Fluctuation in scores bc of App Spree...When do my scores balance out??

[Anonymous]

Hello all!

I was approved for 8 new credit cards with $20k+ worth of credit...My scores have dropped since some of the new accounts have been added to all 3 CRs. It's only been a month and all of the new accounts have not been yet added...but when they do....I'm pretty sure my scores will take even more of hit. I know that because I'm building a more solid credit profile that this process is inevitable. My question is, when will my scores go back to "normal" or "balance" out? Some people in the forums say 3 months, 6 months, and I've even read a year...a year seems like a long time... In any case, please chime in... I'd like to know what I'm up against so that I can brace myself for it.

Thanks in advance!

[Anonymous]

wanted to know this as well...

just got 2 credit cards and they haven't started reporting yet

I'm getting married in May so I wanted to get all the finances in order

plus we'd be looking for a house in a year or so...

[kdm31091]

Unfortunately, things  take time in the credit world. Truly "recovering" from a major app spree can definitely take 6 months to a year to put you close to where you were before the spree. It takes time for the damage from a HP and  AAOA ding to subside, which is why people who apply for things every month or so are IMO constantly setting themselves back. If you really want to let your score grow, you just need to have patience, pay your bills and do NOT apply for anything for at least 6 months. You will not see a huge score recovery after just 1 or 2 months in most cases.

[Appleman]

I have been very fortunate with my current extended app spree.

I have added 10+ tradelines since November (variety of credit products) with the goal of paying less money each month.

The greatest benefit I had was wiping away a pile of credit card debt and getting my utilization under control.

I thought I would get hit with a drop in score when my personal loan hit the reports (the one to pay down debt).

My scores went from the 710-720 range to the 786-803 range currently.

I know that I am an outlier, I have 25 years of strong credit history so I did not destroy my AAoA. In the process I picked up that having an AAoA greater than 5 years after the app spree is good. My inquiries are up there, 11-16 depending on which CRA, I am slowly walking to the garden.

For me the app spree left me in a better position. The overall debt load is the same it is just carried in different credit vehicles allowing for me to pay it off much sooner (and a lot less interest).

I can't help but plug YNAB as the budgeting software that really has changed things at my house. My wife and I talk about the budget often daily and we can see monthly progress as we pay bills, debt and are even able to save some money.

Now having all that open credit is tempting for me, 10 years ago I would bought the store out. Today, I finally have some control and can manage my cards in a reasonable fashion.

I guess the point to my story is that it took 15-20 years to get to the point that I could go a bit crazy with an app spree and not pay the score price.

Good luck on the score recovery and please share some data appoints along the way, I am truly fascinated with the credit world.

[Revelate]

There's no set time period as it depends what's in your file in terms of AAOA and inquiries to begin with.

Inquiry damage gone in a year.

If you beat your AAOA down multiple years, it can take even longer than that to fully recover especially if you have a public record or similar depressing your score.

If you don't change AAOA, and you don't transition into a different bin on a given bureau as far as inquiry count goes, it's entirely possible to take absolutely 0 damage from an app spree, but this isn't the norm.