If a person were to pay off closed accounts, wld they then be able to have them removed from credit report?

Question

i have about $800 in debt reported on my credit report(s). I am in the position to pay off that debt but I dont know if that will actually improve my scores. And If it does how soon does that happen. I'm really concerned whether or not I can have the items removed; like disputing them once they have been paid.

Answer 1

There are a few questions that your question brings up. You state that you owe about $800 in debt, but you don't say if those are the closed accounts or not. If they are closed, the question to ask is did you close them or did the company's close them.  

If you closed them it shows that you are trying to manage your finances in a better manner. If the company closed them, and reported them as closed, not payed or something like that, it is a bad thing.

Even if you pay them off, since they are not actually calculated in your number of open accounts, this won't do much for your score. That being said, if you do pay them off, it will increase your debt to income score slightly because you will have less debt to pay with your income.

Even if you pay them off, they will still stay on your credit report for at least 7 years, perhaps as long as 10 years now.

As for reporting, the credit reporting company may take as long as 45-60 days to update your credit report.  

Answer 2

If these items are non-revolving items like defaulted cell phone or health club bills, for example, yes you can. You can get written Pay for Delete agreements when they agree to delete the item from your credit report upon receipt of the agreed-to amount. Get all terms in writing FIRST prior to paying them....DO NOT accept verbal promises from debt collectors regarding settlements. Once they get your money they will continue collection activity and deny that any settlement agreement was ever made. Without a written agreement you would not be able to challenge them.

Defaulted/charged-off credit cards are another matter. These can stay on your credit report for up to seven years.....paid or unpaid. Paying off charged-off debt will not magically repair your credit rating....If the debt is over two years old, there's not much point in bothering.  Even if you negotiate with the debt collector for the removal from your credit report, the original credit card company will continue to report the charge-off on your credit report.

Answer 3

www.creditrepairuniverse.net

Learn everything about repairing and/or building credit

if it is still with the original creditor ask for an account rehabilitation with a deletion of past negative reporting to the credit bureau in writting. If with a collection agency write a letter asking for a pay for delete and ask for a reply of acceptance in writting. By the way do not pay them with a check. If you do it can bring further problems down the line, always cashiers check. never use your bank info. Collection agencies are very tricky.

paying the negative items will not help your credit report unless steps above are followed.

go to website for further information

Answer 4

If all you do is pay them off, these accounts will be reflected on your credit report for seven years from the date of last activity.

If you want them removed, your best chance is before you pay them off.  You can negotiate with individual creditors for something called a "pay for delete."   In this case, you agree to pay the bill in full, without acknowledging either way that it was a legitimate debt, in exchange for the creditor removing the records from their reporting to the credit bureaus.

If you do this, make sure you get all the agreements in writing before you send any money.