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Greetings,
I've searched the forums to see what others' past experiences have been regarding authorized user (AU) accounts and what effect they may have on the mortgage application process, but most of what I've read has been specific to the case where someone is an AU on a family member's account (and generally one with relatively small balances). In my particular case, I'm an authorized user on my employer's AMEX Platinum card, which my credit report shows as having had a past high balance of approximately $140,000. The card is always paid in full (no negative remarks to speak of), but it does typically rack up anywhere from $30,000 to $100,000 in new business expenses each month. As a consequence, I'm wondering how an underwriter would handle this account in evaluating my credit profile, and particularly, if they would request its removal so that my credit could be re-scored (as I've read does sometimes happen).
To that extent, I can think of three ways in which this AU account may be impacting my score (both positively and negatively), and for which an underwriter may request a re-score:
I have 20 accounts that show up on my credit report (no collections or bankruptcies), but only five of them are active: the aforementioned AU Amex, the aforementioned personal AMEX, a personal Visa card, and two consolidated federal student loans, all of which are paid on time, and in the case of the charge and credit cards, are paid in full each month. The other 15 accounts are older accounts that report as closed/"pays as agreed" (e.g., paid off car loans, old store cards, paid off student loans, etc.). Given that I only have five active accounts, is an underwriter likely to feel that the AU AMEX is factoring too heavily in my credit profile to the point that he or she would request it be removed for re-scoring? Given that access to this charge card is vitally important for my work, removing it really isn't an option for me. My gut instinct is that a good lender will be able to work around this, but I was hoping to get a "head's up" before taking the plunge.
Thanks in advance for your insight.
I wish I had some advice to offer but I don't, so the next best thing I can do is comment here & keep your post on the first page. Hopefully, someone will have some answers for you.
Both lenders I dealt with said they didn`t bother with counting a AU account due to it not being my personal account.
An authorized user is not legally responsible for the debt on that credit card. Being an AU on your bosses credit card should not be an issue.