I have sked this question before but not getting a really direct answer?

Question

if I have 3 credit cards that are in collections and I pay them off next week in full they have been in collections just like a month or two will that increase your credit score?the more bad debt you get paid off does that increase your score or does it same the same?

Answer 1

Once it is in collections it is on your credit report as such, although they will be annotated as paid, they will still remain there as delinquent for seven years unless you have a written guarantee from the creditors that they will remove them from you credit score. There direct answer

Answer 2

Just paying off the collections will not really help your score. Why..because the collection account will still be listed on the report.

So, what you need to do is get an agreement from them in writing, that they will REMOVE the collection account once paid. You need to do this by sending them a Certified Letter stating that you will pay the account in full, IF they remove the collection account. Include in the letter the date you will make the payments and the payment amount. DO NOT send them any money or give them any account information until you have a letter from them stating that they will do that. This will take some time, and because of making sure you get everything in writing, it would probably take a couple of weeks for you to get an agreement from them.

If you do that with all of your collection accounts your score will probably rise, or it could drop a bit. There is no exact number that anyone can give. This is because credit scores are based on several factors.

Now the downside of not paying your debt. Since this is a fairly new debt, it will continue to grow because of interest and/or late fees. Eventually, they could take you to court and get a judgement to force you to pay. If they do that, you will not only have this collection account on your report, but also judgements listed. This will really hurt your score. So if these are valid debts, and you can pay them now it is probably a good idea to get them taken care of now.

Answer 3

It will not increase your score unless they delete the accounts from your credit reports after you pay.

You should request, in writing, that they will delete upon payment.

Either way your scores may drop a bit.
If you pay and they update the accounts to show the payment, it will make the negative accounts "look" newer than they actually are.
If you pay and they delete, even though they are negatives you will lose history, if the debts are not very old you would not lose much history and your scores wouldn't drop as much and may possibly even rise.

Between the two, the updating would probably drop your scores more than the deletion.

If they delete, your scores should rebound much faster than if you have to wait for the paid negatives to age.

Answer 4

Hi--Its me. It seems each question you ask gets to my email.

In my book is some 4000 words answering this question. Dealing with collection company issues is far too complex for this forum.

Generally, handling collections VERY early will save a TON of headaches later. ALWAYS GET PAYMENT IN FULL LETTERS FROM COLLECTORS IN WRITING. Many clients find to their unhappiness that collection companies LIE to get money, and very often do not do on the credit reports what they promised to do. (Surprise!)

Some people have told me that they (foolishly) paid the same collection 2, 3, 4 times--each time believing the collection company would keep its verbal promise. Thus the rule: Pay NOTHING without a signed, written agreement on company letterhead stating the terms of "payment in full" and what they will report on the credit.

Answer 5

your credit report is only a reflection of PAST credit performance. Paying off those collections wont do much to improve your score because the previous lates will still be reported. Paying off more bad debt will not raise your score.

Answer 6

If they JUST got placed in collections then it probably won't affect your score for a couple of months. (If they had been placed for collection years ago it would actually lower your score by paying them, and then start to climb). Hopefully these are the only negative items on your report, after they are paid then you will slowly start to get new credit - in 7 years they will be gone.

If you are still dealing with the collection agencies ask them if they will request the collection be removed from your credit report when you pay - then your score will JUMP! sometimes they will do this, sometimes not, since it's new and you're paying in full it's worth the shot to get it completely removed!

Answer 7

not sure but citizens advice will answer your question better than anyone.
. Clearing debt should help to improve things though.. Cut up your credit cards. You don't need three. One is more than enough & be strict with yourself never buy more on a card that you cannot pay off at the end of the month. This will increase your crediting rating better than anything.

Answer 8

credit scoring is a funny thing.
paying off bad debts is a good thing
charging is a good thing...but chargin too much can lower your score.
making payments on time is good, sometimes making advanced payments can lower it.
buying big ticket items like vehicles is a good thing, but buying too many plus credit cards etc can cause your score to go down.

so even though we often think we are doing the 'right' things to raise our credit...indeed many times it will go down.

if you just pay off your debts and do not charge or buy anything on credit your score will remain stagnant or lower.

the best thing to do is to run all three of your credit reports monthly and keep track of what is going on and correct deficienceis as needed.

hope this helps...

good luck :)

Answer 9

30 + days past due on a credit report, will lower lower your score. Even after its paid off, it will have a negative impact. Your score will go down, and then as time goes by and your payment history improves your score will go back up. Unfortunately all you can do is wait it out.

Answer 10

Paying a collection or chargeoff will NOT help your score, and might actually hurt it short term.

My advice is to NEVER pay a collection or chargeoff unless you get a PFD or you have to pay it--either for a prime mortgage or because it's in the hands of a collection attorney who's threatening a lawsuit.

Adverse info, like collections and chargeoffs, remain for 7 years from the DOFD (Date Of First Delinquency)--not the date they were paid.