Default on Auto Repo

[Deteria]

Hi just trying to seek some advice for a credit mishap that happened to my gf.

She made some poor mistakes with an ex a few years back, purchased a car and ended up not being able to pay for it. The vehicle got repo'd. It's been like half a year-1 year and we checked out her credit score. It's in the 600s, when before she was in the 700+.

I believe there is still an amt left on the loan, but as she is currently a student working min wage, she is unable to pay for it.

Now my questions are, in this situation, what should she personally do to rebuild her credit? Does the loan fall off after (X) amt of years? If we ever get married, would her credit score drag mine down? Would I have to buy a house by myself b4 we get married so her score won't affect my mortgage I'm able to acquire?

[bjl584]

The best way to rebuild her credit is to pay the loan back.

It will effect your ability to get a mortgage if you try to buy a house jointly. You will have to buy it on your own and have her added later unless she fixes her credit by then.

[disneysteve]

Time and good behavior are what fix a low credit score. If she pays all of her bills on time every month and doesn't overextend herself, her score will gradually improve. If she uses credit cards, she should never charge more than 30% of her available balance, so if she has a $5,000 limit, she should never charge more than $1,500 - and the bills must be paid on time.

Her credit score will not affect you unless you apply to borrow money jointly. It doesn't matter if you are married or not.

[Deteria]

Thanks for the quick responses.

From what I know, her car got repo'd. There is still some amount left from the auto loan supposedly. She has no credit card debt and the repo/remaining amt is the only thing left asides from school loans she will be acquiring this fall.

The problem now is, ever since this incident, she has not been using her credit card. Supposedly she has one under her parents, but she's not touched it for quite some time.

Regarding the married thing, I just thought I read somewhere if you were married and applying for a mortgage, the lender will look jointly or something. Maybe I misread. I was just afraid they would combine our credit scores in the future so I was trying to see how that would play out to me getting a house.

[bjl584]

From what I know, her car got repo'd. There is still some amount left from the auto loan supposedly. She has no credit card debt and the repo/remaining amt is the only thing left asides from school loans she will be acquiring this fall.

It sounds like you need to learn the details of what's going on here. Your knowledge of her past regarding this situation seems a bit vague at best. If she is someone that you plan to marry and have a life with, then you must demand full disclosure concerning this situation.

[disneysteve]

Regarding the married thing, I just thought I read somewhere if you were married and applying for a mortgage, the lender will look jointly or something. Maybe I misread. I was just afraid they would combine our credit scores in the future so I was trying to see how that would play out to me getting a house.

Your credit score is yours. It is only influenced by what you do. The only time her credit score becomes a factor is if you apply to borrow money jointly. If you buy a house and the loan is in your name only, her credit score won't matter, but also keep in mind that her income won't count either.

[debtproz]

It is called a deficiency balance. Those are pretty easy to take off your credit report and or settle. If you could contact the bank, most likely they would settle for a fraction of what is owed or file a few disputes with the credit reporting agencies ( make no written statement) and it should pop off since you are not the primary borrower.