In Part One of this article we took a look at some minimum recommendations for asset searches as a recovery medium. This discussion is based on the assumption that an asset search has already been determined to be sanctionable by, for example, a loan in default, a judgment that has been rendered, a court order obtained for the release of credit information in cases that are not clearly defined under the FCRA or “extended consent” given in a creditor/debtor or employee – employer relationship.
As Part One suggested, to properly identify a non-corporate subject, fraud examiners in non-law enforcement environments should take the following steps:
Obtain credit reports form the three major credit bureaus, per FCRA requirements
Obtain social security traces form the three major credit bureaus.
Obtain address update/credit report header information from the three major credit bureaus.
Match the information obtained through the independent sources to the information presented by the subject of the asset search.
Part One also provided suggestions for determining assets, including real property ownership, vehicular searches, vessel ownership, aircraft ownership, and banking information. Following is additional financial and business information that should be gathered, as well as liability-related data that impacts the subject’s net worth in a recovery action.
Financial Information
Credit reports should be obtained from all major credit bureaus in order to completely determine the subject’s credit worthiness or credit status. The Federal Home Loan Mortgage Association (“Fannie-Mae”) determined several years ago that a minimum of three national credit bureau repositories should be accessed to develop credit information prior to the qualification for a mortgage loan. While this is the standard, many companies do not provide this information in the pursuit of the asset search, and limit their request to only one major credit bureau. Some difficulty also exists with respect to the investigative community’s lack of access to major credit bureaus, and many credit reports procured for investigative purposes are, in fact, procured through third- and fourth-party blind sources.
Credit bureau-based research agencies are usually your best source for credit and financial information, as well as banking data, since their primary focus is in the credit community and understanding the limitations of the credit system, as well as knowledge of “better” access to the credit bureaus. This assures their continued success in operating their business. credit repair services