What can I do to improve my score and fix credit

[pvtjoker]

Here is my situation:

1) My main goal is to repair my credit and buy a house

2) My current credit score is around 580

3) A copy of my most recent credit revealed that I have some work to do to clear up some things from my past. I have had several loans in the past which have been paid, never late.

Unfortunately I had two lines of credit which ended up being defaulted on. One was for approx. $2500 the other approx $3500.

I worked out a settlement for the $2500 loan and paid it in full, however the records still remain from the original creditor and its listed as a charge off and indicates it was purschased by another lender which was an attorney who collected the debt. Since it was paid, can I seek to have it removed? It says it will remain until Feb. 2011. This was all settled in 2007

The $3500 default is still active and I am working with the current account holder to reach a settlement offer to get it paid off. Its the same scenario, my report lists the original creditor as well as the agency who bought it and is attempting to collect.

There are some other small things that I am paying off as well. My question is once these items are paid off, can I dispute them and try to have them updated or removed rather than having them listed as charge offs?

4) In the meantime aside from making poor choices, and continuing to pay my current stuff on time, what else can I do to improve my score? Should I look into consolidating my student loans, or will that hurt my credit?

[chane]

Originally Posted by pvtjoker

I worked out a settlement for the $2500 loan and paid it in full, however the records still remain from the original creditor and its listed as a charge off and indicates it was purchased by another lender which was an attorney who collected the debt. Since it was paid, can I seek to have it removed?

You can dispute anything at any time for any reason. I would suggest disputing it, but not giving it a reason. Admitting you paid it will keep it there for the full 7 years. Disputing without a reason will give them 30 days to prove that it belongs there. Many times since it is paid, they won't bother verifying it and it will be removed.

The $3500 default is still active and I am working with the current account holder to reach a settlement offer to get it paid off. Its the same scenario, my report lists the original creditor as well as the agency who bought it and is attempting to collect.

Do NOT pay it until you can negotiate a pay for delete or you will lose your leverage. Once you pay it, you have no leverage. Stating that you will pay ONLY if they remove it, is the way to go. It's called pay for delete. Check out some sample pay for delete letters.

There are some other small things that I am paying off as well. My question is once these items are paid off, can I dispute them and try to have them updated or removed rather than having them listed as charge offs?

Again, do not pay them unless they agree in writing to remove them once they are paid in full.

In the meantime aside from making poor choices, and continuing to pay my current stuff on time, what else can I do to improve my score? Should I look into consolidating my student loans, or will that hurt my credit?

Consolidating will probably give you fewer positive tradelines reporting, but it's not a bad idea if it saves you money and reduces your debt to available credit ratio.

[pvtjoker]

Thank you for the response!

Alright, so the main goal here is not to pay unless they agree to delete, I got that down, and will take the advice.

Can you please clarify the correct process for a dispute?

Should I send a debt verification letter to the original creditor first, or send the debt validation letter to the collection agency, or go to the credit bureaus and dispute it with them? I'm a little confused on that process.

As for my student loans, they are currently deferred so I am going to hold off on consolidating for the time being.

[chane]

You should dispute them with the CRAs first.

Basic Step by Step Beginner's Guide to Credit Repair