topic Has anyone had random score drops recently? in Understanding FICO® Scoring

Has anyone had random score drops recently?

cambia46 — Wed, 23 Jun 2021 20:58:19 GMT

I've worked too darn hard to go from scores in the mid-600’s 9 months ago to nearly 800 now, for my scores to drop for no apparent reason. But, I’m not sure how to address it. Any suggestions??

I just got an alert that my Equifax score, as reported on myFICO, has dropped 12 points. There has not been any changes to my report since 7 June when it increased after I paid off the $2400 balance of a revolving account. The alert offers no reason for the drop as it normally does if it were due to recent activity or a specific action, such as a balance increase, new inquiry, new account, etc.

On the 20th, the same thing happened with Experian. No changes to my report, yet my score dropped 18pts. Again, the most recent change was on 7 June for the same reason as Equifax. At that time my Experian increased 39pts for paying the debt off. So, yesterday I called Experian to ask about the score drop and the first rep told me it was because I have a collection account. Mind you, this is an old paid collection with absolutely no activity since it was paid 3yrs ago. She then said she can’t give me any additional info without a credit report number, which she knows isn’t provided when viewing my report online. She then transfers me to another rep who she said can help, but he also says he can’t give me info. He then tells me they have no control over scores and tells me to call myfico because “they control the algorithm.” Mind you, the score that I was viewing was the Vantage score at the Experian website, not myFICO website. I still tried the number he gave and was told that each CRA is responsible for their scores and I should call Experian directly. So, I order my annual report so I can have a report number this time and call Experian again. I’m still told that they cannot give me any info (even with a credit report number), nor do have the ability to know why my score dropped. The rep then tells me, get this…THAT I MUST HIRE A LICENSED CREDIT ADVISOR to review my report and determine why the score dropped. What kind of nonsense is this?? In the meantime my Experian score has dropped to 733 and my Equifax to 756.

Re: Has anyone had random score drops recently?

dragontears — Wed, 23 Jun 2021 23:04:19 GMT

@cambia46 wrote:
I've worked too darn hard to go from scores in the mid-600’s 9 months ago to nearly 800 now, for my scores to drop for no apparent reason. But, I’m not sure how to address it. Any suggestions??

I just got an alert that my Equifax score, as reported on myFICO, has dropped 12 points. There has not been any changes to my report since 7 June when it increased after I paid off the $2400 balance of a revolving account. The alert offers no reason for the drop as it normally does if it were due to recent activity or a specific action, such as a balance increase, new inquiry, new account, etc.

On the 20th, the same thing happened with Experian. No changes to my report, yet my score dropped 18pts. Again, the most recent change was on 7 June for the same reason as Equifax. At that time my Experian increased 39pts for paying the debt off. So, yesterday I called Experian to ask about the score drop and the first rep told me it was because I have a collection account. Mind you, this is an old paid collection with absolutely no activity since it was paid 3yrs ago. She then said she can’t give me any additional info without a credit report number, which she knows isn’t provided when viewing my report online. She then transfers me to another rep who she said can help, but he also says he can’t give me info. He then tells me they have no control over scores and tells me to call myfico because “they control the algorithm.” Mind you, the score that I was viewing was the Vantage score at the Experian website, not myFICO website. I still tried the number he gave and was told that each CRA is responsible for their scores and I should call Experian directly. So, I order my annual report so I can have a report number this time and call Experian again. I’m still told that they cannot give me any info (even with a credit report number), nor do have the ability to know why my score dropped. The rep then tells me, get this…THAT I MUST HIRE A LICENSED CREDIT ADVISOR to review my report and determine why the score dropped. What kind of nonsense is this?? In the meantime my Experian score has dropped to 733 and my Equifax to 756.

The reps at the CRA is correct in telling you that they don't know why your score changed. If I was you, I would save myself the frustration of talking to people that can not help answer your questions at all i.e the CRA.

Have you done a line by line comparison of the reports before and after the score changes? Pay close attention to old closed accounts

Re: Has anyone had random score drops recently?

SouthJamaica — Thu, 24 Jun 2021 03:40:29 GMT

@cambia46 wrote:
I've worked too darn hard to go from scores in the mid-600’s 9 months ago to nearly 800 now, for my scores to drop for no apparent reason. But, I’m not sure how to address it. Any suggestions??

I just got an alert that my Equifax score, as reported on myFICO, has dropped 12 points. There has not been any changes to my report since 7 June when it increased after I paid off the $2400 balance of a revolving account. The alert offers no reason for the drop as it normally does if it were due to recent activity or a specific action, such as a balance increase, new inquiry, new account, etc.

