@diann744 wrote:
Really? Wow, I've been monitoring for years and never saw that. Zero balances are quite the norm for me. Thanks so much for the tip; I'll definitely do that from now on. Ouch! My score generally goes up and down between 2 and 8 points with no rhyme or reason but I've never seen 32 in either direction! Freaked me out. Is it something to do with the new FICIO 9 scoring?
I appreciate your help!
The problem goes away the second another one of your cards reports even a $2 balance. You don't have to wait a whole month unless you only have one card.
Where people get totally **bleep**ed is when they are getting ready for a mortgage or a car loan and pay all cards down to zero thinking they are maximizing their scores only to find out they got royally screwed with a 20 or 30 point drop in FICO scores.
It's the same thing that happens when you pay off an installment loan -- car, student loan, share secured. Scores usually drop 20 points for "doing a good thing"
FICO isn't designed to reward consumers, it is designed to make scienticially valid predictions based on millions and millions of profiles.
Sucks, I know, but once you know the game, you won't make the mistake again.
The all cards reporting a zero balance is the easiest of all things to fix. Don't sweat it but do understand it.
