Can this be right?

[maygirl]

OK I currently have some unpaid collections, but I also have a long history with a variety of accounts that is very good... The score simulator says that if I paid $500 toward by balances my score would go to over 700, it is currently a 598. That doesn't seems possible/probable to me...

Anyone have any real example of the score simulator being correct???

[maygirl]

BTW I have 4 credit cards currently that were basically "maxed out" and I have paid 2 of them completly off and the other two are below 30%. AND the collections/charge offs are NOT over 3 years old...

[pizzadude]

I think the simulator can be a bit optimistic at times, but lowering your revolving utilization is usually the quickest way to boost your FICO score.

The best starting point to optimize your utilization is having all your cards reporting 0 balances except for one card which should report a small ( less than 9% ) balance.