Ch 7 Rebuilding journey - questions for you pros

[Anonymous]

Hello,

I've been quiet on here for a while, letting my score improve just over time but I want to begin being a little more aggressive.  A few details:

Discharged Ch7   September 2018

Capital 1 Platinum   September 2018   $3500 CL

Discover IT Secured   September 2018   $300 CL

Transunion 10/18 = 586        6/2019 = 646

I'm not on any other auto/home loans but I am an Authorized User on 2 of my wife's cards and still have 1 student loan account active. I think the reason for my quick jump to 646 within 9 months may be attributed to her lines of credit? Not sure

My future goal is to be able to apply for a mortgage within the next 3 years (hopefully 2 years if possible).  That said, I am interested in next steps by people on here.  Should I go for a credit builder loan? Would that even help now?  Apply for additional CCs? Suggested cards?

Burned: AMEX, Bank of America Visa, Chase Sapphire

I didn't intend on this being longwinded, I appreciate you reading and any insight you may have!!!

Thanks

[FireMedic1]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Hello,

I've been quiet on here for a while, letting my score improve just over time but I want to begin being a little more aggressive.  A few details:

Discharged Ch7   September 2018

Capital 1 Platinum   September 2018   $3500 CL

Discover IT Secured   September 2018   $300 CL

Transunion 10/18 = 586        6/2019 = 646

I'm not on any other auto/home loans but I am an Authorized User on 2 of my wife's cards and still have 1 student loan account active. I think the reason for my quick jump to 646 within 9 months may be attributed to her lines of credit? Not sure

My future goal is to be able to apply for a mortgage within the next 3 years (hopefully 2 years if possible).  That said, I am interested in next steps by people on here.  Should I go for a credit builder loan? Would that even help now?  Apply for additional CCs? Suggested cards?

Burned: AMEX, Bank of America Visa, Chase Sapphire

I didn't intend on this being longwinded, I appreciate you reading and any insight you may have!!!

Thanks

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Welcome to the forums! The AU's help in a way. Are they really needed? Not really. You have 2 cards and the student loan is the installment of the FICO credit mix that is the best for scoring for rebuilders once you hit 3 cards. Her cards might be hurting you if there are high balances or Util on the cards. If only you filed BK. You should stay on your own and get removed from her accounts.

Now onto Cap1. You can ask for a CLI every 6 months. Disco should have graduated already. This is why I believe her cards might be hindering you from graduating. The Cap1 card you can upgrade to the QS, not the QS1 (It sucks) here:

https://verified.capitalone.com/sic-ui/#/esignin?Product=Card&Action=ProductUpgrade

You need 1 more card so you can practice AZEO. FICO doesnt like more than 50% of cards reporting. So your on the border. You can try for a Merrick Card. They are great with no complaints on the forum. And they double your limit after a period of time. Then off you go.

So my observation is her cards your AU on are hurting not helping. Otherwise Disco should have graduated all ready. Or you may have had a late payment with Disco. Good Luck.

[Anonymous]

@FireMedic1 Just curious as this may apply in my situation when I receive my discharge: Assuming the cards RevereYak is an AU on are all positives (no lates, PIF monthly, 5+ year age, healthily credit limit, etc.), could they still be hurting his situation? Would those credit limits reduce what he’d be eligible for on his own card? Would those cards he is an AU on count towards the 3 card requirement to maximize his scores with AZEO?

@RevereYak I don’t personally have experience with it, but one of Ollo’s cards may be an option for you. I might try and check the Capital One prequal site and see what else they might be able to offer you, since you’re more than 6 months past your last card approval with them. Also, Navy Federal Credit Union has some great options if you’re eligible to join them!

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the replies guys.  To clarify, I am an AU on only 2 of my wife's cards, BofA with a CL of $30,000 and 0% utilization (PIF monthly), Chase with CL of $20,000 and 30% utilization.  There are no late payments on either but we do not PIF each month on the Chase, typically carrying a $7000 balance.

Regarding my Discover IT card, you mention it should have graduate by now so I am happy to call and ask for info on this. Never had a late payment

Regarding AZEO (which is new to me), I always PIF each month on my 2 cards but my statements do have a balance.  With this method I should be paying 1 card to $0 balance before the statement cuts?

I will look into the Cap1 upgrade to QS, Merrick, and Ollo that were mentioned.

EDIT:  I just upgraded the Cap1 Platinum to Quicksilver, that was easy!

Thanks again!!

[Anonymous]

That's my understanding on the AZEO method.  You need to have at least 1 installment line (student loan, mortgage, self-lender loan, etc.) reporting and 3 revolving lines reporting.  I don't beleive the method is really applicabnle unless you have at least the 1 installment and 3 revolving lines (unless AUs count), so it might not make a substantial difference until you have that 3rd credit card.  Like you said though, for the revolving lines, you'll want to have the balance at $0 before the statement cuts for 2 out of the 3 cards.  For the 3rd card, you'll want to have it reporting at 9% utilization or less when the statement cuts. You can find all kinds of good information on AZEO in the Understanding FICO Scoring section of the forum!