New and my head is spinning with how to fix collections

[Anonymous]

I am new to this site. I have bee reading for days though! I have so many questions that I don't know where to begin. Firts, a little background. I have about 7 items in collections since 2002/2003. Each of the delinquent debts has been sold over and over again to different CA's. My credit is horrible and I deperately want to fix it. Credit scores: 555/526/526. I have three credit cards- opened two years ago that now have $1000 limits (starting at $200). I pay on time each month and it seems my credit score keeps getting lower. I have NOT applied for new credit in two years.

I just checked my credit and all of these collections were sold to NEW CA's and listing as 2007. This is why I think my scores keep dropping. Now, I am so overwhelmed with wich CA to call first - since there are so many for each one. Do I call, write? Also, can they list on my CR as 2007 even though the debt is from 2002/2003? They are listed on my CR as Currently Past Due - is that legal? I was able to dispute online with EX but EQ didn't give me the options I needed and couldn't dispute online.

I know this is long and I have a ton of questions but I am so overwhelmed. Someone please help or at least give me a first step. I thought I was on the right track for the last two years but my score is now worse than ever and I am so upset.

[Anonymous]

OVERWHELMED, BEEN THERE.......ADMITTEDLY, I DON'T KNOW NEARLY AS MUCH AS THESE GUYS BUT MY FIRST TWO QUESTIONS TO THINK ABOUT ARE .......HAVE YOU PAID THE COLLECTIONS OFF AND HOW HIGH ARE THE BALANCES ON YOUR CC'S.....

[fused]

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overwhelmed wrote:

I am new to this site. I have bee reading for days though! I have so many questions that I don't know where to begin. Firts, a little background. I have about 7 items in collections since 2002/2003. Each of the delinquent debts has been sold over and over again to different CA's. My credit is horrible and I deperately want to fix it. Credit scores: 555/526/526. I have three credit cards- opened two years ago that now have $1000 limits (starting at $200). I pay on time each month and it seems my credit score keeps getting lower. I have NOT applied for new credit in two years.

I just checked my credit and all of these collections were sold to NEW CA's and listing as 2007. This is why I think my scores keep dropping. Now, I am so overwhelmed with wich CA to call first - since there are so many for each one. Do I call, write? Also, can they list on my CR as 2007 even though the debt is from 2002/2003? They are listed on my CR as Currently Past Due - is that legal? I was able to dispute online with EX but EQ didn't give me the options I needed and couldn't dispute online.

I know this is long and I have a ton of questions but I am so overwhelmed. Someone please help or at least give me a first step. I thought I was on the right track for the last two years but my score is now worse than ever and I am so upset.

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Hi! Start with these thread.

http://ficoforums.myfico.com/fico/board/message?board.id=ficoscoring&thread.id=2654

http://ficoforums.myfico.com/fico/board/message?board.id=generalcredit&thread.id=8713

http://ficoforums.myfico.com/fico/board/message?board.id=generalcredit&thread.id=2689

[Anonymous]

I have not paid them off. I want to start that immediately but I don't know where to begin since there are so many CA's for each one. In addition, I feel that they shouldn't be listed as new on my CR or should they?

One credit card balance is $200, the other $700 - which I am paying off this month, and the other is $300. Not so great, I know.

I wish I had someone to sit and look at my report with me b/c it is very confusing and all three are so different.

[Anonymous]

Thank you. I did read those - and why do I still feel so confused and overwhelmed?

[Anonymous]

LIKE I SAID, I AM NO EXPERT BUT I WOULD START WITH THE COLLECTION WITH THE LEAST AMOUNT AND PAY IT OFF WHEN YOU CAN.......BE SURE TO GET DOCUMENTATION , TRUST ME YOU'LL NEED IT........ALSO I HAVE BEEN READING A LITTLE ABOUT PFD...I HAD NO IDEA THAT WAS AN OPTION........DON'T WORRY, THE HELP YOU GET FROM THE PEOPLE IN THIS FORUM IS INVALUABLE........YOU'LL GET THERE.GOOD LUCK

[Anonymous]

Thank you. I guess one step at a time.

[Anonymous]

Overwelmed, don't be overwhelmed with time things will improve promise.  I am in your boat and I am surely coming out.  First and foremost, are all of the collections valid.  If they are, I would send a PFD to the CA before I agreed to pay them off. 

[Anonymous]

How high are your credit card balances?

If they are above 50% you start to show poor credit management and

all the pros here will tell you to get them down to less than 10% utilization

something I never new about till joining here.

if you have 1,000 balances on 3 cards then the most you want on all three of them

combined is 300.00 or less..

This also applies to the baddies, I was at 185% utilization when I started from

everything combined CC'S and Baddies and I was looking at over 17,000 in debt...

Don't feel bad you have a quarter of what I was looking at in the beginning of this

year I focused on the highest baddies first but you can do it anyway you can financially

manage, 1 at a time if low on cashflow smallest first but just chip away at them to bring down

the utilization and your scores will come back up overtime....

Lay out in detail everything you have and these pro's here will fix you up proper and guide

you exactly in how to do it, it just takes time so relax...

[Anonymous]

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overwhelmed wrote:

Thank you. I guess one step at a time.

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do what TN told you. Listen to the PROs (this is what we call them) they know more and can help you.

I am new but with  help from them & everyone here my scores have come up 60 pts.

I have to do 1 step at a time

1) dispute

2) try & deal with CA     these people are @^&.

I have asked some really stupid questions. A lot of us do, but it is only because there is a lot involved here. confusion is the name of the game for me anyway.

Take your time & do it right!