I'm a university student (just finished freshman year) who is heavily reliant on financial aid which means my income is seasonal. Every semester I get a 1500USD (approx) refund in excess financial aid (grants/subsidized loans). I have a 1000USD credit line that is currently maxed out because summer financial aid fell through.
My score is 644 according to myFico and I ran a simulation through transunion's truecredit.com and it shows that my score will rise from 644 to 780+ if I pay off the 1000USD over the course of 24 months. I know this takes into account both the increase in length of credit history as well as the decrease in credit utilizatio.
My questions are:
a) does the simulation result seem reasonable or is it pulling my leg?
b) I read that I should keep my credit utilization around 35% -- which plan is better
Pay the card down to 350USD when my return comes in and hold the balance there by spending a little and paying a little every month
Pay off the entire balance when the return comes in
Pay approximately 45USD a mont hfor the next 24 months to get the balance down to zero
it doesnt matter
Also, I had applied for a best buy credit card back in january and was denied. It shows up as a hard pull on my report, how long does this sort of inquiry affect my score?
Thanks for any and all help!
