Dept store vs Visa/MC/AMEX

[Anonymous]

I figured I'd get this monkey off of my back, too...

When my FICO is calculated, are my dept store cards (Dell, BestBuy, etc) lumped into my other revolving 'major' cards?  Is different weight applied?  I have 4 'majors' and 4 'minors', most of which are paid off.  Should I have concentrated on paying off the majors, or does it all mean the same thing at the end of the day?

Just curious...

[Anonymous]

As far as I know - a CC is  a CC in the scoring model.  What weighs most heavily is payment history, utilitization & then overall age

[Anonymous]

Yes it does make a difference with what type of credit cards you have opened. I also thought a cc is a cc, until I received the following statement from Experian:::::"Your report does not show any open, currently active major credit card accounts, such as VISA, MasterCard, American Express or Discover. You may want to consider opening a major credit card, which is viewed positively by most lenders. Make sure you pay your bill on time every month and keep your balance relatively low to show other prospective lenders that you are responsible in paying your debts. (N-E)". I could not believe this, however, now I am applying for a major credit card to help increase my score.

[haulingthescoreup]

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@Anonymous wrote:
Yes it does make a difference with what type of credit cards you have opened. I also thought a cc is a cc, until I received the following statement from Experian:::::"Your report does not show any open, currently active major credit card accounts, such as VISA, MasterCard, American Express or Discover. You may want to consider opening a major credit card, which is viewed positively by most lenders. Make sure you pay your bill on time every month and keep your balance relatively low to show other prospective lenders that you are responsible in paying your debts. (N-E)". I could not believe this, however, now I am applying for a major credit card to help increase my score.

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Great minds thinking alike! I've been wondering about the major/ minor, prime/ sub-prime thing too.

I got the same message on Experian, but I have never gotten a similar message from myFICO. I wonder if this is not an example of how the CRA's look at different things for their FAKO's, things that FICO doesn't care about.

I know that I've read elsewhere by a mod, I think, that FICO just looks at revolving credit, period, whether it's the snobbiest ultra-platinum card available or a starter from Fred's Big House of Fresh Bait and Credit.

[Anonymous]

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keepoff wrote:
Yes it does make a difference with what type of credit cards you have opened. I also thought a cc is a cc, until I received the following statement from Experian:::::"Your report does not show any open, currently active major credit card accounts, such as VISA, MasterCard, American Express or Discover. You may want to consider opening a major credit card, which is viewed positively by most lenders. Make sure you pay your bill on time every month and keep your balance relatively low to show other prospective lenders that you are responsible in paying your debts. (N-E)". I could not believe this, however, now I am applying for a major credit card to help increase my score.

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There is a difference in the scoring model.  For FICO revolving accounts are all weighted the same as long as type is credit not charge.  Now the Experian Vantage Plus is a horse of a different color and cannot be compared.

[Anonymous]

  Now the Experian Vantage Plus is a horse of a different color and cannot be compared.

[Anonymous]

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mota wrote:

  Now the Experian Vantage Plus is a horse of a different color and cannot be compared.

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  Sorry what I meant is that if your are pulling your report from the experian site it is not a true FICO.

[Anonymous]

I think non major branded cards figure differently into "Credit Mix" but other wise the same

Yes it does make a difference with what type of credit cards you have opened. I also thought a cc is a cc, until I received the following statement from Experian:::::"Your report does not show any open, currently active major credit card accounts, such as VISA, MasterCard, American Express or Discover. You may want to consider opening a major credit card, which is viewed positively by most lenders. Make sure you pay your bill on time every month and keep your balance relatively low to show other prospective lenders that you are responsible in paying your debts. (N-E)". I could not believe this, however, now I am applying for a major credit card to help increase my score.

I understand  it a general concision in lending is stores will extend credit to just about anyone with a pluse. as a result they figure less favorably in the credit Mix than Major cards

Message Edited by rbbyrbsn on 10-06-2007 07:01 PM

[Anonymous]

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rbbyrbsn wrote:

I think non major branded cards figure differently into "Credit Mix" but other wise the same

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Yes that is true but the utilization factor is the same

Types of Credit Used

• Number of (presence, prevalence, and recent information on) various types of accounts (credit cards, retail accounts, installment loans, mortgage, consumer finance accounts, etc.)

Just stay away from CFLs

Message Edited by Brammy on 10-06-2007 09:55 PM

[haulingthescoreup]

But again, that comment is from the Experian site, not from the FICO site. I have never gotten a comment from the FICO site about my card mix.

I got a similar comment from the EX site saying that I didn't have enough big-name cards. I have a USAA MC, a USAA AmEx, a Citi MC, Discover More (AU only), and one store card, and a total CL of $52K. I am perfectly happy with this--I'm switching to joint status on the Disc, and maybe I'll replace the Citi one day, but I don't want a higher number of cards. I think EX is stirring the pot. Just think--more inqs to hit you with!

Edit: sorry, this was in response to msg 8 with the quote from the Experian site, not to Brammy's post (msg 9.)

Message Edited by haulingthescoreup on 10-08-2007 09:44 AM