topic Re: Help With My 1st AZEO Attempt? in General Credit Topics

Help With My 1st AZEO Attempt?

SKBirdmind — Tue, 07 Feb 2023 23:37:19 GMT

[Not sure if this is the correct forum, or a better fit for Rebuilding...]

Continuing my 2023 momentum after 2 x fairly significant January approvals and gunning for at least a 3rd, I am going to try AZEO and see how big a difference it makes with scoring. It seems like some here swear by it, others say don't bother...so I guess we'll soon find out which camp I'm in.

My main question is "individual" vs. "aggregate" utilization. Aside from not being totally clear on the differences, I think I've heard they're supposed to be below 29% or 9%? Part of my motivation here is after being fairly sloppy with utilization this past year or more. I don't mean falling behind or not paying cards in full, rather simply letting monthly statements cut with "higher or much higher than recommended" balances before paying said balance before the due date.

My TOTAL, combined credit limits are just over $18,000. Credit One is strangely wonky when it comes to posting payments - often times taking way long for their system to update, with payments finally appearing that were supposedly received days earlier. I mention this because they didn't process the last check I sent them until after my February 5 statement cut = thus reporting a balance of $820 on a $3,000 credit limit.

820 / 3000 = 27.333%. Does this mean I should simply ensure that my other accounts are paid down to $0 before their respective statements cut? Something else entirely? Hopefully, this could be repeated with practice if it ends up being a large enough boost. I put all of my card details, statement dates, and due dates into an Excel sheet...

Re: Help With My 1st AZEO Attempt?

GZG — Wed, 08 Feb 2023 01:34:54 GMT

@SKBirdmind wrote:
[Not sure if this is the correct forum, or a better fit for Rebuilding...]

Continuing my 2023 momentum after 2 x fairly significant January approvals and gunning for at least a 3rd, I am going to try AZEO and see how big a difference it makes with scoring. It seems like some here swear by it, others say don't bother...so I guess we'll soon find out which camp I'm in.

My main question is "individual" vs. "aggregate" utilization. Aside from not being totally clear on the differences, I think I've heard they're supposed to be below 29% or 9%? Part of my motivation here is after being fairly sloppy with utilization this past year or more. I don't mean falling behind or not paying cards in full, rather simply letting monthly statements cut with "higher or much higher than recommended" balances before paying said balance before the due date.

My TOTAL, combined credit limits are just over $18,000. Credit One is strangely wonky when it comes to posting payments - often times taking way long for their system to update, with payments finally appearing that were supposedly received days earlier. I mention this because they didn't process the last check I sent them until after my February 5 statement cut = thus reporting a balance of $820 on a $3,000 credit limit.

820 / 3000 = 27.333%. Does this mean I should simply ensure that my other accounts are paid down to $0 before their respective statements cut? Something else entirely? Hopefully, this could be repeated with practice if it ends up being a large enough boost. I put all of my card details, statement dates, and due dates into an Excel sheet...

Ideally, at any given point in time you only have one credit card on your credit report reporting a balance. The lower that balance is, the better.

You prevent your other credit cards from reporting balances by paying them in full prior to the statement date and not have any charges post between that payment and the statement posting (which is the balance that they will likely report).

So, you figure out when all of your cards are posting their balances, pay off all of them but one prior to the statement posting to ensure they don't report and allow one to report a balance so you are getting the benefits of AZEO.

Re: Help With My 1st AZEO Attempt?

SKBirdmind — Wed, 08 Feb 2023 02:46:15 GMT

What %?

Re: Help With My 1st AZEO Attempt?

SouthJamaica — Wed, 08 Feb 2023 03:19:19 GMT

@SKBirdmind wrote:
[Not sure if this is the correct forum, or a better fit for Rebuilding...]

Continuing my 2023 momentum after 2 x fairly significant January approvals and gunning for at least a 3rd, I am going to try AZEO and see how big a difference it makes with scoring. It seems like some here swear by it, others say don't bother...so I guess we'll soon find out which camp I'm in.

My main question is "individual" vs. "aggregate" utilization. Aside from not being totally clear on the differences,

Individual revolving account utilization is the utilization on a particular account.
Aggregate revolving utilization is the aggregate utilization over all of your revolving accounts.

I think I've heard they're supposed to be below 29% or 9%?

Individual account utilization is best kept at 28% or lower.

Part of my motivation here is after being fairly sloppy with utilization this past year or more. I don't mean falling behind or not paying cards in full, rather simply letting monthly statements cut with "higher or much higher than recommended" balances before paying said balance before the due date.

My TOTAL, combined credit limits are just over $18,000. Credit One is strangely wonky when it comes to posting payments - often times taking way long for their system to update, with payments finally appearing that were supposedly received days earlier. I mention this because they didn't process the last check I sent them until after my February 5 statement cut = thus reporting a balance of $820 on a $3,000 credit limit.

