My Credit Score Improve If I Pay Off a Collection Account?

by Kimmy Burgess Your Money Problems Solved

Generally, if you have a bad score, you will pay higher interest rates when you borrow. For example, if you get a new car, bad credit history often impacts other things like your auto insurance. And, in some cases, your bad credit may stop you from getting a job as many employers now do credit checks before they hire someone.

What Is a Collection Account?

This is simply an unpaid bill that the debtor has referred to a collection agency in an attempt to collect all or part of what you owe. If you do not agree that you owe a bill e.g., the service was not done properly, you should dispute the bill and not pay it.

How Does a Collection Account Affect My Credit?

Here is a summary of possible impacts on your credit score due to late payments and other factors. Because there is a complex formula for these types of things, there is only a possible impact range given. A perfect FICO score is 850. To be considered as having “good credit” and getting very good interest rates, possible deals, you’ll probably need a score in the 730 to 760 range.

30 day late payments: 60- 110 points

Debt settlements: 45- 125 points

Foreclosures: 85- 160 points

Bankruptcy: 130- 240 points

Maxed-out credit cards: 10- 45 points

Should I Pay Off my Collection Debt?

The new Vantage Score 3.0 credit score ignores all paid collections accounts, as well as any collections, paid or unpaid, under $250. So, if the collection is under $250, you may consider paying it off. This is where you can get creative. Many collection agencies will agree to remove the collection report for payment. You should explore this option as it is becoming more common.

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