Check your credit score

Back in October, I applied for a loan with Spring Financial. I didn't get the approval, which was eye-opening. I was also thankful that I didn't. I ended up getting a consumer proposal and focusing on fixing my finances.

Spring Financial recommended that I go with its plan of taking out a tradeline. It is kind of a loan, except that you pay a monthly fee to have this company report good things to Canada's two credit bureaus about your credit history.

I remember getting digital forms from Spring Financial. I declined signing them. I felt that this tradeline was a waste of money. I'd rather get a secured credit card and have that credit card company report my progress to the credit bureaus without paying a fee.

I went on Spring Financial's site and chatted with someone. I asked whether not signing would confirm that I didn't want the loan. The person said yes.

I had a feeling that it wasn't the case. Sure enough, I looked at my credit report that I get through Credit Karma. It's free, which is why I like it.

Spring Financial created a tradeline account for me on October 11. It reported that I was late with my payments for both November and December.

What?

First, I don't have a loan with this company. I never signed any paperwork. Second, it claims that I have a $5000 loan. I don't. Funds were never deposited into my account. Third, I missed payments for two months. I didn't know that I needed to because I don't have a loan.

A couple of days ago, I went back on Spring's chat. I got disconnected the first time. I got the same representative the second time. I wanted this alleged loan closed. I also wanted this company to fix the erroneous credit reporting to both bureaus.

Well, I got a response from Spring Financial yesterday:

We are reaching out to notify you of an issue we have identified regarding a tradeline created on your credit bureau from Spring Financial.

When you applied with Spring Financial, an account was created under your name; however, due to an error, the file submitted to the credit bureaus included inactive accounts. We have since corrected this and will be sending a revised file to the credit bureaus, informing them of the error. We have directly contacted both Equifax and TransUnion with an urgent request to address this matter promptly, however we have been informed that the update can take up to 30-60 days to reflect on each respective credit report.

We sincerely apologize for this oversight and want to assure you that once the incorrect tradeline is removed, it will have no adverse impact on your credit report or history.

We appreciate your patience as we work to resolve this matter. If you have any additional questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to reach out to us directly.

Thank you,

Customer Service

The wording is poor. I identified Spring Financial's issue that directly affects me. I had to tell you about it so that you could investigate it further. Let's be clear. Had I not reported it, Spring Financial would be ruining my credit rating and other people's credit ratings.

I'll be watching my credit score and report like a hawk to make sure that this issue is fixed. Otherwise, I have no problem following up with Spring Financial. It should not be erroneously reporting to credit bureaus when I don't have any products from this company.

I recommend checking your credit score. You don't want a company ruining your score because it is erroneously reporting details to credit bureaus.

Credit update - great news!

I haven't talked about my finances for a while. All is great!

Last hour, I checked my credit score. My credit score went up by 60 points on the Canadian scale!

It is a big deal. I have been in the poor category for a few years. I am now in the fair category. Yay!

My goal is to get my credit score in the good range. I need a credit rating of at least 713, which is doable as I continue my journey to repair my credit rating.

I'm pleased. It does take a lot of work. It's nice to see results.

Debt reduction is going well

I like the idea of providing a monthly update on reducing my debt. It is going extremely well.

July is a good month this year. I get paid three times, so I feel that I can pay off more debt.

I paid off my line of credit last month. It felt good. Luckily, the limit isn't huge. However, it took me a year to pay it off.

I still have two credit cards that are mine. I have one corporate card that sits there.

I use a MasterCard for daily purchases, such as groceries and takeout. I typically do debit, which has been helpful in reducing my debt and credit card usage. The other is an American Express card that I detest using. There is a backstory associated with my disgust for this company. The reason why I still have it is that I've been a customer since 2005 and it helps my credit rating.

As of late, I don't like these automated e-mails from American Express, stating in the subject line, "Future transactions may be declined." I am trying to figure out when this automated message disappears. It feels like Amex is being so kind to approve a transaction when my credit card isn't maxed out or close to its credit limit.

My credit score has increased by 16 points from the last score back in May. I am pleased. It has been hard work improving my credit score. I hope that it gets to a satisfactory level in twelve months. At this rate, I have a decent shot at it.

I am working from home for the rest of the year. I will continue to save more money, thanks to not commuting and fuelling my car with gas as often.

Fun soccer chat after intimate treehouse time

Our post-treehouse-time conversations are fun. It's probably because we are so relaxed and lethargic that we end up having jovial chats.

Last Saturday, we were parked in front of a soccer club office.

"We scored several goals tonight," my guy said with a smirk.
"Yes, we were goal-oriented and we scored often," I said.
"Penalties were given out," he continued.
"I got plenty of yellow and red cards. The red cards matched the colour of my butt after my spanking."

We were cuddling and laughing. It was sweet and memorable.