The impact of an item deleted from your credit report depends on whether the item was negative, such as inquiries, late or missed payments, write-offs, collections, bankruptcies, settlements, liens, and foreclosures. The impact of these deletions can range from a credit score increase of a few points (for inquiries) to hundreds of points (for bankruptcies). Deleting a negative item is like removing weight from your score, allowing it to rise. The impact on your score as a result of removing a negative item depends on the severity and the age of the item. Inquiries are not severe problems, so removing them will have, at best, a minimal impact on your score. Other items are more severe, so removing them could add dozens of points to your score. The other factor is the item’s age. The impact of removal will always be greater if the item is relatively recent. Even severely derogatory items begin to lose their bite after a couple of years. The impact of an item aging off your report will be muted because the negative effects have already eroded over time. Nonetheless, you should see your score rebound whenever a negative item is removed.