Good FICO Scores With Collections On CR

[Anonymous]

I have a question and although I've read a ton of posts on this forum I haven't seen an answer to this one.

Do auto lenders just look at your FICO score or do they also look at what's on your credit report as well?

The reason that I ask is that my regular FICO scores should be in the 720+ range (and my auto scores should be even higher) by the end of the year. That "should" qualify me for the best rates out there. There's one catch though, I have 3 collections on my account from about 6 years ago that won't drop off for another year or so. I'm working to get those removed via GW letters and the PFD process but I'm worried that I'm still not going to qualify for prime rates (or maybe even an auto loan for that matter) with those on my CR.

Btw, none of the collections are auto related. My auto related credit is perfect, no lates, no repos, loans paid off early, etc.

I can always just wait another year but my '98 Honda is getting a little long in the tooth...

Thanks in advance for any advice.

[marty56]

I have an account with 120 day late (4 years old) on my CR and was able to get the best rates so I would print out a copy of your CR, and take it to a lener and see what they say.  They may not tell you unless you actually apply but it won;t cost any FICO pojnts and you never know.  IMHO if they don;t offer you the best rates, it may be becuase they collections are not paid.

[Anonymous]

FYI:   Paying the CA's at this point could have a dramatic impact (negative) on your FICO scores.  If these are 6 years old and have not updated for years, you should really think hard about these accounts.

If you can't get them PFD, you probably want to leave them alone.  Having the "last updated" date go from 4+ years ago to "last reported" today would drop you under 700, maybe as much as 50 or more points, because FICO would begin reading those CA's as "new collections."

Message Edited by mancub88 on 01-12-2010 07:17 AM