Understanding FICO® Scoring

[LyonsPride]

So last month I bought my TU score on MyFico it was 621. I then pif my 2 credit cards and let them report. I asked for cli on a OSP retail card which I received and my Old Navy credit card and was declined. In that time i was approved for a CC from my local credit union and soft pull from avenue got a card from them. Monday I went on an app spree and was approved for Target Visa, Chase Amazon,JCP, Walmart, Barclaycard, Discover IT, and Chase Slate. Today I received my letter about the decline for cli from Old Navy cc and it listed the following reasons : derogatory public records or collection filed, proportion of balances to credit limits on bank/national revolving or other revolving accounts too high, too few accounts currently paid as agreed, lack of recent installment loan information. It also listed my TU score as 582!!!! Why the discrepancy in my score. Also, my one collection item was paid and all my accounts are paid as agreed. As a matter of fact I had 2% uti! I don't have an installment loan nor do I intend to get on anytime soon unless my car craps the bed. I don't understand and it's really bothering me since at that time I only had 1inq on my report...

[llecs]

The score difference could be caused by several reasons. I can't recall who underwrites Old Navy but some CCs do use their own internal score when calculating credit risk. GE-backed cards, for example, have a max score of 620 or something like that. You might be comparing apples and oranges. Assuming for a second that it is a FICO score, it could be a CC-enhanced FICO score which scores your CC-experience moreso than any other account and comparing a Classic FICO like on here or the free one via Wal-Mart could produce very different results. Did Old Navy list a score range? That can help pinpoint what they used.

Even if a collection is paid, lenders and FICO still view it as if it were unpaid. In terms of FICO, it doesn't matter if you owe $10k or $0, the damage is equal. Try sending a GW letter.

Per the loan comment, it really doesn't matter per FICO. You can hit into the 800s without one. However, some lenders have their own criteria and maybe that's what they are looking for. I certainly wouldn't rush to get one though. I bet if you cleared their other comments then approval would come without a loan reporting.

[Simply827]

Old Navy is backed by GE as well. Considering you got approved for a Walmart card that is odd.

I thought Target Visa was discontinued for new apps. Is it back?

[LyonsPride]

Excuse me I miswrote it's a target credit card...

[sarkell]

I'd call the back door ge no or email ge cares email to see what going on or reconsideration.