Ask me anything about your Credit Score

[SossMan]

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First off, many thanks for taking the time to keep this thread up and help all of us out.

I'm almost 25. My credit scores range from 640 to 646. My credit history from one beureau includes a $1600 outstanding balance (from a $1000 charge off) which is still in collections from irresponsible use back when I was 20. I now have a 20 hour a week minimum wage job at the local bookstore and am making about $600-1000 more per week playing poker, so I can afford to pay it off. Should I? If so, how do I go about contacting them?

I am also considering applying for an auto loan/other credit cards to improve my score (and because I need a car). Is my current bank the best place to go for this, based on my current score and income situation?

Thanks in advance for any advice.

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Well, the honorable thing to do would be to pay it off.

However, from a score perspective, it could be suicide. Here's why.
It's not currently affecting your score that much. I know this because your range is so tight and you said that it's only reporting to one of the bureaus. If it were hurting you, then that bureau would be a lot lower than the other two. By paying it off, you would force the collection company to report to the bureau that it is now paid off and it would update the DLA (date last active) and it would look like it's a NEW COLLECTION ACCOUNT! The bureaus can't distinguish between a new collection and just an old one that got paid off. If you just want it off your record though, you can pay it, then a few months later dispute it on www.annualcreditreport.com and it might come of.

Getting a card/auto loan would certainly help. I'm a fan of credit unions for the consumer debt stuff. Many times, they are not fico driven.