topic Re: Horrible FICO Score Despite no lates in Understanding FICO® Scoring

Horrible FICO Score Despite no lates

q_thurst — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 12:18:00 GMT

I am so frustrated with the FICO scoring method. I have monitored my score for the past 3 years and followed all of the suggestion from the score modeling feature . . . No lates for the past 3 years, which includes 5 accounts - 2 that are active and 3 closed and paid at zero balances... $7500 in credit card debts and loans . . .but my score is a miserable 589!! Seems like nothing I do has a positive impact on my score! What's with this . .. seems like a scam. I know people with far more debt, and delinquencies who have higher scores. Someone please explain what I need to do? It seems like the rules keep changing per each of my credit circumstances . . .first it was that my delinquencies were too recent . . . now it's that I have too much debt and heavily use my credit.

Re: Horrible FICO Score Despite no lates

pizzadude — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 14:37:05 GMT

What are the negatives on your CR ? Is there a BK or collections or judgements or charge~offs ?

Re: Horrible FICO Score Despite no lates

StartingOver10 — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 14:58:08 GMT

@q_thurst wrote:
I am so frustrated with the FICO scoring method. I have monitored my score for the past 3 years and followed all of the suggestion from the score modeling feature . . . No lates for the past 3 years, which includes 5 accounts - 2 that are active and 3 closed and paid at zero balances... $7500 in credit card debts and loans . . .but my score is a miserable 589!! Seems like nothing I do has a positive impact on my score! What's with this . .. seems like a scam. I know people with far more debt, and delinquencies who have higher scores. Someone please explain what I need to do? It seems like the rules keep changing per each of my credit circumstances . . .first it was that my delinquencies were too recent . . . now it's that I have too much debt and heavily use my credit.

Sounds like you have high utilization.

If you drop your utilization down to the recommended amounts (one card reporting at less than 9% and the others at zero) you should see a nice score boost. I assume you are using a FICO scoring product and not credit karma or one of those, right?

Re: Horrible FICO Score Despite no lates

q_thurst — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 15:55:22 GMT

Yes, my score comes from FICO, and I am maxed out on all my cards. No BK, Collections or Judgements.

Re: Horrible FICO Score Despite no lates

vanillabean — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 16:26:20 GMT

@q_thurst wrote:
Yes, my score comes from FICO, and I am maxed out on all my cards. No BK, Collections or Judgements.

It's simple then. Once you pay your credit card debt less say $1, your score goes way up.

Re: Horrible FICO Score Despite no lates

Anonymous — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 16:29:49 GMT

@q_thurst wrote:
I am so frustrated with the FICO scoring method. I have monitored my score for the past 3 years and followed all of the suggestion from the score modeling feature . . .

Except for the utilization part, most likely.

And 3 closed accounts? CC's?

Re: Horrible FICO Score Despite no lates

RobertEG — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 20:40:22 GMT

What about 60/90/120+ lates or a charge-off?

Re: Horrible FICO Score Despite no lates

Anonymous — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 22:45:55 GMT

100% utilization is keeping your score down. This is a long, slow game, and if you break a cardnial rule of the game they win.

Re: Horrible FICO Score Despite no lates

seattletravels — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 01:17:47 GMT

Utilization is 30% of your score. If you're maxed out on your credit cards, you'll never see an improvement. Focus on that and if utilization really is your only negative, you're going to see a huge increase as you pay it off.

Re: Horrible FICO Score Despite no lates

llecs — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 04:21:31 GMT

@q_thurst wrote:
Yes, my score comes from FICO, and I am maxed out on all my cards. No BK, Collections or Judgements.

Which report is it? TU is more forgiving on util than the other two. EX and EQ are more picky.

Re: Horrible FICO Score Despite no lates

seattletravels — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 05:25:01 GMT

@llecs wrote:
@q_thurst wrote:
Yes, my score comes from FICO, and I am maxed out on all my cards. No BK, Collections or Judgements.
Which report is it? TU is more forgiving on util than the other two. EX and EQ are more picky.

Are you saying that TU weighs util heavier than the others?

Re: Horrible FICO Score Despite no lates

llecs — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 05:50:13 GMT

IME, TU weighed util less than the other two.

Re: Horrible FICO Score Despite no lates

q_thurst — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 12:35:26 GMT

Thanks for all the helpful infomation. I have no charge-offs, collections, BKs or Judgements . . . based on your responses, once I pay down my balances I should see a huge increase in my score. How do you suggest I pay down the 7500? 2K of the total balance is in loans, and the remaining is in CC debt. Should I focus on one card at a time of split focus across all cards? Which remedy would yield the quickest results?

Re: Horrible FICO Score Despite no lates

Anonymous — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 13:16:20 GMT

@q_thurst wrote:
Thanks for all the helpful infomation. I have no charge-offs, collections, BKs or Judgements . . . based on your responses, once I pay down my balances I should see a huge increase in my score. How do you suggest I pay down the 7500? 2K of the total balance is in loans, and the remaining is in CC debt. Should I focus on one card at a time of split focus across all cards? Which remedy would yield the quickest results?

Personally: I'd log into the accounts and get all closing date info, check credit report to see when balances post, and then strategically pay down revolving debt to under 10%.

Being maxed out is a score killer and probably looks even worse upon manual review.

Re: Horrible FICO Score Despite no lates

TNTransplant — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 03:54:27 GMT

Hi q_thurst,

I think you will find that your FICO® score jumps substantially once you get your utilization down. I was (still am) in a very similar situation to you (high utilization of around 70% on my revolving debt), and my scores are in the low to mid 600s - no negative items, no lates, etc., just high utilization. When I run the FICO® score simulator, it shows that my scores will increase to 755 – 805 by decreasing my utilization to less than 9%. And as proof that this works, I have already paid enough over the past month to decrease my utilization percent from 70% down to 46%, and my Walmart TU score jumped from 670 – 692 during that time. It will take me the rest of this year to decrease my utilization to less than 9%, but it will be worth it in the end.

Hang in there, as the score increases will definitely come with time and low utilization of your revolving debt.

Re: Horrible FICO Score Despite no lates

Anonymous — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 04:11:41 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
@q_thurst wrote:
Thanks for all the helpful infomation. I have no charge-offs, collections, BKs or Judgements . . . based on your responses, once I pay down my balances I should see a huge increase in my score. How do you suggest I pay down the 7500? 2K of the total balance is in loans, and the remaining is in CC debt. Should I focus on one card at a time of split focus across all cards? Which remedy would yield the quickest results?
Personally: I'd log into the accounts and get all closing date info, check credit report to see when balances post, and then strategically pay down revolving debt to under 10%.

Being maxed out is a score killer and probably looks even worse upon manual review.

+1 to the strategic method. Also consider the interest rates. Generally, focus on the highest rate card and pay as much as you can on that. Obviously, make sure to make minimum payments on the others (no lates!). Above all else, stop using the cards after you pay them down makes it a lot easier.