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Hi all and thanks in advance for the help.
As the title says I'm hoping to buy a house at some point in the future, and my scores have been increasing over the last several months of paying my bills on time and somewhat managing my credit cards.
My 3B mortgage scores as of yesterday are
Equifax: 575
Transunion: 512
Experian: 603
I have two Cap1 CCs and one Greendot CC for a total of $700 limit all in great standing.
Cap1 Plat: $200 limit, $0 balance, Authorized User
Cap1 Plat: $300 limit, $16.62 balance, My Card
Greendot: $200 limit, $0 balance, My Card
4 collection accounts
Medical bill assigned 10/08/2015: $1,152 reporting to all 3 bureaus. Cornerstone Credit
Medical bill that is paid (originally $43) assigned 10/08/2015 reporting only to Equifax. Cornerstone Credit
Cable bill assigned 10/21/2015 for $394 reporting to Transunion and Experian. Cornerstone Credit
Loan assigned 12/12/2019 for $4,600 reporting to all 3 bureaus. Credit One LLC
So far, I'm at 7 months of on-time payments with everything (Covid was a nightmare financially but still got late payments from those months) and have 5k total that I can throw at these collections, without being at risk of another emergency, hoping to have them removed. I've talked to both Cornerstone and CO and both will NOT agree to writing that they'll delete if I pay but say the accounts will be deleted after 30 days. What is my best course of action? Is it wise to pay? Any idea what doing so will do to my scores?
Thanks again!
It's not uncommon for a collection agency to not put a PFD arrangement in writing as it's a pretty grey area as it goes against accurately reporting to create a clear picture of ones credit worthiness... which is kind of the point of credit bureaus.
If you think they may go back on a PFD agreement, then you can record the call when the agreement is made if you're in a one party state or obtain consent to record the call in a two party state. Most collection agencies just want to be paid and have no incentive to go back on such an arrangement. Although, I'm sure it's happened.
Assuming these four collections are the only negatives on your reports, then their removal should greatly improve your scores. If you have other negative accounts or recent derogatory marks, it will take more time to recover but you should still see a score improvement either immediately or over time.
Thank you! Outside of some late car payments over the last 4 years with the worst being during the lockdown and I wasn't able to work, the collections are the only thing there. I appreciate you
I would just pay. That's what I have been doing... just pay and most Collection Agencies I have dealt with just delete. Besides, with recent late payments (within two years) you'll have an uphill battle getting a mortgage - especially with COVID related requirements are much stricter.