Q: What is Bumpage?
A: Bumpage is the process of pulling your own credit report repeatedly, and in the process generating a lot of soft pulls, which can knock the hard pulls off of your credit report, Thereby increasing your credit Score.
Q: Why do I care?
A: Having inquiries lowers your FICO score, and makes it less likely that you will be approved for new credit cards. This is particularly important when doing a multi-year App-O-Rama, since the inquiries stay on for two years, but you will want to do another AOR round after one year. Some CC companies have been known to cancel cards after approval because of too many inquiries (FNBO).
Q: Does this work with all of the credit reporting agencies?
A: No. It only works for TransUnion and Equifax . Experian is YMMV.
Q: How long does it take?
A: For TU, around 60 inquiries. For EQ, around 100. For EX, YMMV 100+.
Q: Wouldn't the credit reporting agencies catch on to this?
A: Yes, they know about it. See this thread: Truecredit.com Targetted survey - interesting question Why they haven't plugged this up yet is harder to answer.
Q: Can anything go wrong?
A: Yes, credit report bumpage choppage splittage concern. NEED HELP EXPLAINING HOW TO AVOID THIS
choppage = losing tradelines (usually bad if they're positive) OR losing soft inquiries. CLARIFICATION NEEDED.
split file = two files and no way to tell which a creditor will see (usually bad, or at least inconvenient). Can be corrected.
Also, if you get a new hard inquiry in the middle of the process, it might "reset" your bumpage, soyou would have to basically start over to get the rest of the hards off. TrueCredit question -- Anybody else having problems with bumpage from Equifax?
Q: What resources are available to do this and how much does it cost?
A:
1. AMEX Credit Secure Direct Link or direct link. $11.99 a month. Must be an AMEX cardholder. Daily pulls (calendar days) available after 30 days.
2. National City. FW Thread $9.95 a month, $14.95 a month for you and spouse. 24hr + 1 minute pulls.
3. Key Bank. FW Thread $8.95 a month, $14.95 a month for you and spouse. 24hr + 1 minute pulls.
4. True Credit via Wal*Mart affiliate link direct link $11.21 a month. 24hr + 1 minute pulls.
5. Chase Identity Protection - direct link $11.99. Chase cardmembers. When canceled, last month's fee is refunded. Need Offer ID to sign up online. You can call 800-901-7616, and they will give you one over the phone.
6. Privacy Matters - $1 for first 7 days or 30 days, depending on the deal you got, then $29.99. Might get lucky when cancelling and get a cheap 1 year subscription. Very YMMV.
7. Citi Identity - no daily pulls, only monthly,
8. Privacy Guard - unless grandfathered, no more daily pulls, only monthly.
9. IdentityGuard (discount through Costco) - no dialy pulls, only monthly.
Q: Does any type of soft pull help b*?
A: Yes, some credit limit increase buttons(AMEX, some Citi), some "check for offers" (HSBC, BofA). Any soft pull that goes on your report will help, no matter where it is from.
Q: Can I use more than one service at the same time?
A: Yes, and this will likely speed up your results.
Q: Why is it sometimes called b*?
A: Beats the hell out of me. It's what the kids are calling it these days.
Q: How is this related to credit score monitoring?
A: Same services provide both. See the following FW thread: Credit Score Monitoring
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