About Calvin

  • Calvin Brown is the owner of Credit Restore, a score focused, debt management and credit counseling company. He works with clients of all economic levels to improve their overall credit picture for investing, mortgages, and purchasing real estate.

    He is a native Houstonian with his undergraduate work from University of Houston.  After spending 20+ years in high tech sales management, with numerous sales achievement awards, he began leading sales training seminars, and motivational counseling with high tech firms.  For 5 years with his company “SuccessMakers”, he enjoyed public speaking engagements all across the country.

    In 2005, Calvin began making regular appearances on “The Mortgage Manager” on KSEV radio and co-hosting weekly shows on Ralph Cooper’s “Sports Rap” on KCOH radio.  With guest spots on CNN650 and his own show, “Credit Strategies,” on Biz Radio, he’s a recognized local radio personality with his own following of listeners.

    Email: calvin@creditrestoreinc.com
    Website: CreditRestoreInc.com/

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    NONE OF THE OPINIONS EXPRESSED HEREIN ARE THOSE OF HOUSTONBUSINESS.COMâ„¢, THE HOUSTON BUSINESS SHOW, THE HOUSTON BUSINESS REVIEW, OR ANY OTHER FIRM OR COMPANY REPRESENTED OR REFERENCED HEREIN. FOR ADVICE OR OPINION, WE SUGGEST YOU CONTACT A QUALIFIED PROFESSIONAL OF YOUR OWN CHOOSING.

Main | March 2008 »

January 2008

January 15, 2008

Top Ten Creditors to Have an Open and Active Credit Account

  1. YOUR FRIENDLY NEIGHBORHOOD CREDIT UNION AND IN HOUSTON, WE RECOMMEND THE FOLLOWING:  Primeway FCU, First Service CU, First Community CU, Members Choice CU. 
  2. CITIBANK AND ALL ITS AFFILIATES LIKE CITI FINANCIAL/ They easily forgive late payments and encourage good credit scores by their very helpful attitudes toward their clients.  Getting credit limits increased is an easy process if the credit history is justified.  Just an overall good company!  Also community banks are an excellent resource.
  3. CHASE MANHATTAN BANK/ They provide every level of customer service to their clients and easily encourage good scores.  They sometimes will forgive 30 day payments after 6 months of on time payments.  Easy to get limits raised within reason!
  4. USAA BANK/ They are an excellent financial institution, but they only offer credit accounts to those in the military family.  This is a good company with very high value credit accounts that help your credit scores.
  5. WACHOVIA/ WORLD SAVINGS/ Another fabulous financial institution that is good for mortgage loans and credit cards.  They offer some of the best customer services available today to help their clients through any financial shortfalls.  They can be trusted to protect your credit scores when ever possible.
  6. STAR FURNITURE/ This furniture store is a Houston trademark for selling fine furniture and offering affordable financing.  They provide installment accounts for appliances and furniture to those who possess the credit requirements.  Those requirements are not unreasonable.  In an age when revolving accounts are the trend, this company offers the more affordable financing available for installment loans.  They also forgive most 30 day late payments.  This is a superb creditor.
  7. HOMECOMING FINANCIAL MORTGAGE/ This is a really fine lender that is sympathetic to your credit situation.  They also work with you and can be trusted.
  8. WELLS FARGO, WELLS FARGO FINANCIAL AND WELLS FARGO MORTGAGE/ This national financial institution is dependable and always reputable.  They are not out to harm your scores, but do expect payments in a timely manner.  They are also understanding and willing to work for their clients without jacking up the rates.  This is a fine American financial organization that deserves credit for their current policies.  They are reasonable when forgiving late payments and are generally willing to work things out.
  9. FORD MOTOR CREDIT/ Out of the top 3 automotive companies in American and worldwide, this is the best.  They forgive late payments, but are tough on repossessions as they should be.  This is a premier automotive finance organization with reasonable expectations for buyers. 
  10. CONNS APPLIANCES/ Another local company who prides themselves in offer credit to most people who show some willingness to pay as agreed.  They offer installment accounts for appliances where others offer the more costly revolving accounts.  They forgive some late payments if you have demonstrated it was just an oversight.  Even those with poor credit scores from the past, they will accept deposits on items to establish new credit accounts.  Please pay these folks as they want to help your credit scores!

HONORABLE MENTION:  TARGET DEPARTMENT STORES AND MACYS.

