Is there a way to have CC companies update immediately?

[Anonymous]

We paid down all credit cards to about 10-12% utilization, however, the report has not been updated on a couple. Is there someway to have them report sooner than they are scheduled to to see if it's enough to get our score where we'd like to see it?

Thanks!

[Lel]

CC companies don't update the information at the credit reporting agencies until after your statement closes.  Also, I believe they report "in bulk" on specific days of the month.  Are you in a particular rush to improve your credit score?

[Anonymous]

Yes, the ol *mortgage qualification* reason. 

[Lel]

In that case, your loan officer can try to do a rapid rescore, which will record the payments that you have made and gets the credit bureaus to update the information before they receive the statement info from the credit card companies.  You'll need to provide proof of your payments.

You mentioned that you have paid down your credit cards to 10-12% utilization.  Your best results will come if you can get your utilization to 9% or lower - you're almost there.  Also, you don't want to have too many cards reporting balances. 

[Anonymous]

Okay, we'll just pay a bit more!  No big deal.  We're the *cash only* family that only got the cc's in order to *prove* to the lenders we can manage credit.  :/ 5 years of positive car payments didn't seem to be enough.  

We have 4 cards, limits are super low, $250, $200, $500, $250, if we pay them all down to 5% of limit does that work?  We paid off 2 to zero once and our score dropped.  It's hard when you don't have alot to manipulate!

[haulingthescoreup]

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DMWBCC wrote:

... We paid off 2 to zero once and our score dropped. 

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That's pretty odd. It shouldn't have happened that way. I'm not doubting you! --it's just that sometimes causes and effects in FICO scoring get jumbled up, and maybe there was something else going on as well.

Nearly everyone here who has tried this have found that our scores do best when only one or two CC's report balances. If you still have an open auto loan (or more), one CC with a balance would be best.

If you're convinced that you need to let all report (I don't think this is so, but this is your credit, and you need to do what makes sense for you), try letting them all report two bucks or so. That will have you at 1% util. Then don't forget to pay them off after they report. That would be pretty horrifying --a finance charge, or worse, a late fee on a $2 balance.

[Anonymous]

Thanks so much for your input. They are far more appreicated then you'll ever know!  We feel quite feeble and vunerable to the world of credit.

I will say that we had a few other things going on around that time as far as updating, maybe it will be worth a shot!  Maybe there was something else contributing to that drop.  

What we have going right now:

The 4 cc's I mentioned 

2 Auto Loans

2 Student Loans

With that said, should I then let only ONE report with a balance, if so, how much of THAT card's limit or should I let it report with my total available overall with all cc's considered?  Then have the others report with a zero balance?

[haulingthescoreup]

I'd pick one card and have it report 9% or less of its CL. It's easiest to do this with the highest-CL card, unless it's one that has funky reporting.

Most, but not all, CC's update on their statement dates. (Not the due dates.) Exceptions include HSBC/ Orchard bank cards and US Bank, which report the balance as of the last business day of the month, and American Express, which updates 4 weeks later.

If your $500 CL card isn't from a wacko lender, let $45 or less report, and then pay it off. Pay the others off before the statement date. You *might * weasel a few more points out this way.

Actually, since you have four open installment accounts, which by definition report balances, and four cards, you might do better to have all cards report $0. That way you'd only have half of your total accounts with balances. But since most of us get a ding for having all CC's report $0, I'm guessing that you'll do better with one card reporting.

Isn't this fun??

Good luck on your mortgage app!

[Anonymous]

Thanks!  I am SO obsessed with this I have reminders for all reporting dates, due dates, statement dates- but somehow or another I can't remember our anniversary date!  My husband is better at that then me. 

Okay, we'll pay one down to 9% or less and pay off the rest.  See what happens?

What do the lenders do when they do a *rapid rescore*?

[Lel]

In a rapid rescore, you make a payment to your credit card to bring the balance down.  Since this may not be routinely recorded on your credit report until after the statement closing date, your score won't be immediately affected until then.  Documentation of your payment is given to your lender (or the rapid rescoring company/service), and they contact the credit reporting agencies to update the information before the credit card company does.  So, even though your zero balance isn't going to be reported until the end of the month, the RR service will get the zero balance to be reflected right away, so your score will increase (hopefully) before the end of the month.

There's no free lunch, by the way - there's a cost for getting a rapid rescore.  I don't know how much that is, though.