Amount past due on accounts

FICO code numbers

Code numbers can differ by bureau and score version. The wording of the statement is what to match.

What puts this reason on your score

Each account reports an 'amount past due' field. If any account shows a number above zero there, including a charged-off account or a collection still reporting a past-due amount, this code can show.

FICO's payment history category looks at the money still owed on delinquent accounts and collections. A live past-due balance tells the model the trouble isn't over, and each month it stays unpaid can add another late rating.

What to check on your credit report

• Read the past-due field on every account, not only the status line.
• Check that accounts you brought current show $0 past due.
• Look for a closed account that was paid or settled but still shows a past-due amount.

What you can do about it

• Bring any past-due account current first. That stops new late months from stacking up.
• If an account is paid or settled but still shows a past-due amount, dispute that field with the bureau and include proof.
• Call a creditor before a payment reaches 30 days late. A missed payment usually isn't reported as late before then.

How soon a change can show

Once the creditor reports $0 past due, typically on its next monthly update, the code can drop from the next score pulled.

If you are applying for a mortgage

A past-due amount on the report will come up in underwriting, and lenders expect accounts to be current. Clear it before you apply.

Guides that go deeper

• When a late payment gets reported to the credit bureausA payment a few days late usually costs a fee, not a report entry. How the 30-day line works, the rules that make a card payment on time, and how to check.
• Hardship plans, forbearance, and how they show up on your creditThe CARES Act rule that kept forbearance off credit reports expired in 2023. How forbearance and card hardship plans report now, and what to ask first.
• Charge-off vs. collection: two entries, one debt, different rulesA charge-off is the lender writing off your debt; a collection is someone else trying to collect it. Why both can show up, and how each is scored.
• What your credit score reason codes are telling youReason codes list what held your score back the most, in order. What the common ones mean, which you can act on, and which to leave alone.