Rebuilding Credit

[mebell]

Hello everyone, I am new to myFICO and am trying to figure out the best plan of action to improve my credit. I have been reviewing other people's situations, but decided to post my own because it seems that everyones for the most part is unique and have different plans to improve their credit.

The Good: I have 3 CCs that I routinely pay (no late payments on any), as well as constantly carry low balances.

The Bad: I have 2 negative accounts from when I was young and dumb and let those credit card accounts go to collections. Total I have 3 accounts in collections (1 of them is a phone company from when I was younger).

I was wanting some advice for the best way to take care of these accounts and how to go about doing it. From people's posts, I have seen that it is not uncommon to improve their scores well over a 100 points from all CRAs in as little as 1 year.

That being said... should I first be worried about the collections (3) or the negative accounts(2)? The 2 negative accounts were "Charged off" and sold to CAs. I wasn't sure if you can remove one without removing the other? Also, do you go for newer or older accounts first? Do you just make an offer, at say, 75% or 50% owed? That being said I just need advice on how to remove these items that are lowering my score. All of the accounts are about half way to the SOL, but I would rather take care of them anyways without waiting longer.

Any advice is greatly appreciated,

Marty

[llecs]

Welcome to the forums!

I'd suggest reading the following:

Common Abbreviations

Credit Scoring 101 - great for knowing what is in your credit score and to see how your score is impacted.

What Steps Do I Take - great for learning the repair process.

and Example letters - PFDs, GWs, DVs, etc.

Aside from the above, I'd aim to get rid of all of them. If for whatever reason I had to choose which ones to work towards, then I'd aim for the newest first.

When sending a PFD, I personally recommend offering 100%, but that's my opinion. I never wanted to be in a situation where I offered 50% and they say "no, and then I'd have to go back to them offering 60%, then 70%, and so on. For me, time was far more important than money. Everyone has their own pain point too. I guess if I owed $10k as an example, I might be inclined offer less to save a couple/few thousand.

[Bcutiebooti]

Hi! I am a newbie as well however after reading several posts on this site I was able to raise my score over 30pts in 1 month by simply DV the collection agencies. The companies that could not DV deleted the account. The companies that could verify all agreed to PFD except for 1 who agreed to settle for a leaser amount and list the acct as such. I started with 7 collection accts. By next month I expect my score to be a lot higher because it takes the CRAs a little while to update. Hope this helps .

[mebell]

Thank you for the explanation, advice, and where I can find some information in the forums!

[mebell]

Bcutie: Thank you for tips on what to do first. I just wasn't sure if you go after the OCs that are negative accounts charged off or if you go after the CAs that now own the debt. I wasn't sure what to do first. I appreciate it very much!

[Bcutiebooti]

I always go after the CAs first because they work off of commission, most are sloppy/disorganized or can't get in touch with the OC (for older accts) which makes them unable to DV, and I know that if they don't respond to me I can always report them to the State Attorney General. I've had 2 collection accounts removed just by contacting them! The OCs are usually awesome with filing and are almost always able to produce paperwork. I would suggest sending them a GW letter. That worked for me with 2 companies.

I also had a situation with a tough CA. They literally would by budge! I disputed, sent them DV, a DV challenge letter, reported them to the Attorney General twice and nothing worked. So I decided to goodwill the OC and let them know that I would pay in full if they would remove it. The OC took the payment and removed it. I then asked the OC to contact the CA and ask them to remove it since the OC actually owned the account. I also informed them that by the CA still reporting it, it's like their company never did a GW as the acct was still being reported negatively. They agreed and had the CA remove it from my report.

Hope this helps!