Everybody knows how long it stays on their credit report, but do YOU know what starts that clock?

Contrary to popular belief there is only ONE DATE that determines the true age of any credit account on your credit reports... That date is the DATE OF FIRST DELINQUENCY WITH THE ORIGINAL CREDITOR.

Let me give you an example...

If you had a credit card for which the payment was due on March 1st, 2006, and you missed that payment, and never made another payment on the account, that means that the 'date of first delinquency' in this case would be 3/1/06. That essentially means that the seven year "obsolescence" period defined in the Fair Credit Reporting Act would end on 3/1/2013. NO ONE, not the original creditor, nor any collection agency or debt collector, nor anyone else could ever report the account beyond that date, legally. It's important to note that it doesn't matter how many times a debt changes hands, from collection company to collection company, either.

Now, with all of that having been said, collection agencies and debt collectors often manipulate those dates 'accidentally' in an effort to collect information beyond the obsolescence period. But it's easy to correct if you know how... And if you don't, give me a call, and I'll be happy to help you!