Sorry but you can't expect to achieve AZEO with unpredictable accounts like that.

820 / 3000 = 27.333%. Does this mean I should simply ensure that my other accounts are paid down to $0 before their respective statements cut?

Yes I guess so.

Something else entirely? Hopefully, this could be repeated with practice if it ends up being a large enough boost. I put all of my card details, statement dates, and due dates into an Excel sheet...

It's not going to be a big boost. The important thing to know about zero balances is that it's best, for scoring optimization, for a majority of your revolving accounts to report zero balances. The difference between having one account with a balance and several accounts with a balance is often nonexistent. AZEO is widely misunderstood. It's just an insurance policy that you're not receiving a ding from having too many accounts with a balance in any FICO scoring model.

Re: Help With My 1st AZEO Attempt?

SKBirdmind — Wed, 08 Feb 2023 05:44:31 GMT

"I guess" you could argue the following math problems...

820 / 3000 = 0.273333 (reported balance on a single account, i.e. individual revolving) which is < 28%

820 / 18000 = 0.045555 (reported balance over all accounts, i.e. aggregate revolving) which is < 9%

I just checked (Credit Karma) and my scores definitely dinged following several larger balances reported. Again, suppose I'll figure out soon enough if I'm doing myself any favors for going to the trouble here...

Re: Help With My 1st AZEO Attempt?

FireMedic1 — Wed, 08 Feb 2023 10:14:48 GMT

@SKBirdmindWell dont use your credit one card as the AZEO (reporting) card. Erratic posting wont help. Pick a card. Use your cards all you want for the perks. When it comes to statement date. Pay them all down to $0 except one. Let the one report $20. Statement cuts. Pay before due date. Thats the true AZEO. The simple way.

Util %'s I go by whats on the EX app and has turned out to be my best % to report after toying around. I've been AZEO since BK. And that is <6%. New rebuilders like AZEO to see the highest scores as they grow their file. Once you have an older file and time moves on. AZEO isnt the goal any longer unless your going to app and want the highest score possible. Its not difficult to do and alter your individual % to find your sweet spot. True AZEO means your aggregate util wont mean much at all. Unless the AZEO card goes over 30%. And when multiple balances are reported and you pass 30% aggregate.

Re: Help With My 1st AZEO Attempt?

SKBirdmind — Fri, 03 Mar 2023 17:08:56 GMT

Well, looks like this worked! Each of my accounts (except Credit One at $820) reported a $0 balance last statement cycle. I just checked my scores, which are as follows.

Equifax = 679 (CreditKarma-Vantage)

TransUnion = 698 (CreditKarma-Vantage)

Experian = 702 with 5% utilization of total available credit (direct from Experian)

This is on the order of a 100 points increase from a month ago, when I had several very large balances reporting at the end of statement cycle. So, an absolute win as far as I'm concerned! I did talk with my Ch 7 bankruptcy lawyer via phone recently, and he sounded genuinely surprised that I didn't have a score of at least 720 by now. Guess we're close, though I remain unclear if there's a holdup.

Re: Help With My 1st AZEO Attempt?

markbeiser — Fri, 03 Mar 2023 21:23:59 GMT

Well, the one thing AZEO definitely does is make you get your utilization down, which is where you got your big vantage score boosts.
The difference between AZEO and the same aggregate utilization without AZEO is a handful of points at most.

Moving from high utilization to very low utilization is a large number of point.

Re: Help With My 1st AZEO Attempt?

CYBERSAM — Fri, 03 Mar 2023 22:03:52 GMT

Close your secure cards, both of your CreditOne cards and Cap1 Platinum. They no longer have any use to you!

Once they are no longer active and not reporting any fees and garbage on your report, then go for AZEO for couple of months and see the boost.

Re: Help With My 1st AZEO Attempt?

SKBirdmind — Fri, 03 Mar 2023 22:45:35 GMT

@markbeiser wrote:
Well, the one thing AZEO definitely does is make you get your utilization down, which is where you got your big vantage score boosts.
The difference between AZEO and the same aggregate utilization without AZEO is a handful of points at most.
Moving from high utilization to very low utilization is a large number of point.

Yeah, that pretty much makes sense (minor difference between "low aggregate utilization" and "all zero, except 1"). In the last month or so, I think I brought my utilization down from like 100% to nearly 0% thus the massive boost.

@CYBERSAM wrote:
Close your secure cards, both of your CreditOne cards and Cap1 Platinum. They no longer have any use to you!
Once they are no longer active and not reporting any fees and garbage on your report, then go for AZEO for couple of months and see the boost.

