Having less than stellar credit for some time is quite tiring, so I'm really going to step up my game now.
I have one large Citi credit card charge off of 14k (10k original principal before going delinquent and Citi taking on 4k in interest) that I need to address.
I also have a Chase Card that I'm on a payment plan for 5 years and am down to 666. I plan to pay that off in one shot. (Note: I've paid on time for all three years so far and it shows a great payment history. The credit line is closed, but Chase said this plan would help me by appearing as a positive on my credit report. Yet, FICO is telling me it is a red flag?)
I learned that after a charge-off it is best to go back to the original creditor and negotiate for cents on the dollar in exchange for their reporting as "Paid as Agreed". It seems that in recent years reporting has changed whereby this really doesn't do any good. I'd like to hear what you think?
I would love to see what others have done to get a quick boost to their scores like applying for and getting store credit. Which stores are good and are almost guaranteed to extend credit?
Let's go!
Starting Score: 8/2012 FICO EXP651