 TITLE: Why Did My Credit Score Drop When I Paid Off a Loan? CONTENT: Positive Accounts Stay on Credit Reports Longer Than Negative Accounts\n----------------------------------------------------------------------\nYour closed account won't remain on your credit reports forever. If you repaid the loan in full and never missed a payment, the credit bureaus will keep the account on your credit report for up to 10 years after the account is closed.\nHowever, most negative marks must be removed from your credit reports after seven years (though some bankruptcies can remain for up to 10 years). Negative marks include late payments, a defaulted account or an account in collections.\nThe seven-year clock starts when you first fall behind on your bill, or the \"date of first delinquency.\" If you don't pay your past due amount, a new negative mark gets added to your account each month to indicate how far behind you've fallen. If you never bring the account current, the creditor may eventually charge off your account and send it to collections.\nWhen the late payments lead to your account being closed, or if you pay off a loan that was already delinquent and closed, then the entire account will be deleted seven years after the date of first delinquency.\nIf you were late with a few payments, caught up and then paid off the loan at a later point, the account may remain on your credit reports for 10 years after it's closed. However, the late payments still get removed after seven years. END