You need to understand how things work before dismissing them as stupid. Paying on time helps -- and is a must -- as Payment History is the biggest factor but it is not the only consideration.
If you're paying after your statement generates then a balance will report. It's not so much the balance itself but your Revolving Utilization that impact your score. Whether your balance increases, remains the same or decreases all depends on whatever the previously reported balance happened to be versus the newly reported balance.
If you don't want a balance to report then you need to pay in full prior to the report date. However, the score you indicate is well over the 740-760 range where best terms are typically offered so I wouldn't recommend worrying over this. Anything above that range with a FICO 8 is just gravy. However, you don't indicate which model & CRA for the score so make sure you're keeping that in mind when referencing scores. A score of X isn't necessarily the same for all scoring models as they don't all have the same scoring range or evalaute report data the same way.
Certainly monitor your Revolving Utilization if desired but don't just react to alerts and updates without understanding what they mean or their importance. If you're going to fret over scoring changes then set a higher threshold. I recommend at least 20 points. It's typical for scores to vary a bit depending on account activity. As your Revolving Utilization increases your scores will generally decrease. As your Revolving Utilization decreases your scores will generally increase. Revolving Utilization falls under Amounts Owed in the link below. It is determined based on the balance(s) & limit(s) as indicated in your report at time of consideration. Prior Revolving Utilization does not matter -- just the current balances and limits.
Educate yourself on the standard factors and their typical weights. This is only a starting point. Don't overlook the stickies and other discussions as resources as well. You may also want to visit the Understanding FICO Scoring subforum.
http://www.myfico.com/crediteducation/whatsinyourscore.aspx
Additionally, a balance increase has nothing to do with a late payment so don't conflate them. Revolving Utilization falls under Amounts Owed. Lates would fall under Payment History.
@Anonymous wrote:
however, the credit agency is reacting to a non-30 day occurence
It is not the CRA unless you're using the CRA's monitoring service. It is whatever monitoring service that you are using.
