Nope, you will still not have a score. You have never had any real credit, you have only had collections. There is no credit history to rate. I suggest a secured credit card or loan. When you get your tax return, make sure you pay everything off. Then if you have any $$$ left over, apply for a secured card. I have seen limits as low as $200.00. Go to a local credit union or community bank. Do not go to the big credit card companies. They will charge you a lot of fees. After six months of having a credit card, you will have a score, although it will probably be relatively low. Make sure you learn how to play the game before you get your first card. Annualcreditreport.com can help you out.

Annualcreditreport.com get a copy of your credit report it will open you eyes, and it’s free

Once your payment have been reported you may be able to get a score. It won’t be good though, because collections have a negative impact on your score. Before paying your bills off at tax time, I’d consider a secured loan. You go to a bank/credit union with money (any amount) tell them you want a secured loan. They put that money into a savings account and freeze it so you can’t use it. Then they give you a loan for the same amount. Really it’s not a loan, it’s your money. It’ s a way to have a positive thing added to your report. Once you pay your loan payments every month that amount of money is unfrozen. You never actually lose anything. Whatever you walk in with, is given back to you before you leave, and whatever your payment is, is given back to you the next day.

Example: $5000 put into account for loan
next month you pay $300
day after $4700 is frozen in account, $300 available
for use.
There is no way you can mess this up, as long as you pay every month, your credit score will go up. The money is given back to you the next day so you can use it for something else if you want to. Just make sure it is set up so you pay on it at least 1 year.

It varies. It also depends on why this is on your credit report. Were the bills unpaid and sent to collections? Then this is gonna make your credit score very low. Especially since you have never built positive credit. If you just pay these off, it is doubtful you will get anything positive out of it. You will just be taking the negative away. You sitll have to build positive credit (ie loans paid on time, credit card bills paid on time) in order for you score to get at a decent level.