how did this happen?

[wyattm]

I checked my fico score from all 3 bureaus not even 3 weeks ago and decided to check my mid score again today and it has dropped 15 points! How can that happen. I have not been late on anything and even paid down my credit cards some more, but it's not reporting. Is checking my score affecting it?? I am trying to qualify for a home and this is not helping!

[Anonymous]

Hi wyatt and welcome!

Even though you paid the cc's down, have those payments been posted to your CR? Often there is a lag time from time you paid until the time the CR updates.

Do a side-by-side comparison, page by page of the 2 CR's.

Have any of your balances(as per CR) increased? If so, then utilization will have gone up, and that will ding you, as amounts owed account for a full 30% of your FICO score.

And no, pulling your own credit reports and checking your scores does not effect your CR in any way, as it is a soft pull.

I'm sure others will chime in with their opinions as well.

[RobertEG]

If  you dont pay your cards before the CCC reports to the CRA, then which cards you use during the month can make a difference.  For example, if you charge $250 on a $300 CL card, util on that card will be 83% if it reports.  But if you had charged that same $250 on a $5000 CL card, and it reports, then the util is only 5%.  A big difference, even though overall %util willl be the same.  FICO looks not only at overall %util, but also at each card.

[wyattm]

I looked at both CR side by side and one credit card was paid in full and reported, but the other 2 that I did pay down are still showing the same balance as the old CR. Why would it make my score go down if the balances are the same and one card is reporting a zero balance? Thanks to all for your responses!

[sh9730]

RobertEG,

I ve read what you were saying here on other posts and other boards (about not only overall utils, but per card utils), BUT that is not what it says when you pull a MYFICO and read the "things hurting" stuff.  There they specifically say that it DOESNT matter which card things are on...that they only count the overall util?

Comments?

[Anonymous]

Individual and Overall utl both count almost equaly.

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sh9730 wrote:

RobertEG,

I ve read what you were saying here on other posts and other boards (about not only overall utils, but per card utils), BUT that is not what it says when you pull a MYFICO and read the "things hurting" stuff.  There they specifically say that it DOESNT matter which card things are on...that they only count the overall util?

Comments?

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[sh9730]

So, this is misleading then huh?

"

Keep this in mind: This credit usage ratio is one of the most important factors to your FICO score, so you should work on paying down your balances. Your FICO score looks at the ratio of revolving debt, but not in which accounts the debt resides. Therefore, consolidating or moving your debt from one account to another will usually not help your FICO score since the same total amount is owed."

[cobra19]

wyatt..........I don't know your scores, but a 15 point drop for no apparent reason seems to suggest you've been bucketed. Moving to a new bucket seems to cost 10-22 points.  The higher your score, the more you lose by being bucketed. 

[wyattm]

What is bucketing? I only checked my TU score. It was originally 624 and then dropped to 609 in a matter of 2 weeks. Thanks for your responses