How Long to Reach the 800 Club?

[stone4779]

Those of you that are in the 800 Club without a mortgage: When was your first account opened and whats your AAoA? Thanks

[stan_the_man]

I have no mortgages nor any installment loans reporting and my EQ is 813 -- TU is 791 and EX was 793 back in September.

My EQ report says my oldest account was opened 10 years, 10 months ago and my AAoA is 7 years.

To answer OP's question, there is no way to know how long (if ever) it will take to reach the 800 club. My guess is that one of the most common things you'll see among 800 club members is a relatively high AAoA compared to age of longest account -- which I presume would demonstrate that you maintain a fairly stable credit history. Of course, this is speculation.

[fused]

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@stone4779 wrote:

Those of you that are in the 800 Club without a mortgage: When was your first account opened and whats your AAoA? Thanks

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My credit history is 23 years and 1 month old, and my AAoA is 8 years.

[Anonymous]

Hey there,

You can read up on cc util here in the forums, but you will get a boost if you total balances report 1-9% vice paying them to $0 each month ( may sound strange, but it shows responsible cc usage to the algorithm ) ... so keep a 2% balance or so on each card and see how it increases your score ... will take a few months to catch up most likely ...

[bruiseviolet]

Where can you 'simulate' at?

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:
Hey there,

You can read up on cc util here in the forums, but you will get a boost if you total balances report 1-9% vice paying them to $0 each month ( may sound strange, but it shows responsible cc usage to the algorithm ) ... so keep a 2% balance or so on each card and see how it increases your score ... will take a few months to catch up most likely ...

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Hi pilot - you're right to bring up (overall and individual) utilization along with number of accounts reporting a balance - they both affect FICO's.

Just want to clarify, most folks will see their best FICO scores if they allow one revolving account to report a balance less than 9%; with the remaining accounts reporting a zero balance.  FICO does track number of accounts reporting a balance, so most folks will see a FICO improvement with fewer accounts reporting a balance and an overall and individual utilization below 9%.  As usual, YMMV, and everyone will find their own individual sweet spots.

[Anonymous]

Last year I wasn't even going to think about buying a home until Summer of 2012. Then I got to understand what QE2 was doing to home mortgage interest rates and, from there, monthly mortgage payments, and I decided "now or never."  So, I signed up for credit services from all three bureaus plus FICO.  I had tax liens and bad debts to get rid of but they were all too old (should not have been reported) or not mine (really), so after 4 months of concerted pushing I got my score up over 700, which was plenty high enough to qualify for a zero-down VA loan (yeah, I'm a vet).

During this process, two of the four score simulators were screaming at me that I really needed a mortgage loan to bump my score up higher.  I'm now pre-approved and waiting for final approval.

If you don't foresee the need to move cities in the next few years, then consider a condo instead of an apartment if a single-family home is out of the question (lack of down payment, etc.).  In many cases it will end up being cheaper than rent after tax deductions, and it will help to bump your score up to have a mortgage loan.

The downside with condos is the monthly maintenance fee and the lack of appreciation.  But you shouldn't be buying a home for appreciation in this market.  You should be buying what suits your lifestyle if, and only if, you plan to be there for at least a few years.  And while it isn't necessary to a high credit score, a mortgage loan will help your score, as it is viewed as a commitment to stability.

[manfromunkle]

Isn't it true that to get over 800 you have to have a "long" period of time without a "hard credit check"?

I got my credit cards all paid down and am hoping to see a boost.  

I couldn't help myself and opened a Verizon account.   I haven't gotten a notice from myFico monitoring yet (been two weeks).

[stan_the_man]

It helps to not have a lot of new accounts (which come with a triple ding of a new account, hard inquiry and, potentially, reduced AAoA), but it's not a requirement. I have an 800+ score on my EQ and that was with a new account and hard inquiry just three months earlier when I first had an 800 score.

[Anonymous]

My Equifax FICO is 816.  No mortgage.  Oldest account 13 years, 10 months.  AAoA 7 years.