Settling won't reset the clock and the balance dropping to zero will be great for your score, plus, they'll finally stop updating which will allow the negative account to age so it doesn't hurt as much.
I don't know how First Premier is with settling debts- but the CAs they use are usually pretty accommodating. You can call First Premier's main customer service number (you can google it) to find out if the account has been transferred to a CA and get the contact info.
FYI: They don't sell the accounts, they just assign them to a CA - so First Premier can take the payment directly - don't let them tell you otherwise. I paid my account in full directly to them only because I needed my report updated asap. If you pay the CA, you have to wait for them to notify First Premier of the payment, then wait for First Premier to update the bureaus- it takes an extra few weeks.
Up to you whether you force First Premier to take your payment or if you pay the CA - I guess it really depends on whether or not you can afford to pay your balance in full - you'll likely get better settlement terms from the CA (ie. <= half the debt). My account was assigned to Jefferson Capital and they offered to settle for $185 of the $425 I owed.
I don't know how First Premier is with settling debts- but the CAs they use are usually pretty accommodating. You can call First Premier's main customer service number (you can google it) to find out if the account has been transferred to a CA and get the contact info.
FYI: They don't sell the accounts, they just assign them to a CA - so First Premier can take the payment directly - don't let them tell you otherwise. I paid my account in full directly to them only because I needed my report updated asap. If you pay the CA, you have to wait for them to notify First Premier of the payment, then wait for First Premier to update the bureaus- it takes an extra few weeks.
Up to you whether you force First Premier to take your payment or if you pay the CA - I guess it really depends on whether or not you can afford to pay your balance in full - you'll likely get better settlement terms from the CA (ie. <= half the debt). My account was assigned to Jefferson Capital and they offered to settle for $185 of the $425 I owed.
I recently settled a chargeoff with First Premier for a 2013 account. First Premier was reporting the chargeoff but I received a settlement offer from the collection agency, I believe it was Credit Collection Srvs. Anyway, they were offering to settle a $477 balance for $263. I called the collection agency and paid via credit card over the phone. About a week later I received a receipt from First Premier stating the account was settled and would be updated on my credit reports. About another week later the balance on the charge-off changed to $214. I did a dispute indicating that the balance should be $0 since the account had been settled for less. Took about another week and First Premier updated the balance to $0. Then the following month, much to my surprise, the entire account disappeared from my credit reports entirely. I assume First Premier did the deletion. Hope this info helps.
Dang. Maybe I should've settled with the CA, let First Premier mess up reporting, disputed, let them fix - then remove it. They likely deleted it because they reported inaccurate info. From what I've read from others- if you can get them on inaccurate reporting, they are quick to delete. I, unfortunately, never had grounds to dispute their reporting. I've tried everything else though to get them off my reports.