Credit Advice

You are already in collections, so it is already a bad mark. Making a settlement or paying it in full doesn't really make much difference at that point. I do not believe that you are hit much for "settled" instead of "paid in full" once hit had hit collections.

yes......... They dont tell you that most of the time the settlement comes like a month before it comes off your credit and paying it puts it back on your credit and it dont say paid in full.

you are already in collections which means the credit card company has already written you off... anything you pay now goes to the 'collection agent, and not the original creditor..

Unless you have something in writing from the collection agency specifically stating they will remove the debt and their information from your credit report, after you make payment. Then, nothing you pay at this point will make any difference in your score...

You may as well toss a wad of cash out your window into the breeze... it would have the same impact on your score..

My rule is never deal with a debt collector. Can't stand them. I could be wrong here, but if I were going to pay, I'd call up the ORIGINAL creditor and handle it with them. Collectors are evil! Get EVERYTHING in writing before you do anything with them. You might want to brush up on the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act to know your rights. There are some STRICT rules that collectors have to follow and if I were you, I'd put them through the pain of making them have to follow every single rule before giving them a single penny.

I had several accounts that were charged off. I did settle with collection agencies and the original creditor. My credit score went up from 432 to 581 in four months!! I have two more accounts that I am settling and should be paid off very soon....hoping it will bring me over 600.