I have 3 credit cards and one charge off on my credit and I’m wondering which to pay first to improve my credit score quickly. I have to buy a new car in the next few months because mine is getting old and costing me more than it’s worth.
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Card #1 – owe $230 at 9% interest
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Card #2 – owe $235 at 9% interest
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Card #3 – owe $561 at 11% interest (this card is closed)
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Charge off – owe $521 (no interest, obviously). This shows up under the “accounts” section of my credit report, not under collections. The description is “charge off/bad debt” and they ARE reporting my current balance and payments
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My current score with Equifax is 679. I’ve done the FICO Score Simulator with the credit card debt, but I haven’t been able to find any advice/information on what paying off a charge off will eventually do to your score. I know in the short term it could hurt me, but will I be able to recover in 4 months, which is when I plan to buy a car.  So right now, I am making payments on all accounts and have been current on all accounts since September 2007. Should I put more towards the credit cards or the charge off?
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 THANKS for any knowledge you can impart!