This report provided by www.HoustonBusinessShow.com and www.CreditRestoreInc.com.  Written by Calvin Brown, CEO of Credit Restore, Inc..  Call 281.921.4500 for more information.

January 03, 2008

TOP 10 CREDITORS TO AVOID AND WHY

  1.  BANK OF AMERICA
    • BOA is the original creator of the Visa and the first commercial national bank.
    • They give credit cards to illegal aliens who have no Social Security card.
    • They make more mistakes in reporting than all the other banks in the top 5 and those mistakes are very difficult to remedy.
    • Since acquiring MBNA last year, there have been even more mistakes. 
    • It is common for them to tack on higher interest rates, over limit fees, and other penalties when they review your FICO report. 
    • They do not inform you of an interest rate increase.
    • Our research indicates that BOA hires bankers with no drug tests or credit checks, which potentially puts all of their clients at risk.
    • Finally, there is an internal ID theft issue at BOA.  This is likely due to the afore mentioned hiring practices.
    • In sum, they tend to use their size to the detriment of their clients.
  2. DISCOVER FINANCIAL
    • One of the more difficult cards to get, declining more than they accept (which is damaging on one’s credit).
    • Yet, it is a low vale card for credit scoring.
    • They have low limits compared to Visa and Mastercard.
    • They depict themselves as a valuable card anyone can get if they only apply.
    • They double the balances after charging them off.
    • They actively look for causes to raise interest rates and do so without informing clients.
    • They do not disclose their reasons easily,even when it is the FICO score.  They add on additional fees whenever possible.
  3. CAPITAL ONE
    • They suffer from too many charge off issues.
    • They are excessive with their fess.
    • They offer up to four credit cards to their clients, including those withrecent charge offs, in order to encourage more debt problems. 
    • Excessive fees and punishment when clients are having financial problems, thus making their situations worse.
    • They have only recently started reporting credit limits like other revolving creditors do since we identified them as number one (in terms of poor quality) in October.
    • They charge off an account and maintain the paper until the right time to sell it off to a collection company and then there are duplicate items on the credit reports for the same items.
    • After nine years, they file a judgment regardless of the amount of the debt.
  4. WFNNB (WORLD FINANCIAL NETWORK NATIONAL BANK)     EXAMPLES OF STORES IN THEIR NETWORK ARE VICTORIA SECRET, PALAIS ROYAL, EXPRESS, THE LIMITED, NEW YORK & COMPANY, LANE BRYANT, FINA GAS, ANN TAYLOR, BATH AND BODY WORKS, SERVICE MERCHANDISE, NEWPORT NEWS, DRESS BARN, SPIEGEL, EDDIE BAUER, LERNERS, JESSICA LONDON.
    • They have very poor customer service.
    • Continuous charge off status.
    • They maintain collections within and later sell them off.  However, it stays on the account even after they have been sold.  This makes it very difficult to correct one’s records.
  5. WASHINGTON MUTUAL/ PROVIDIAN
    • Unforgiving with late payments.
    • Have very high fees.
    • They encourage their credit card clients to get over extended and get in over their heads.
    • Poorly trained employees.
    • Charge off issues.
    • Resistant to correcting credit bureau reporting errors and mistakes.
    • Not likely to correct any items, including those that are their fault.
  6. VERIZON WIRELESS        
    • Don’t ever get on their bad side or you will have double or sometimes triple entries on your credit reports.
    • Reports charge off instead of a regular collection with multiple current late payments.
    • Continuous charge off status even if the account is paid off.
  7. SEARS
    • Ridiculously high interest rates for no reason.
    • Inconsistent credit bureau reporting missing many reporting periods.
    • Accounts have minimal scoring value in the models.
    • They sell your account off to collection companies, even if you go through a bankruptcy and continue reporting derogatory late payments after the account is closed.
  8. AMERICAN EXPRESS
    • They have many charge cards and only one or two revolving. 
    • The charge cards show OPEN accounts with no real point value and no credit limits.
    • Very unforgiving for late payments and a very hard card to obtain.
    • They will close the account very eaasily and with minimal cause.
  9. DIAMOND SHAMROCK
    • These accounts are hard to get and not worth many points.
    • Hot checks show up on the credit report and are hard to remove even when paid.
    • Not the value of a regular gas card like an Exxon/Mobil or Citi Shell.
  10. SMART FINANCIAL
    • This account is a teacher’s credit union that does not report consistently every month.
    • It has unfair practices compared to other credit unions are in terms of how it reports!