If you settle for less, the creditor will update the account to show closed, $0 balance.
That will thereafter terminate any increased level of delinquency, but the 60-late will continue to affect scoring.
The reporting of paid, $0 balance will thereafter terminate any continued reporting of account delinquency, thus preventing any increased negative scoring effect.
The creditor has the option, when they accept less than the full amount of the debt, to additionally report under a special comment that it was settled for less.
That special comment, as mentioned, is potentially negative in any manual review, as it makes of record the fact that you now have a history of not having paid the full debt that you obligated.
You can, as part of negotiating a settlement for less, include as a condition that the creditor not report any reference to the account having been settled for less, thus making the account appear in any manual review the same as if you had paid in full.