This is what most people have suggested since I got Pualani and Costco Anywhere in my wallet earlier this year. I would almost wonder if I could get Capital One to bump Platinum into something like a Venture, though. Credit One would be leaving $4,400 of credit lines on the table, unless of course those could be folded into something more lucrative as a result of closing.

Re: Help With My 1st AZEO Attempt?

CYBERSAM — Fri, 03 Mar 2023 23:01:07 GMT

@CYBERSAM wrote:
Close your secure cards, both of your CreditOne cards and Cap1 Platinum. They no longer have any use to you!
Once they are no longer active and not reporting any fees and garbage on your report, then go for AZEO for couple of months and see the boost.
This is what most people have suggested since I got Pualani and Costco Anywhere in my wallet earlier this year. I would almost wonder if I could get Capital One to bump Platinum into something like a Venture, though. Credit One would be leaving $4,400 of credit lines on the table, unless of course those could be folded into something more lucrative as a result of closing.

If your planing AZEO that means you have no utilization, therefore 5K CL is not going to mean much! However you are going to receive the AZEO boost and if you reach over 700 score with no UTI and only handful of CCs... and choose your next card correctly, it probably will compensate any CL lost!

For example if you go with AMEX and 90 days 3X CLI etc. we're talking over 10K CL easy.

Re: Help With My 1st AZEO Attempt?

SKBirdmind — Sat, 04 Mar 2023 05:27:15 GMT

@CYBERSAM wrote:
If your planing AZEO that means you have no utilization, therefore 5K CL is not going to mean much! However you are going to receive the AZEO boost and if you reach over 700 score with no UTI and only handful of CCs... and choose your next card correctly, it probably will compensate any CL lost!
For example if you go with AMEX and 90 days 3X CLI etc. we're talking over 10K CL easy.

Hey, NOW we're talking!!! Makes much more sense on my little guys still "reporting crap" after having long-since fulfilled their objective, as well. The ever-elusive 5 x figure credit limit remains just that...but for how much longer?

Re: Help With My 1st AZEO Attempt?

markbeiser — Sat, 04 Mar 2023 09:32:30 GMT

@SKBirdmind wrote:
@CYBERSAM wrote:
If your planing AZEO that means you have no utilization, therefore 5K CL is not going to mean much! However you are going to receive the AZEO boost and if you reach over 700 score with no UTI and only handful of CCs... and choose your next card correctly, it probably will compensate any CL lost!
For example if you go with AMEX and 90 days 3X CLI etc. we're talking over 10K CL easy.
Hey, NOW we're talking!!! Makes much more sense on my little guys still "reporting crap" after having long-since fulfilled their objective, as well. The ever-elusive 5 x figure credit limit remains just that...but for how much longer?

If you get your score up around 700, the AmEx Blue Cash Everyday card is a good one to go for.
Most of the posts about new BCE approvals I've seen here were starting with either a $1k to $3k spending limit for people new to AmEx, but they will 3x that after 91 days, and may 3x it again after another 6 months.

Re: Help With My 1st AZEO Attempt?

CreditMarathoner — Sun, 12 Mar 2023 22:59:56 GMT

There's another benefit to AZEO that most don't mention, though it's not score related.

When you pay a card to zero before statement cut, and you get that statement with a $0 balance, there will be no payment due that cycle. Which means, if you accidentally forget to pay it, or something happens and you miss the due date, you won't get hit with a late, you'll just get a balance reported that will be due the following month. The downside of paying in full before statement cut is you can't take advantage of the float/grace period, that 1+ month interest free loan.

I still practice AZEO most months for this reason. At my point in my journey I don't need to, but I like the peace of mind of not owing anything on my cards except on the reporting card.

Sometimes I'll use the grace period to create a 2 month interest free loan, if I have to make a large purchase. I'll make the purchase (trying to time it to post right after statement cut), then pay half of it before the next statement cut, so only half of the original balance reports and is due the following month. Then I pay the rest off by the due date.

Re: Help With My 1st AZEO Attempt?

Jeffster1 — Thu, 16 Mar 2023 07:06:41 GMT

I have about 140K plus in total limits across all my cards, (Sorry....I'm too lazy right now to total them all up again.) Cards and limits in my signature.

I use my Cap One QS as my AZEO balance card. I keep it reporting at $3.00 balance each month. I use it a couple times a month and pay it down to $3.00 while I PIF all my other cards so they all report zero. Very easy and simple.

When I was transitioning the card on which I keep the balance, I had 3 days during which my cards were ALL zero. I lost 20 points on EQ. As soon as the QS reported the $3.00 balance a few days later, the 20 points came back.

Re: Help With My 1st AZEO Attempt?

Thomas_Thumb — Thu, 16 Mar 2023 15:39:01 GMT

If you let 2 cards report a $3 balance instead of 1 card, you would not have seen the 20 point loss. Your point loss was the no recent revolving activity penalty.