If the account was opened in 3/2005, and closed in 12/2006, and you say it is now a paid charge-off, that indicates the usual presence of multiple derogs in your credit file for the account, between those dates.
I assume that the date closed is the date of their charge-off, but that really doesnt matter.
Sometime after 3/2005, the account went delinquent. The date of that first delinquency was probably reported to the CRA as a 30-day late, and probably also became your DOFD. Since it later was charged-off by the OC, I am assuming that they also reported at least a 60-day and 90-day late before doing the charge off.
Then they did a charge off.
That would result in a possible 4 derogs in your credit file, each of which is still impacting your credit score.
You then paid, but that payment did not result in any deletions from your credit file.
If a consumer credit report that you have in hand does not reflect your full, prior payment history, that does not mean that it is no longer in your credit file. CRAs dont delete your credit history profile based on current status of paid.
It would definately help your credit score to obtain GW deletion of any one, or hopefully all, of these multiple prior derogs.
In level of credit scoring impact, the charge-off is hurting the most. Then,in the example I have given, any reported 90-day late, then any 60-day late, and then, as only a minor derog, any 30-day late. Make sure your GW letter does not address only the charge-off. Even with its deltion, any 90/60 day prior delinwuencies still have significant negative FICO impact for some time.
None of these will drop from your CR due to old age until around mid-2012 and thereafter, without earlier GW deltetion. So, unless you dont need new credit within the next two years, I would pursue GW deletion.
