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Several inqs for student loans in a short period of time?

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WallyxD
Frequent Contributor

Several inqs for student loans in a short period of time?

"To compensate for this, FICO® Scores distinguish between a search for a single loan and a search for many new credit lines.  They also compensate for rate shopping, in part, by looking at the length of time during which inquiries occur; when you need an auto, student or home loan, you can avoid lowering your FICO® Score by doing your rate shopping within a short period of time, such as 45 days."  

 

This quote was taken directly off of scoreinfo.org. The link is http://www.scoreinfo.org/Your-Credit-Future/Pages/Tips.aspx

 

Now as far as my question goes, I applied for MANY student loans during the summer heading into my freshman year. And as a result, I have 12 inquiries on my TU report, 10 of which came from the student loan applications. I applied for 6 loans between 07/01/11 and 08/15/11 (which is 45 days), so why are all 6 counted as an individual inquiry if they 'compensate' for the rate shopping? And though there are only a couple of inquiries on my EQ and EX reports from the loan apps, 2 apps were a week after eachother.

 

Could anyone clarify the 'rule' when several inquiries while rate shopping in a short period of time are combined to only impact your score once? Because Despite my history being short, my payment history has been perfect and my highest reported util has been 33%, but my scores from each of the bureaus are really low..

AE CC: $1,050 | AEO Visa: $1,890 | Cap1 QS: $2,100 | Chase Freedom: $1,000 | Citi Forward: $1,500 | Citi Double Cash: $1,000 | Discover iT: $500 | GameStop: $1,650 | Overstock: $1,700 | PayPal Smart Connect: $1,500 | Walmart $2,200

TU (Discover): 663 | EQ (Citi): 651
Message 1 of 4
3 REPLIES 3
llecs
Moderator Emeritus

Re: Several inqs for student loans in a short period of time?


@WallyxD wrote:

"To compensate for this, FICO® Scores distinguish between a search for a single loan and a search for many new credit lines.  They also compensate for rate shopping, in part, by looking at the length of time during which inquiries occur; when you need an auto, student or home loan, you can avoid lowering your FICO® Score by doing your rate shopping within a short period of time, such as 45 days."  

 

This quote was taken directly off of scoreinfo.org. The link is http://www.scoreinfo.org/Your-Credit-Future/Pages/Tips.aspx

 

Now as far as my question goes, I applied for MANY student loans during the summer heading into my freshman year. And as a result, I have 12 inquiries on my TU report, 10 of which came from the student loan applications. I applied for 6 loans between 07/01/11 and 08/15/11 (which is 45 days), so why are all 6 counted as an individual inquiry if they 'compensate' for the rate shopping? And though there are only a couple of inquiries on my EQ and EX reports from the loan apps, 2 apps were a week after eachother.

 

Could anyone clarify the 'rule' when several inquiries while rate shopping in a short period of time are combined to only impact your score once? Because Despite my history being short, my payment history has been perfect and my highest reported util has been 33%, but my scores from each of the bureaus are really low..


If the inquiries are from 2011, then none of them are impacting your FICO score. FICO will ignore ALL inquiries once they turn a year old.

 

Had they been from 2012 under the same timeframe, then yes, FICO will ignore duplicate car, mortgage, and SL inquiries if pulled within a certain time frame. That time frame varies between FICO versions though. Older FICO versions, like the TU98 version on here, use only a 14 day time frame. The Beacon 5.0 on here is 30 days. Newest FICO versions use 45 days.

 

 

Message 2 of 4
WallyxD
Frequent Contributor

Re: Several inqs for student loans in a short period of time?

Thanks a lot. I must've forgotten that just because they show, doesn't mean the score is affected. Now what about as far as banks go deciding whether or not to give me CLI or to approve an application for a CC.? Do they disregard inquiries over a year old or do the total amount of inquiries on a specific bureau's report help them make a decision.?

AE CC: $1,050 | AEO Visa: $1,890 | Cap1 QS: $2,100 | Chase Freedom: $1,000 | Citi Forward: $1,500 | Citi Double Cash: $1,000 | Discover iT: $500 | GameStop: $1,650 | Overstock: $1,700 | PayPal Smart Connect: $1,500 | Walmart $2,200

TU (Discover): 663 | EQ (Citi): 651
Message 3 of 4
llecs
Moderator Emeritus

Re: Several inqs for student loans in a short period of time?

It's a YMMV-thing among lenders. IME most didn't care after 6 months, though some did.

Message 4 of 4
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