- Discussion board

I HAD A COLLEGE VISA THAT I MAXED OUT AT $500.00 THAT I HAVENT PAYED IN OVER A YEAR, NOW IT HAS GONE UP TO $1200.00 AND IT HAS GONE TO COLLECTION WHAT I NEED TO DO IS FIGURE OUT HOW TO FIX THIS AND I NEED TO ESTABLISH SOME KIND OF CREDIT IM GETTING TO THE POINT WHERE I HAVE THINGS I WANT TO BUY AND I DONT HAVE THE RIGHT CREDIT FOR THINGS SO I F YOU COULD RECOMMEND HOW TO FIX THAT OR A CREDIT CARD THAT WOULD TAKE OVER THE ACCOUNT SO I COULD PAY IT OFF AND I NEED TO KNOW THE FASTEST WAY TO ESTABLISH CREDIT
THANKS FOR YOUR TIME

Johnny - Many college students get themselves in trouble with credit cards. This affects your ability to get credit after graduation. Negative information stays on your credit file for 7 years. Maybe you can work with the issuer to set-up a payment plan and minimize the negative impact on your credit history. It doesn't take long to hurt your credit history, but it takes a while to fix it. Good Luck.

I made a similar mistake when I was in college and it cost me plenty years later when I tried to get an apartment and other credit cards. I agree with Colin. The FIRST thing you should do is contact your original credit card issuer and see if you can come to an agreement on the account. The GOOD thing is that you have only ONE card and it has only been ONE year. See if you can come to an agreement with them. You may be able to ask them to settle your account in a way that they will agree to report the account in a favorable fashion to the credit reporting agencies (paid as agreed). If they do agree GET IT IN WRITING!!!!!!!!!!!!! What you may want to do is have a phone conversation with them first. If they agree, send them a letter which states the same conversation IN WRITING to the company before you send payment (make sure that they understand that they need to send you a letter reflecting that after receiving payment you have paid as agreed). Then send the payment and they shoudl HOPEFULLY send you a letter saying that you have paid as agreed. This way you will have proof to show the credit reporting agencies if the account still reflects negatively.

I do not recommend you accumulate more debt until you solve this. Even if they don't agree to do the above, paying off the debt is a good thing. It may be a bad mark on your credit report, but if you open new accounts and keep them in good standing (NO LATE PAYMENTS), they may outweigh this one blemish from your past. It takes time, effort and patience, but it is better than avoidance because i know from experience that a small mistake can ruin many future opportunities. Pay it off and open a new credit account and maintain it well. Make sure to also get copies of your credit report (maybe a couple of months after you pay to give them time to reflect the payment) because sometimes they have innacuracies as well (sometimes they show bills that have been paid as having not been paid).

The three major credit reporting agencies are:
TransUnion
Equifax
Experian

(You can look them up online and get their information.)