Always consult a financial advisor or attorney for the most accurate information that pertains to your credit situation! Always pay your debts BEFORE they hit your credit. Individual results will vary, based on differences in credit reports, contract terms, state laws and statute of limitations. I make no guarantees that this method will work for you. Trust but verify and do your homework! https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/can-paying-off-collections-raise-your-credit-score/
FIRST: pull your credit report & identify what is lowering your score. Navigate to Experian or PrivacyGuard.com (they have free trials) and pull your 3 reports + Scores! AnnualCreditReport.com has reports but DOES NOT display scores.
💢 IDENTIFY WHAT’S LOWERING YOUR SCORE -1. You don’t have ENOUGH credit established. -2. You have late payments on your report. -3. You have accounts in COLLECTIONS -4. Your accounts are closed to being maxed out -5. You have a public record such as a bankruptcy or foreclosure.
HOW TO FIX LATE PAYMENTS: -CALL the creditor and negotiate the terms of the debt and ask if they can adjust your account status back to current/paid. -EXPLAIN you are having a tough time and ask if they can remove the late payment as a COURTESY. -IDENTIFY any inaccuracies and dispute it.
HOW TO FIX ACCOUNTS THAT ARE IN COLLECTIONS: -DISPUTE, DISPUTE, DISPUTE any errors or inaccuracies (name, account opened date, account amount, etc) Should you pay a debt collector in order to repair your credit report or is there a better way to go about collections -Ask the lender to VALIDATE the debt -ASK FOR “PAY FOR DELETION”* while I don’t recommend this method, here is how it can be used: Get a letter from the collection agency that states they will DELETE the negative account from your Credit Report, upon receipt of payment. If the account balance is already “$0.00” but the status of the negative collection is still on your report, dispute the debt anyway with the credit bureaus. -If (Equifax, Experian and/or TransUnion) cannot prove the debt, it’ll get removed*
FIX MAXED OUT ACCOUNTS ON YOUR CREDIT REPORT: 1. Pay down OR PAY OFF your credit cards, loans or any revolving accounts, 2. Ask for the credit card company to raise your credit limit-(DO NOT USE MORE CREDIT; BE RESPONSIBLE). I raised my credit score over 300+ points and I didn't have to pay anyone! The most common misconception of improving one's credit score is that if you pay your collections accounts reported on your credit report, this will help your credit score. WRONG! I will explain why disputing collections accounts from your credit report is the BEST method to raise your score! Disclaimer: I am not a financial advisor. This is strictly for informational purposes and does not replace the advice from a financial advisor, credit bureaus agent or attorney.
