The 609 Loophole: Myth Or Reality?

Schoolchildren in South Florida have been known to circulate a rumor to the effect that, if you say “Bloody Mary” to your reflection in the mirror three times in a dark room, a vengeful ghost by that name will appear and commit horrific acts.  Anyone who has tried to do this found that the result is only that they felt a little uneasy, but it didn’t stop them from continuing to spread the rumor in the hopes that their classmates might try it and get more impressively scary results.  It is helpful to think of the 609 credit score loophole in a similar light, namely that it is an urban legend.  There is such a thing as a 609 letter, but it does not magically raise your credit score.  The way to raise your credit score is not by finding the right magic words to say to the credit bureau, but rather to implement one or more long-term credit repair strategies with the help of a Jupiter credit repair lawyer.

What Is a 609 Letter, and Can It Really Erase Your Debts?

Pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, you have the right to dispute any incorrect information that appears on your credit report.  To do this, you must notify the credit bureau in writing of the error, documenting the correct information that the credit report should bear.  A 609 letter is the letter that you write to notify credit reporting bureaus that you no longer live at an address listed on your credit report.  It is nothing more and nothing less than a letter updating your address.

Now for the urban legend.  According to an Internet rumor, if you send a 609 letter and get an old address removed from your credit report, all of the debts associated with the address will immediately disappear, thus boosting your credit score.  In reality, this rarely works, because the only way a debt would disappear from your credit report as soon as you removed an old address would be if the address were the only piece of information connecting the debt to you.  With most debts, it is possible to identify the borrower by their social security number, birthdate, or some other piece of identifying information in addition to their address.  Trying to erase your debts with 609 letters is like trying to convince creditors that you don’t really owe them money because the U.S. dollar is a fiat currency.

There Are Better Ways to Improve Your Credit Score?

There are plenty of better ways to improve your credit score without sending 609 letters.  Paying down your debts is the most obvious one, but no one said it is easy; it may require you to consolidate your debt with a low-interest loan, or even declare bankruptcy.  If you are trying to rebuild your credit after filing for bankruptcy, a secured credit card is a good place to start.

Start Repairing Your Credit Now

A credit repair lawyer can help you take the first steps to rebuild your credit.  Contact Nowack & Olson, PLLC in Jupiter, Florida to discuss your case.

Resource:

wcpo.com/blogs/savings/should-you-use-the-so-called-609-credit-repair-loophole