@armbenderc wrote:I definately agreed with you. However, reading on this forum, it seems that it is best and optimal score to keep one card around 10 % UTIL and other card at 0 balance.
I may be wrong.
It is for optimal scoring, you are correct. However, this is only necessary when you plan on applying for something, as it will cause your score to shoot up a few extra points. If you're in the garden then go ahead and let stuff report, just make sure you're not maxing out your cards and stuff. 
@jsucool76 wrote:
@armbenderc wrote:I definately agreed with you. However, reading on this forum, it seems that it is best and optimal score to keep one card around 10 % UTIL and other card at 0 balance.
I may be wrong.
It is for optimal scoring, you are correct. However, this is only necessary when you plan on applying for something, as it will cause your score to shoot up a few extra points. If you're in the garden then go ahead and let stuff report, just make sure you're not maxing out your cards and stuff.
+1 I would actually think it better to let your balances report when not going to be seeking credit, it shows that you actually use those cards regularly. If you want to try to get the optimal utilization to report before applying for credit, then go ahead, but doing it all the time seems like a waste of time that could even hurt you on a manual review.
@Anonymous wrote:
@jsucool76 wrote:
@armbenderc wrote:I definately agreed with you. However, reading on this forum, it seems that it is best and optimal score to keep one card around 10 % UTIL and other card at 0 balance.
I may be wrong.
It is for optimal scoring, you are correct. However, this is only necessary when you plan on applying for something, as it will cause your score to shoot up a few extra points. If you're in the garden then go ahead and let stuff report, just make sure you're not maxing out your cards and stuff.
+1 I would actually think it better to let your balances report when not going to be seeking credit, it shows that you actually use those cards regularly. If you want to try to get the optimal utilization to report before applying for credit, then go ahead, but doing it all the time seems like a waste of time that could even hurt you on a manual review.
For instance, if you don't report a balance on GE cards, you don't get a statement. I've read about people getting denied for CLIs because they "don't have enough experience at their current level" despite being there for a long time, since no statements ever cut.
@kwazziee wrote:While I can't say for everyone but I think <10% utilization is overated. At least from my exprience. I had 60%+ util. at time of apping so I will contest this theory. I recently got approved in the last 30 days; Chase Freedom, Barclay Reward, Discover More, Wally Discover, Citi Thank you, BOA Reward and CapOne Cash. And not they are not low cl. All cards limit are between 2k - 5K. I apped for these cards two to three days apart and was all approved with two being recon.
Though my FICO score was high all 700's+ across the board, my aaoa was 3 years, longest history 9 years, and two CapOne cards($750 and $3K). My stated income was only 45K. Had 2-3 inquiries with each credit bureau wbefore my app spree.
Now, please understand that I am not saying util is not important but I believe each credit card company has their own internal scoring system. Apparently, my high util was not a factor with my recent app spree approvals.
We do get caught up on these forums trying to eek out every additional point in a FICO score when utlimately just never missing a payment and time passing is really the only path for permanent improvement over time (derogatories being taken care of apply too I guess).
That said, every single lender you mentioned is more balance friendly than some others (they all make BT offers to my knowledge as an example); also if you had legit FICO scores of high 700's (north of 760 in my book) at 60% utilization, well, frankly you're a member of the gold-plated elite and probably even the upper echelons of that category too as far as risk analysis goes from a FICO perspective, and as such your credit profile isn't reachable by me or many others on this forum.
Longer term, FICO has no memory of our balances, and I'm just fine carrying a balance when it makes financial sense to do so (like when I was unemployed for 3 months recently, rent > PIF for a while). but for me when I do make an application, like for my recent Zync, especially as Amex doesn't like balances, and whenever I manage to get my poop in a group for a mortgage app, I'll be putting as much lipstick on my pig as possible... and that means ruthlessly managing my reported balances.
@kwazziee wrote:We do get caught up on these forums trying to eek out every additional point in a FICO score when utlimately just never missing a payment and time passing is really the only path for permanent improvement over time (derogatories being taken care of apply too I guess).
That said, every single lender you mentioned is more balance friendly than some others (they all make BT offers to my knowledge as an example); also if you had legit FICO scores of high 700's (north of 760 in my book) at 60% utilization, well, frankly you're a member of the gold-plated elite and probably even the upper echelons of that category too as far as risk analysis goes from a FICO perspective, and as such your credit profile isn't reachable by me or many others on this forum.
Longer term, FICO has no memory of our balances, and I'm just fine carrying a balance when it makes financial sense to do so (like when I was unemployed for 3 months recently, rent > PIF for a while). but for me when I do make an application, like for my recent Zync, especially as Amex doesn't like balances, and whenever I manage to get my poop in a group for a mortgage app, I'll be putting as much lipstick on my pig as possible... and that means ruthlessly managing my reported balances.
I am really no member of the elite. My FICO score we TU 721, EX 717 and EQ 712, not really high at all compare to a bunch of members here. I had two CapOne card with $750, $3k limits and a auto loan I finance in 2002 and paid off in 2006. Also an AU on my DW Chse Freedom card which made my util so high. My credit record was very simple and nothing special before my app spree.
Ah, I guess I wouldn't have characterized 720 as high 700's 
; however, 720 is still well above average.
Also it might make a non-zero difference that the util was on an AU card rather than your own; FICO '08 even should've counted it in your case (AU on a spouse's card is what AU's were designed for); however, internal lenders may have ignored it or at least treated it differently a total of 60% utilization on your own cards.
That all said, I do agree that in the current market, where every lender under the sun is trying to increase their customer base seemingly after the pogrom of the past few years, that current utilization is likely much less important than it has been historically... and admittedly on this forum we are very backward looking as a population when it comes to anecdotal reports: they do change all the time, and in this case completely to our benefits with the loosening of credit standards.
I still will be putting lipstick on my own pig though when I apply, but even if not gold-plated elite (and you might be without that 60% util, I'm curious as to where your scores would be without that) you're waaaay ahead of me by at least a year and more likely two-three in my own FICO journey following the yellow-brick road.
Edit: just read the card lists, you were well above the current underwriting criteria for most of those cards: BOFA, Chase, Discover, Wally are obtainable around my credit level let alone yours; I don't honestly know where the Barclays and Citi cards fall in the spectrum of things though I should probably go look those up... but you were kinda slumming on your applications just looking at it from a FICO perspective . I do like your list of cards though.