I want to clean up my credit. Should I pay off old unpaid balances (mostly from 2005)?

Question

I've been making an effort to get and stay current on everything now. But the old unpaid stuff on my credit is dragging down my score (plus my current credit card balances are high, which I plan to fix). Should I even bother paying off that bad debt from several years back(about $5,000 worth) or just forget about it?

Answer 1

Definately pay it off if you can-but when you do MAKE SURE the creditors report it to the agencies that it is paid off-do not take for granted this will be done-----i am telling you this because my b/f had some medical bills owed from when he did not have ins---he finally got them paid off(made a payment plan) anyway he thought that was tyhat-till yrs later he got a copy of his credit report and these were still on there ahter all this time and he called about it and still was not removed for several more mths-so it seems they immediately report when we owe, but dont really care if they report we paid it off.

anyway as long as you can keep your current things current and pay off the old i think you should -it will be better-but just keep all your reciepts of what you paid.good luck

Answer 2

1. Order your credit reports from the 3 bureaus

www.equifax.com

www.experian.com

www.transunion.com

If you're ordering for the first time, get your score (for a fee) from Equifax as their scoring matters most.

2. Make copies of your report and put the originals in a binder. On the photocopied reports use a highlighter and check for any incorrect, outdate, false, etc...info

3. Download a dispute letter(s) from the credit bureaus website and list anything that is wrong. Mail them to their office(s). They have 30 days to reply.

4. If they will not remove something that is not yours or too old (> 7 years) as them for a debt validation. This may take an additional 30 days.

5. Once the 'baddies' come off, take care not to let any of your other accounts fall into that predicament.

6. If you haven't already make sure your existing accounts are current and paid on time ALWAYS.

7. Get a secured credit card with www.capitalone.com or www.mastercard.com for like $500-1000 or more if you can and use it sparingly. Charge like $50 on the card each month and pay it in FULL and on TIME. Make sure you do this for a minimum of 6 months so that you estabish a positive repayment history.

8. Problem with just letting them 'fall off' is that they may never. You may get sued before that...that's where you suddenly get a summons to appear in court and a judgment for collection against you.

For the 2 collection items...pay them but get a 'pay for delete' from the collectin agency in WRITING...they'll delete it after you pay and it will help your credit score

Answer 3

I had a similar situation but I had to file a chapter 7 for 1 yr now I have contested all my credit flaws there is a law firm called Bradley Ross Law that will do all the dirty work for you it is not expensive and it really works I went from a 767 to a 585 and now I am currently at 679 9 months after discharge now if you owe money to the individuals contact the credit card company and tell them say for instance you owe 550 on a kohls card you tell them I only got a hundred dollars that is all what I can afford and if you cannot accept as paid in full I will be forced to file a bankruptcy and you will get nothing I am just trying to get a hold on my bills and tell them to close the card if it hasn't I usually don't recomend closing them but in most cases they will do it on there own good luck this has changed my life and I can honestly say within the next 2 yrs my wife and I will be able to buy another house

Answer 4

You can use credit repair agency to fix your credit - for example this one - http://creditreport.imess.net - They can clean lots of bad stuff from your credit report - and do it much faster than yourself, so your credit will go up fast.

Answer 5

Hi Kiwi. I am Aaron

I actually own a debt credit consultation business. If you would like me to a look a bit more into your situation or just give you some advice email me

my email is [e-mail]

Answer 6

pay it as collection companies will hound the heck out of you. Get every balance in writing from them first with an agreed payment structure before you send them 1 dime as they are all liars and do not give them checks over the phone or access to yooour account.