Ouchie, my scores took a big nosedive!

[scramblingin2007]

I am so depressed right now. Over the past few months I have app'd and recieved some great cc's. Everything was going great. When I got up to 5 new cc's score was great and held steady but when I took the bait for a 6th cc and a personal loan with cu scores took a 20 point dive! I can't believe I did this! 20 points for new cc's, my average age took a dive. I have 12 yrs of history now with average age 4! What can I do to recover? How long will it take? This is just horrible! I am losing sleep over this.

[jbh]

It's now just a matter of time. Since you secured the credit you need (I would assume) for about a year+ (forgive me if this is not the case), you actually should be ok. Remember, the inq's will fall off within a year (at least the score impact, IIRC) and you also have the benefit of:

Age

12 Months of low util (if you pay 'em down. If you haven't already, you will recoup those points with a quick util reduction)

Loan Being Paid Off

That would be THREE positives over a year which should, along with paying all bills, should bring it back up for when you need it. The reduction is natural as Fair Issac seems to weigh extra debt as a potential risk. Your responsibility over the year/2 will rise those scores while putting you in a position where you won't need to make any hard inquiries (one would assume) over the next year.

You'll likely be in great shape if you use it to your advantage. I would not lose sleep at all. Only lose sleep when derogatories bring a sleeping bag and nap on your report for 7 years

[Anonymous]

Getting several new accounts in a short time always spooks the FICO beast. I'd be surprised if you don't get most of those points back by the end of the year, and then resume your upwards climb.

[Anonymous]

I have the exact same problem, with one difference. I had a BK discharged 3 years ago, and have built up credit since, with perfect credit since the discharge, no lates, but one paid collection that was a medical receivable dispute that got all screwed up, and that was paid two years ago. My score reached about 640, but since has fallen to about 610.

last fall, when my score was 640, I decided it was time to get some credit (I travel and entertain on business, I really have to have this), so I reached out to quite a number of institutions, and was able to obtain maybe 5 cards with credit lines from $3-$5K each. It took approx. 12 inquiries to do this. I also got a car loan for my son, and one small promotional Juniper Visa with a "same as cash" deal with Apple Computer, when I bought a computer. All this credit is paid as agreed; some cards have balances; some do not.

I also kept the very small balance cards I obtained in my first post BK year, not because I want them, but because I want the credit history longevity. So despite another year post BK, and despite the perfect payment history, my score dived 30 points!

Is this just due to the addition of new accounts? Seems unfair to penalize me for good credit payment history! After a period of one year from most of these new accounts (November, 2008), would I expect my score to suddenly revert?