How long will it take to improve my credit score?

Question

So I have decided to try and settle my debts.

I currently have a score of about 504, and am trying desperately to get to 680 or higher within a year. Is this reasonable?

My plan: contact my collectors and ask for deletion upon payment in writing.

I currently have maybe 3-4 collections on my account now, most are less than 1 year old (I am told this is also the reason why my score is so low right now)

So, with this plan, is it plausible to have a credit score of 680 or higher in a year?

Answer 1

LOL you can't just ask them to forgive your debt... I mean, you can, they sure as h**l are not going to do it.  You need to file bankruptcy and start over.  It will take you years to get your score back up.

Answer 2

I'm not sure what you mean by "deletion upon payment". But if you pay off your credit cards in full and then forget about them, you scores will go up in about 30 days. Dont close your accounts. If you have open credit cards with no balance, it shows you can be responsible with credit. Your scores be even higher. Good luck! Credit cards are evil. Credit card debt can and will ruin your life. But anyway, the answer to your question is yes. If you pay off your credit cards, your score will rise within a month.

Answer 3

Even if the collector agrees to the pay to delete, it will still remain on your credit report as a negative.  This will age off. Much of the scoring is based on the last 24 months of history.  So, in a couple of years you very well might reach 680.

The best way to get there faster is to get another card, spend ten dollars a month on it and pay it off every month.  

Recent use of credit is one of the things that helps your score.

So, pay the debt and get another card.  You already know what happens when you don't pay, so just don't use it for anything other than a few dollars a month.

Use this score simulator.  It will help you see what you need to do.  It's free.

http://www.bankrate.com/brm/fico/calc.as...

Answer 4

if you remove all of your negative stuff from your credit, you should be in the 680s assuming you have some good credit on your account. Dont forget to make good credit while removing the old stuff. Pay for deletion is a good tactic. Many collection companies will gladly do it.

If you get all collections removed and have some good credit (even 2 years old), your socres will be 680+

Answer 5

yes! im in the same boat. dont pay companies to help lower this or lower that u can do it all ur self call the collectors or when they call u just talk to them tell them how much u got and they can take it or leave it! within 6-12 months u can increase ur score within 100 points if u pay all ur bills on time!