I have 16 Late mortgage payments on my credit report, what now?

[Jason H Orahoske]

I am in zero danger of losing the home I own, and am actively working to get ready to buy my first rental as soon as possible.  But... I have this nightmare to deal with.  I worked my butt off at a second job to drag my stupid mortgage back from 90 days late for months (divorce+job loss+housefire=TMI but now you know why) to one month ahead, but now I have 75% of my payments marked as late and don't know how the heck to fix it.  Will anyone even think about lending me money for more real estate in the near future, even if I have 20% down?  How long do I have to wait before I can begin this journey?  Heck, what if I just wanted to move or refinance my current place (which I do actually)?  This is stressing me out, my score is a 580 right now and I'm doing all I can to fix it, get my cash flow minimized, get a down payment funded, and start the search for the best deal I can possibly find.  What can I do?

Will taking out more credit cards and paying them all on time help?  Should I bother PNC every day to try and get some of those removed even though they are 100% valid?  Or should I just give up now and wait 7 years to even think about this instead of preparing every single day for the day I can dive head first into this world?  How badly have I screwed myself?

I'd hide this embarrassing fact about me, but that's not what this site is for.  I need to find some answers, so I might as well start with the mess I'm in and go from there.  I won't be in a position to even refinance my current home until sometime next year, and then I can begin the process of building the rental empire one brick at a time.  Could I potentially be getting into this a year and a half from now, or am I stuck waiting 7 like I have a foreclosure???