topic Re: Raising credit score? in General Credit Topics

Raising credit score?

Anonymous — Thu, 09 May 2013 17:38:46 GMT

I have a auto loan with the balance of $7100, a store card with $3000 credit limit(military star card), and i just recently got a credit card with $3000 credit limit(PenFed)

with both cards i try not to spend more than $700 and ALWAYS pay it off. i was wondering if i should get another card? get a personal loan? am i on the right track? just need some guidance....

Thanks

Re: Raising credit score?

llecs — Thu, 09 May 2013 17:43:34 GMT

A loan wouldn't help your mix because you have a car loan.

I'd let what you have age. You could probably benefit from a 3rd CC, but you can easily hit upper 700s at least with what you have already. With the new Penfed I would let everything age for a year at least and then re-evaluate based on your goals.

Even if you PIF your CCs monthly, make sure they report where you have them to be. For best results and max points, get one to report $0 and the other a small balance under 9% of the CL. Even if you PIF a CC it could still report a balance assuming you used it after the payment but before the statement date. If you really want to micromanage your scores you could let both CCs report $0 and see if that helps any (because your loan will always report a balance). FICO likes $0 balances, but not all $0. FICO likes to see most of your accts at $0.

Re: Raising credit score?

Anonymous — Thu, 09 May 2013 18:45:51 GMT

Should I use my credit card more than my store card? And which card should I keep a small balance on? And can I leave like a dollar or less?

Re: Raising credit score?

Anonymous — Thu, 09 May 2013 22:29:30 GMT

You can use either one it doesn't matter. As long as the balance is 9% or under.

Re: Raising credit score?

SpideySense — Wed, 15 May 2013 16:58:34 GMT

Hello flipstyle808. Your credit score is not historic. I mean that you don't need to maintain a 9% balance to maximize the current utilization calculation. If you're getting ready to apply for credit, then having a 9% balance will help your score... but in between hard pulls, you don't need to worry about how much of your credit you're using.

You mention that you don't use more than 23% of a cards limit -- is this because of what you can afford? It is always best to pay in full (for the simple benefit of not paying interest). but a different strategy (instead of using 2 cards x 700, use 1 card x 1400) might benefit you with the foundation for credit line increase request. Find out which of your cards will give you a credit line increase (see if they'll check with a soft pull).

Don't open new credit applications to keep the potential to score high, but research the next card to get that fits your lifestyle (maybe a zero%xfer zero%interest, maybe a cash rewards, maybe a mileage rewards). Once you find a card you want, research the score you need here with a post of your specifics (aaoa, util, derogs, etc.). Good Luck!