On the 20th, the same thing happened with Experian. No changes to my report, yet my score dropped 18pts. Again, the most recent change was on 7 June for the same reason as Equifax. At that time my Experian increased 39pts for paying the debt off. So, yesterday I called Experian to ask about the score drop and the first rep told me it was because I have a collection account. Mind you, this is an old paid collection with absolutely no activity since it was paid 3yrs ago. She then said she can’t give me any additional info without a credit report number, which she knows isn’t provided when viewing my report online. She then transfers me to another rep who she said can help, but he also says he can’t give me info. He then tells me they have no control over scores and tells me to call myfico because “they control the algorithm.” Mind you, the score that I was viewing was the Vantage score at the Experian website, not myFICO website. I still tried the number he gave and was told that each CRA is responsible for their scores and I should call Experian directly. So, I order my annual report so I can have a report number this time and call Experian again. I’m still told that they cannot give me any info (even with a credit report number), nor do have the ability to know why my score dropped. The rep then tells me, get this…THAT I MUST HIRE A LICENSED CREDIT ADVISOR to review my report and determine why the score dropped. What kind of nonsense is this?? In the meantime my Experian score has dropped to 733 and my Equifax to 756.

The only way to find out what caused the score drop is to carefully review the credit reports from before and after the score change.

The MyFICO alerts are not in real time and don't provide reasons for a score change. There are certain events which trigger MyFICO alerts. If there happens to be any difference between your present score at that particular bureau and the previous score reported to you from that bureau, the score change is tacked on to the alert. There is not necessarily any connection at all between the score change and the alert substance.

MyFICO explains this as follows:

Why did my score go up when I got an alert for something negative (or why did my score go down when I got an alert for something positive)?

The short answer: Your FICO® Score may change because of other events not monitored by an alert.

Whenever we send you a credit alert, we also send an updated FICO Score. To ensure you get the most current score, we calculate it based on your entire credit report at that point in time—not just the new information on the alert. This means your new score may reflect other changes that are outside of the things we watch for (see everything we monitor).

Sometimes you may see your score increase when you think it should’ve decreased, and vice-versa, but you’ll always have your most up-to-date and accurate score.
https://support.myfico.com/hc/en-us/articles/360038084633

Re: Has anyone had random score drops recently?

bfranklin825 — Thu, 24 Jun 2021 12:16:33 GMT

Its been my experience that all credit scores go up and down ALL OF THE TIME without any kind of rhyme or reason. My suggestion is just for you to keep doing all of the right things and the scores will go back up. But then they'll also drop again for any or NO reason. Its just the way that credit scores work.

I never worry about anything less than 20 points. Less than 20 points +/- is just regular movement to me. Now if I see something over 20, then I start investigating the reason.

Re: Has anyone had random score drops recently?

SouthJamaica — Thu, 24 Jun 2021 14:56:01 GMT

@bfranklin825 wrote:
Its been my experience that all credit scores go up and down ALL OF THE TIME without any kind of rhyme or reason. My suggestion is just for you to keep doing all of the right things and the scores will go back up. But then they'll also drop again for any or NO reason. Its just the way that credit scores work.

I never worry about anything less than 20 points. Less than 20 points +/- is just regular movement to me. Now if I see something over 20, then I start investigating the reason.

It's been my experience that there has ALWAYS been a reason.

Re: Has anyone had random score drops recently?

Anonymous — Thu, 24 Jun 2021 14:57:35 GMT

@cambia46 wrote:

I just got an alert that my Equifax score, as reported on myFICO, has dropped 12 points. There has not been any changes to my report since 7 June when it increased after I paid off the $2400 balance of a revolving account. The alert offers no reason for the drop as it normally does if it were due to recent activity or a specific action, such as a balance increase, new inquiry, new account, etc.

Do you still have other revolving accounts reporting a balance? If so, are these balance(s) on bank cards, store cards, or CU cards?

Do you have any AU accounts? The ~12 point loss is what my profile experiences if I let my one AU card report a zero balance.

Re: Has anyone had random score drops recently?

Anonymous — Thu, 24 Jun 2021 20:22:01 GMT

I had a similar problem. I noticed after some time the lender on my auto loan stopped reporting payments over a 3month window. No reason for this. I called my lender to find out the problem. They didn't have an answer as to why but told me it will be reported going forward. So point is go through it with a fine tooth comb and you may find your problem.

Re: Has anyone had random score drops recently?

REDBOYYY56 — Sun, 27 Jun 2021 17:50:24 GMT

There's always a reason for a change, whether we agree with it or not, or we may not understand what happens is a different story. The more active accounts you have, the more movement there is with scoring.

Re: Has anyone had random score drops recently?

