Paying Old Collections

Anonymous · ‎08-13-2008

I have a number of collection accounts that are several years old, but all within SOL. Well....I am being sued on one of them for a total just over $3k. I will probably settle this debt before trial. My question, what effect will this have on my credit score, what if I pay in full vs a settlement of lesser amount? Thanks

Anonymous · ‎08-13-2008

babalaco wrote:
I have a number of collection accounts that are several years old, but all within SOL. Well....I am being sued on one of them for a total just over $3k. I will probably settle this debt before trial. My question, what effect will this have on my credit score, what if I pay in full vs a settlement of lesser amount? Thanks

This will not help your score unless you get them removed from your reports. Paid vs. settled vs. unpaid on a third-party CA has no effect at all on FICO scoring.

By settling before trial, however, you will avoid getting a brand new judgment on your reports, which would hurt you even more if that were to happen.

Message Edited by cheddar on 08-13-2008 08:22 AM

Anonymous · ‎08-13-2008

Yeah, definitely avoiding a new judgment. I have been working on getting my score up and its up about 75 points since January, so I dont to see it drop again. I was worried that paying a CA would somehow drop the score as well. Is it worth trying for PDF? Also, do PFD only work if paying in full vs. settlement?