time, this will improve your credit score.
Always remember the behaviours that got you into financial trouble in the first place and don’t repeat them. If it was an event outside of your control like job loss or a medical emergency, it was not your behaviour that was the cause of your financial problems.
Establish SMART goals. Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Timely goals. Setting and reaching your goals will certainly make you an economic success.
Begin building up savings. You need to be financially prepared for a life emergency. As a bare minimum, begin setting up a reserve so that you can withstand a 6 to 9 month emergency that increases your expenses or reduces your income.
Start investing in an RRSP using an RRSP loan. Take out a small RRSP loan. Use your tax savings to pay it down, and work into your budget repaying the rest of the loan, with interest, during the year. Do the same thing the following years. Not only will you build up RRSP savings, the reported loan repayments will improve your credit rating because you are using credit wisely again.
Purchase based only on your needs that are in your budget; never on your “wants”.
Do not purchase anything on impulse. Research, research and research to make sure that you are getting the best deal possible.

After bankruptcy discharge Canada: The takeaway

The takeaway? It is not easy to recover after bankruptcy discharge Canada. It is a series of small steps using modified behaviour and healthy money management skills. But it is possible. I have seen many of my past clients do it. There is not a magic pill you can take. It is a matter of concentrating and working on moving on and learning from your past mistakes. Working at it one day at a time, you will regain your self-respect and feeling of self-worth by restoring your financial and credit report health and wellness.

After bankruptcy discharge Canada: What if you have too much debt?

The Ira Smith Team knows that you are worried because you are facing significant financial challenges. The stress placed upon you is enormous. We understand your pain points.

Tags after a bankruptcy discharge, after bankruptcy, after bankruptcy discharge, after bankruptcy discharge canada, Bankruptcy, bankruptcy discharge, Canadian insolvency system, credit report, credit score, debt settlement, financial rehabilitation, insolvency, Ira Smith Trustee, monthly budget, proposal, rebuilding credit, restructuring, restructuring proposal, trustee

Credit report from Equifax: What is the Equifax Credit Score?

Credit report from Equifax: What is a Consumer Credit Reporting Agency?

What is your credit report from Equifax?

What is the Ontario Consumer Reporting Act?

Credit report from Equifax: The Angela Monaghan TransUnion Canada story

Credit report from Equifax or TransUnion: Be proactive

How Do I Get My Free Credit Report?

How do I confirm my identity?

How much does it cost to order my credit report?

Correct an inaccuracy on your Equifax credit report: How do I dispute my credit report from Equifax?

Spot identity theft early. Review your credit reports.

What is credit monitoring?

Credit report from Equifax summary

Soft credit check introduction: What is a credit score?

Overview: Hard vs. Soft inquiries on your credit report (And Why They Matter)

More details: What is the difference between hard and soft credit inquiries?

How could a hard credit check affect your credit score when a soft credit check will not?

Soft credit check: How your initial credit limit is determined

Soft credit check: Who creates your credit report and credit score?

Can a lender do a soft credit check or any type of inquiry without my permission?

Soft credit check: How long inquiries stay on your credit report

Home & Car Insurance Savings From Good Credit Scores

Can prospective employers perform a credit check on me?

Soft credit check a summary

What is a credit reporting body?

What are the major credit reporting agencies in Canada?

How do I get a free copy of my credit file?

The Court case

The agreed statement of facts

Capital One Bank’s evidence

The Court’s analysis

The Court’s decision

Summary

Introduction

What is the smartest way to consolidate debt?

Is it a good idea to get a debt consolidation loan?

Should I get a loan to pay off my credit cards?

What happens when you consolidate your debt?

How does debt consolidation affect your credit score?

Does a debt consolidation loan look bad?

The disadvantages of debt consolidation in Canada

Home equity line of credit

A credit card balance transfer at a promotional interest rate

An unsecured loan

Do consolidation loans work?

What can you do now that a debt consolidation is no longer an option?

Credit counselling and budgeting

A consumer proposal or Division I Proposal

Summary

If you would prefer to listen to the audio version of this collection agency Ontario Brandon’s Blog, please scroll to the bottom of this page and click on the podcast

Introduction

1 – How do collection agencies work in Ontario

2 – Can a collection agency sue you in Ontario?

3 – How long can a collection agency collect on a debt in Ontario?

4 – How do I stop a collection agency?

Annual credit report Canada: Introduction

Annual credit report Canada: What Capital One said

Annual credit report Canada: What to do immediately if you might be affected

Annual credit report Canada: There are other things I would also do to protect myself

Conclusion for annual credit report Canada

If you would prefer to listen to the audio version of this Brandon’s Blog Borrow Well Review please scroll to the bottom and click on the podcast

Introduction

Borrow Well review

How it works

Know that you are in the Borrowell sales funnel

Is there any drawback to the Borrowell app?

Borrow Well Review: Do you have a negative credit report?

What is a good credit score in Canada: Introduction

Your credit rating

A better understanding

Hard and soft hits

How often should I check my score?

4 things you must know about your score

What is a good credit score in Canada: What about you?

Filing for bankruptcy in Canada: Introduction

Filing for bankruptcy in Canada: Court of Appeal for Ontario decision

Filing for bankruptcy in Canada: Defaulting on the consumer proposal

Filing for bankruptcy in Canada: The bankruptcy discharge hearing

Filing for bankruptcy in Canada: Appeal of the Registrar’s decision

Filing for bankruptcy in Canada: Appeal of the Judge’s decision

***Credit counselling* *and budgeting***