Anonymous — Mon, 28 Jun 2021 11:09:15 GMT

@cambia46 wrote:
I've worked too darn hard to go from scores in the mid-600’s 9 months ago to nearly 800 now, for my scores to drop for no apparent reason. But, I’m not sure how to address it. Any suggestions??

I just got an alert that my Equifax score, as reported on myFICO, has dropped 12 points. There has not been any changes to my report since 7 June when it increased after I paid off the $2400 balance of a revolving account. The alert offers no reason for the drop as it normally does if it were due to recent activity or a specific action, such as a balance increase, new inquiry, new account, etc.

On the 20th, the same thing happened with Experian. No changes to my report, yet my score dropped 18pts. Again, the most recent change was on 7 June for the same reason as Equifax. At that time my Experian increased 39pts for paying the debt off. So, yesterday I called Experian to ask about the score drop and the first rep told me it was because I have a collection account. Mind you, this is an old paid collection with absolutely no activity since it was paid 3yrs ago. She then said she can’t give me any additional info without a credit report number, which she knows isn’t provided when viewing my report online. She then transfers me to another rep who she said can help, but he also says he can’t give me info. He then tells me they have no control over scores and tells me to call myfico because “they control the algorithm.” Mind you, the score that I was viewing was the Vantage score at the Experian website, not myFICO website. I still tried the number he gave and was told that each CRA is responsible for their scores and I should call Experian directly. So, I order my annual report so I can have a report number this time and call Experian again. I’m still told that they cannot give me any info (even with a credit report number), nor do have the ability to know why my score dropped. The rep then tells me, get this…THAT I MUST HIRE A LICENSED CREDIT ADVISOR to review my report and determine why the score dropped. What kind of nonsense is this?? In the meantime my Experian score has dropped to 733 and my Equifax to 756.

You're viewing VantageScore numbers per the section of your text that I boldfaced above. They're incredibly volatile to the smallest changes. They're also incredibly irrelevant in lending, as almost no lenders use them. Go to www.creditchecktotal.com and order your scores for $1. Those are FICOs. If they're changing significantly, then yes some digging is needed. And @SouthJamaica is absolutely correct with his statement that scores always have reasons behind changes - they're the output of mathematical formulas. They don't change unless one or more inputs change. The reasons might not be plain to see but they are there.

Re: Has anyone had random score drops recently?

OmarGB9 — Tue, 29 Jun 2021 01:28:39 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
@cambia46 wrote:
I've worked too darn hard to go from scores in the mid-600’s 9 months ago to nearly 800 now, for my scores to drop for no apparent reason. But, I’m not sure how to address it. Any suggestions??

I just got an alert that my Equifax score, as reported on myFICO, has dropped 12 points. There has not been any changes to my report since 7 June when it increased after I paid off the $2400 balance of a revolving account. The alert offers no reason for the drop as it normally does if it were due to recent activity or a specific action, such as a balance increase, new inquiry, new account, etc.

On the 20th, the same thing happened with Experian. No changes to my report, yet my score dropped 18pts. Again, the most recent change was on 7 June for the same reason as Equifax. At that time my Experian increased 39pts for paying the debt off. So, yesterday I called Experian to ask about the score drop and the first rep told me it was because I have a collection account. Mind you, this is an old paid collection with absolutely no activity since it was paid 3yrs ago. She then said she can’t give me any additional info without a credit report number, which she knows isn’t provided when viewing my report online. She then transfers me to another rep who she said can help, but he also says he can’t give me info. He then tells me they have no control over scores and tells me to call myfico because “they control the algorithm.” Mind you, the score that I was viewing was the Vantage score at the Experian website, not myFICO website. I still tried the number he gave and was told that each CRA is responsible for their scores and I should call Experian directly. So, I order my annual report so I can have a report number this time and call Experian again. I’m still told that they cannot give me any info (even with a credit report number), nor do have the ability to know why my score dropped. The rep then tells me, get this…THAT I MUST HIRE A LICENSED CREDIT ADVISOR to review my report and determine why the score dropped. What kind of nonsense is this?? In the meantime my Experian score has dropped to 733 and my Equifax to 756.
You're viewing VantageScore numbers per the section of your text that I boldfaced above. They're incredibly volatile to the smallest changes. They're also incredibly irrelevant in lending, as almost no lenders use them. Go to www.creditchecktotal.com and order your scores for $1. Those are FICOs. If they're changing significantly, then yes some digging is needed. And @SouthJamaica is absolutely correct with his statement that scores always have reasons behind changes - they're the output of mathematical formulas. They don't change unless one or more inputs change. The reasons might not be plain to see but they are there.

I'm confused at the "Vantagescore on Experian's site." EX doesn't provide Vantagescores, they provide a true FICO 8.