topic Re: Credit scoring and marital status in Understanding FICO® Scoring

Credit scoring and marital status

vanillabean — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 16:07:53 GMT

Let's say you're happily married and ready for more credit. From a credit scoring point of view, would it be preferable to apply for a joint credit card account or should each of the two apply individually?

Re: Credit scoring and marital status

Anonymous — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 05:02:57 GMT

IMO, Seperate accounts are preferable from a marriage point of view.

Re: Credit scoring and marital status

vanillabean — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 06:35:27 GMT

"IMO, Seperate accounts are preferable from a marriage point of view."

It certainly may be preferable. But why would you think so?

Few mortgages are based on separate accounts. And how many household budgets can a family manage? Hopefully a family doesn't have one bank account per person's deposited income.

We have only one. So when I took my wife out to dinner the day she first hit the 800s, money was not an issue. The point was that she got to choose the restaurant.

The check happened to get charged to her card though Oh yes, I'm such a romantic. I can well imagine some in our parent generation might take offense at that.

I was just rereading Liz Weston's Are your finances as strong as your marriage?

She was arguing that her husband is entitled to a separate credit card, so he could surprise her with presents! And I thought it was just me.

I'm willing to go with cards, whose account status is individual, if an application for a joint account does not give you twice the credit limit.

There I said it. But a 2nd AU card will follow soon after.

Re: Credit scoring and marital status

Anonymous — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 21:09:29 GMT

A problem with both joint checking accounts and credit cards is the management to make sure you don't go overdraft / overlimit. It is important to make sure you don't spend too much on 1 thing and come up short somewhere else. It is especially tricky if your budget or limits is tight.. A division of money and payment responsibility can make this management easier.

The biggest problem with joint credit is when things go bad. If only 1 spouse rather than both takes the bullet on a charge off or repo or whatever. Then you can lean on the others good credit while the one rebuilds. It is very difficult, if both go down together.

I have been through several financial ups and downs with my wife. She was the primary money manager and we shared joint checking account, and some joint credit cards and individual/AU credit cards. . After the last disaster, she is no longer the CFO of the marriage. It was not intentional, but she managed to trash my credit worse than hers with her problem. We still have our joint checking, but I deposit majority of my income in my own seperate account and pay most bills from there. She ended up with keeping 1 card (Sears MC , a 40 year old account in good standing). I ended up with all my accounts closed.

As I rebuild,, all my CC accounts are individual and I have given her AU on some. Other than a mortgage and AU priviliges, there will never be any more sharing.

Re: Credit scoring and marital status

vanillabean — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 02:17:16 GMT

Thanks for the feedback. My wife promises she will not trash our scores. (She's happy to stay away from any mention of credit scores or credit reports.)