Advice: App spree, CLIs, garden?

[Anonymous]

Hello, I've been reading the forums for a long time, but just recently registered.

I've been rebuilding my credit for a few years now after some issues with a past business partner and a divorce at the same time almost wiped me out. When all that was going on, I was in the 500s.
Today my fico 8s are: Eq: 703, Tu: 704, Ex: 674

Fico 9s are: 720, 707, 683, respectively

I've got the following accounts:
NFCU visa cash rewards (25k)
Cap1 Quicksilver (3500)
USAA platinum visa (2500)
Chase slate (8500)
Credit One (700)
Cap1 spark business (2200)

None of the cards have a balance, but I use them for points and pay everything off almost daily.

Auto loans for 25k and 45k

ABC Supply (construction supplier) credit line of $50k

AAoA is ~7 years on myfico, but only 3 years on credit karma. This discrepancy is because I had some student loans discharged because I'm a disabled veteran, and on CK those accounts are erased but they still show on myfico.

I've got some derogs from ~2015, including a repossession (ex wife's doing) I reclaimed and paid off as soon as I knew it was repossessed. I'm paying a company to work on removing derogs, as well as 50+ hard inquiries from when I was looking for credit when I was going through those aforementioned tough times.

I don't have any mortgages.

I'm a general contractor, make ~$350k, and use Lowe's a ton for my business. I'd really like to do something to start establishing more business credit, as I basically have none other than the small spark card, as well as get in with Amex somewhere.

I feel like since I don't have a lot of debt, my amount of credit is very low, especially compared to my income. Obviously I want to fix that, but also continue improving my scores.

What should my next move be?

Thank you all for your help, and for the wealth of information I've learned here reading the past few years.

[SouthJamaica]

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@Anonymous wrote:
Hello, I've been reading the forums for a long time, but just recently registered.

I've been rebuilding my credit for a few years now after some issues with a past business partner and a divorce at the same time almost wiped me out. When all that was going on, I was in the 500s.
Today my fico 8s are: Eq: 703, Tu: 704, Ex: 674

Fico 9s are: 720, 707, 683, respectively

I've got the following accounts:
NFCU visa cash rewards (25k)
Cap1 Quicksilver (3500)
USAA platinum visa (2500)
Chase slate (8500)
Credit One (700)
Cap1 spark business (2200)

None of the cards have a balance, but I use them for points and pay everything off almost daily.

Auto loans for 25k and 45k

ABC Supply (construction supplier) credit line of $50k

AAoA is ~7 years on myfico, but only 3 years on credit karma. This discrepancy is because I had some student loans discharged because I'm a disabled veteran, and on CK those accounts are erased but they still show on myfico.

I've got some derogs from ~2015, including a repossession (ex wife's doing) I reclaimed and paid off as soon as I knew it was repossessed. I'm paying a company to work on removing derogs, as well as 50+ hard inquiries from when I was looking for credit when I was going through those aforementioned tough times.

I don't have any mortgages.

I'm a general contractor, make ~$350k, and use Lowe's a ton for my business. I'd really like to do something to start establishing more business credit, as I basically have none other than the small spark card, as well as get in with Amex somewhere.

I feel like since I don't have a lot of debt, my amount of credit is very low, especially compared to my income. Obviously I want to fix that, but also continue improving my scores.

What should my next move be?

Thank you all for your help, and for the wealth of information I've learned here reading the past few years.

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I guess your next step should be to get a Lowes Business Credit Card.

And to ditch the Spark card one of these days since it reports to personal credit.

[srloring13]

I would cancel the Credit One card and focus on growing the limits for the other accounts. Request a CLI at least once every 6 months. Maybe look into a business amex.

[FinStar]

Hi @Anonymous and welcome to the forums.

Also, feel free to check out the Business Credit section of the forums for any business credit-related topics:

https://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Business-Credit/bd-p/businesscredit

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

AAoA is ~7 years on myfico, but only 3 years on credit karma. This discrepancy is because I had some student loans discharged because I'm a disabled veteran, and on CK those accounts are erased but they still show on myfico.

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The discrepancy you speak of above is because MF [correctly] averages the age of all of your accounts, both open and closed.  CK only considers open accounts, which is not how the Fico algorithm views your file.

As for your file, your utilization is obviously fine so the only thing holding back your scores (significantly, probably 60-80 points) is the presence of those negative items.  I'd continue to work toward their removal, as that's the single best thing that will improve your profile/scores considerably.

I agree with whoever above said to ditch the Credit One card too.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the replies so far.
Why close the credit one card? I know it's useless (it stays in my truck in case I forget my wallet), but don't I want to age as many accounts as possible?

Also which Amex and Lowe's cards should I go for with my profile?

[Anonymous]

Every 6 months across all accounts, or pick one card?

[Remedios]

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@Anonymous wrote:
Thanks for the replies so far.
Why close the credit one card? I know it's useless (it stays in my truck in case I forget my wallet), but don't I want to age as many accounts as possible?

Also which Amex and Lowe's cards should I go for with my profile?

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Does your Credit One card has annual fee and/or monthly fees? Grace period for purchases? 

Once you close it, it can stay on your report for up to 10 years. No loss there. If it's costing you money, close it. You have better cards now 

[Anonymous]

So I tried the Amex prequal page and got 'we could not match you to any offers at this time.' I assume this means I shouldn't do a hard pull and apply for any Amex products. Correct?

Also, should I ask for CLIs on all my cards (except credit1 which I'll close)?

Should I apply for additional/better chase or nfcu cards since I already have history with them?

Sorry for so many questions, I've read lots of posts with conflicting info, so hoping someone experienced can advise me on how to approach my specific situation.

Thanks

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Why close the credit one card? I know it's useless (it stays in my truck in case I forget my wallet)

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While I don't know much about Credit One products, I do know that they're a predatory lender and my understanding was that all of their products came with an AF.  Definitely no point in paying for an AF on a card you have just in case you forget your wallet.