Paid as agreed on your credit report is good or bad

D

Daniel

Member
I used to have a really bad credit profile back when I wasn’t paying much attention to it. According to Experian, only about 40% of my accounts showed as “always paid as agreed,” which makes sense since my very first credit cards and loans ended up defaulting. I know that history is dragging me down pretty hard.


Lately, I’ve been opening small installment loans through Bank of America and paying them off, and that’s pushed my “paid as agreed” percentage up to around 60%. Each one costs me a hard inquiry and about a $10 fee, so it’s not too expensive, but I’m wondering if this approach is actually smart.


My biggest concern is whether having such a poor payment history metric will stand in the way of getting approved for a mortgage down the road. Right now my scores are sitting between 645 and 670 across all three bureaus. Has anyone here been in a similar situation? Did these kinds of steps actually help you move forward, or is there a better way to improve the odds of mortgage approval?
 
Paid as agreed is basically the gold star you want. Every account you pay on time reports as paid as agreed. The issue is that your old defaults are still showing and dragging the percentage down. Over time, the new good data will outweigh the old. The biggest factor is recent history, so the further away you get from those defaults, the less they sting. Mortgage lenders definitely care about this.
 
Honestly I wouldn’t be racking up hard inquiries for $10 loans. Your credit mix already looks fine if you’ve got cards and loans. The paid as agreed percentage on Experian isn’t even a FICO metric.....it’s just their way of summarizing. What matters more is no lates in the last 24 months. That’s what lenders really hone in on.
 
I did something similar with self-lender loans. They reported as installment accounts, and every on-time payment helped my profile. The difference was that I wasn’t chasing the “paid as agreed” percentage but just adding positive tradelines. My mortgage broker said the underwriter mainly cared about no recent derogatories, steady income, and debt-to-income ratio.
 
I feel you. I tanked my score in my early 20s and thought I’d never recover. The best thing I did was stop obsessing over little percentages on Experian and just keep every single payment on time for years. By the time I applied for my first mortgage, the old charge-offs were still on my report, but I still got approved because my last 4 years were spotless.
 
Mortgage underwriters aren’t staring at paid as agreed: 60% like it’s a grade. They’re reviewing if you’ve had late payments recently, how much debt you carry, and whether your income supports the loan. It’s easy to get lost in these side metrics. Focus on utilization, keep everything current, and let time heal the old wounds.
 
I think your strategy is a little like trying to polish the hood of a car with a busted engine. Looks good on the surface but doesn’t actually fix the root issue. Your defaults are aging, which is what really fixes your score. New $500 installment loans won’t outweigh a history of charge-offs in the eyes of FICO scoring.
 
That’s not bad at all compared to some credit building schemes out there. Just don’t overdo it ....too many hard pulls in a short time can shave points off and look desperate. If you’re spacing them out and they’re small, you’re probably fine.
 
As someone who just bought a house this year: lenders wanted to see no late payments in the last 24 months. I had some old collections from 2017 and they literally didn’t even mention them. What they did scrutinize was my income consistency and that my utilization was below 10%. That’s what tipped me into the approval zone.
 
If you’re sitting at 645–670 already, you’re not in a terrible place. You’re in the fair bucket. With another year or two of clean history and lower utilization, you’ll probably creep into the 700s. That’s enough for a decent mortgage rate, especially if you’re going FHA or VA. Conventional might want a 680+, but you’re nearly there.
 
Bro, you’re basically paying $10 a pop for peace of mind. That’s cheaper than therapy. Seriously though, it won’t hurt as long as you don’t over-apply. But the real cure is boring: time and patience. Keep grinding.
 
This is where Experian messes with people. They highlight stats like percent of accounts paid as agreed which feels like a grade, but lenders are using FICO or Vantage, not Experian’s dashboard. Think of it like your Fitbit giving you a stress score.....cool, but your doctor doesn’t care.
 
Have you looked into secured cards instead? They build history without hard pulls once opened, and you can just leave them reporting for years. Installment loans do add mix, but one or two is enough. More is just clutter.
 
Not gonna lie, I admire your persistence. I would’ve just rage quit the whole system after getting defaults. Credit is one of those games where boring, steady play wins. You’re basically grinding XP in an RPG. Takes forever but you’ll level up.
 
Dude, if you’re at 670 now, imagine where you’ll be in 2 years with no lates. You’ll be golden. Just avoid opening too many small loans......it’s like death by a thousand cuts with inquiries. Better to chill and let your history age.
 
The hard inquiry thing is what I’d be careful with. If you’re thinking of applying for a mortgage soon, you don’t want like 10 inquiries showing up. Space them out or just stop altogether once you’re within 6–12 months of applying.
 
Have you pulled your mortgage scores (FICO 2/4/5)? Those are what lenders actually use, not FICO 8 or Vantage. My Experian app said I was 690, but my mortgage mid-score was 660. Huge difference. It’s worth checking before you get serious about buying.
 
I’d say keep it simple: 1) pay everything on time, 2) keep utilization under 10%, 3) don’t open unnecessary accounts. That formula works for almost everyone. Chasing specific percentages on a dashboard is kinda a distraction.
 
One thing to consider: lenders also manually review your credit report, not just the score. So if they see a bunch of tiny installment loans opening and closing, they might ask questions. It doesn’t kill your chances, but they may wonder what’s going on.
 
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