+1.
Starting Score: EQ 729, TU 752, EX ? (1/1/2011)
@Anonymous wrote:The date of last activity will update and your score will be lowered a little bit. But if its going to drop off your report soon thats good. I wouldn't apply for any credit until it falls off. Congrats on paying off debt though. Puts you at ease a little bit right? Good job
This should not happen. Collections are scored on date of assignment, not DOLA. If someone's score drops as a result of payment, please please please screenshot the before-and-after and post it. We're trying to figure out why this would happen. It would have to involve incorrect coding by the CA or incorrect data field assignment by the CRA's. 
To someone who mentioned disputing, on what grounds would you do that? Paid collections remain, just like unpaid collections.
If someone's that close to fall-off date, I sure wouldn't dispute and potentially stir up a hornet's nest.
@haulingthescoreup wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:The date of last activity will update and your score will be lowered a little bit. But if its going to drop off your report soon thats good. I wouldn't apply for any credit until it falls off. Congrats on paying off debt though. Puts you at ease a little bit right? Good job
This should not happen. Collections are scored on date of assignment, not DOLA. If someone's score drops as a result of payment, please please please screenshot the before-and-after and post it. We're trying to figure out why this would happen. It would have to involve incorrect coding by the CA or incorrect data field assignment by the CRA's.
To someone who mentioned disputing, on what grounds would you do that? Paid collections remain, just like unpaid collections.
If someone's that close to fall-off date, I sure wouldn't dispute and potentially stir up a hornet's nest.
Ermm I don't understand. Everything I have read says that you score will be lowered a little if you pay off collections. Well because it makes it seem like its a more recent event so makes you seem more risky. I am no fico score expert just trying to understand this.
I know, this has been the conventional belief forever. We checked with the FICO scoring expert (the admin), who explained about how they're scored off the date of assignment, rather than DOLA. Also, a collection is scored the same whether paid or unpaid. (And it doesn't come off when paid; only when its time comes.)
One thing that happens with those trying to clean up their reports is that there are a lot of things going on simultaneously. So they might see a score drop after payment and assume that it was due to the payment, when in fact, it was something unrelated. And of course Score Watch alerts are notoriously misleading and downright inaccurate. 
But stuff does happen, and that's why we've been asking anyone who saw a score drop after payment to send screenshots of their scores and reports before and after the payment. Not because no one believes them, but because we're wondering if the CA's or CRA's are screwing up the reporting. By "we" I mean those of us who argue back and forth via pm about what's happening here. 
Here's a link to a thread discussing this: Settle or Pay in Full There were several posts stating that sure enough, their scores didn't change after payment.
Well thanks for the replies. All I can add to it was I saw a few point increase when I paid off a bunch of medical stuff one time a while ago, but it was because it lowered my overall debt level.
As far as disputing it, ill just wait the few months
Thanks again folks for the thoughtful posts.