Credit Builder Workshop- RSVP today!

YOU ARE INVITED TO JOIN US!

justinePETERSEN & justBIZ are offering aFREE “Credit Builder Tune Up” WorkshopThe workshop includes a 45 minute workshop on how to build credit, a credit report, and a one-on-one session with our credit educators.

rsvp- ckluthe@justinepetersen.org

When: Monday, APRIL 27th from 3pm-5pmWhere: justBIZ @Emerson Park Metrolink

15th Street & Bowman AveEast St. Louis, IL 62205


Justine Petersen

Law does not require lenders to report payment history

Law does not require lenders to report payment history

Dear Max,

I was told by a bank that the law requires merchants and lenders to report data related to my credit. Can you point me to where I can find this legal information?


- LUK

Dear LUK,

The person you talked to at the bank was incorrect. Merchants and lenders are not required to report information about the accounts you have with them. Reporting information is strictly voluntary.


Companies choose to report because they are reliant on information from other companies to help them make sound decisions. They recognize that it is only fair for them to share the information if they are going to receive it. Voluntary sharing of information has been the basis for credit reporting since its earliest days, when local merchants shared their lending experiences verbally with neighboring stores.


However, the law does mandate what a business must do if it chooses to report information.


The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) defines what a business’s responsibilities are if it decides to report information to a credit reporting company, like Experian. Those responsibilities include not knowingly reporting inaccurate information, updating payment information regularly and responding to disputes about the accuracy of any information within a specified period of time, among others.


The Federal Trade Commission provides a thorough description of the FCRA requirement for reporting information on its web site.


Thanks for asking.
Maxine Sweet , VP consumer affairs
www.Experian.com

Downtown population grows by 6% during 2008

www.colbykluthe.com
Downtown population grows by 6% during 2008

A new report by the Partnership for Downtown St. Louis shows that demand for downtown living remains strong. At the end of 2008, the downtown residential population grew to 11,800, an increase of 6% over the 2007 figure.

Growth in the metro area averaged 0.4 %. Despite national economic and housing woes that restricted new residential development and limited mortgage financing for condominiums, people continued the decade long move back to the city's urban core. Since the year 2000, almost 5000 people have moved into downtown St. Louis.

Each year, the Partnership surveys the downtown real estate community to develop an informal but comprehensive "census" of occupancy for both for-sale and rental projects.

One of the most telling trends from the Partnership's latest annual Housing Report was the conversion of recently constructed or planned condominium developments to apartments. As a result, the Partnership noted a significant reduction in inventory of new condominium offerings that reduced a potential oversupply while adding to the inventory of apartments. And, despite the addition of 400 apartments in 2008, rental occupancy rates for apartments open a full year increased from 88% to 90%

The almost 12,000 downtown residents were attracted to new retail and restaurant offerings including over 100 shops, cafes and services added sine 2004. Among the latest features cited as making downtown more livable are fitness centers, an animal hospital, an urgent care center, and added open spaces areas such as Old Post Office Plaza and CityGarden - both under construction and set to open shortly. Also under construction is a Schnuck's market, bringing downtowners a full service grocery store.

The Downtown St. Louis Housing Report projects 225 new residential units will open in 2009 and 500 units will open in 2010. The complete report is available by visiting www.DowntownSTL.org .