Julia Kagan is a financial/consumer journalist and former senior editor, personal finance, of Investopedia. Dr. JeFreda R. Brown is a financial consultant, Certified Financial Education Instructor, ...

Knowing the timeline between charge-offs and collections can help you take action before the issue gets worse.

If you’ve pulled your credit report and spotted the term “charge-off,” you might’ve panicked and honestly, that’s a normal reaction. It sounds harsh, and it can have a real impact on your financial ...