Is it possible to overcome inquiries with a strong credit profile?

[CreditInspired]

IMHO, since they said too many inqs, it doesn’t matter if your score goes too 850.

Yep, save yourself the HP; maybe wait until the AOYA reach 1 yr.

[Anonymous]

Anyone that gets denied for a credit product isn't really getting denied for "too many inquiries" if that's what they're told... they're getting denied for "too many inquiries relative to the rest of your profile."

For example, Cornelius has 9 inquiries and applies for X credit product from lender Y and gets denied for "too many inquiries."  His best buddy Rupert applies for X product as well from lender Y and gets approved, but he's got 21 inquiries. 

This type of thing happens all the time.  Clearly in the example above, Cornelius' 9 inquiries were not what broke him... but those 9 inquiries relative to the rest of his [no doubt weaker] profile compared his buddy Rupert were enough to keep him out of the approval window.

[pamon]

In the same boat here. Rebuilt but added too many new accounts with a ton of inquiries. Heading to the garden but it's a tough trip.

[seattlecredit08]

I had a conversation with the UW from Alliant CU recently that presented an interesting perspective on this topic.

This was when I tried to recon my denial for the signature visa application.

At the time of the application, my TU FICO (which Alliant uses) was north of 770+.

We discussed reasons for denial in detail, and the primary reason boiled to down to the number of recently opened accounts. I specifically asked about inquiries and their aging (e.g. past 1 year mark) and was told that recent accounts are much more important than inquiries for their decision process.

So in the context of the original question, I would say that for a number of lenders, it's not the inquiries but presence of recent accounts that can present a potentially bigger hurdle.

As for whether this hurdle can be overcome-- I would say yes, with some specific lenders. From my personal experience, I had no issue getting in with AMEX and getting a revolver with a 10K+ SL from BB&T with a high number of very, very new accounts. I am sure there is a good handful of other lenders in addition to these two.

Thanks!!

[Anonymous]

I ran into something very similar when I bought my car last year.  I went in with a loan from my credit union, ready and set to go, but at the last minute the dealer offered to see if he could get me a better rate.  Being the kid in the candy store I was, I agreed.  32 inquiries later, no creditor would touch me for a full year, to the date.   Sure, my scores were just fine, but it was that one darn number that sank me hard.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I ran into something very similar when I bought my car last year.  I went in with a loan from my credit union, ready and set to go, but at the last minute the dealer offered to see if he could get me a better rate.  Being the kid in the candy store I was, I agreed.  32 inquiries later, no creditor would touch me for a full year, to the date.   Sure, my scores were just fine, but it was that one darn number that sank me hard.

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If that really happened to you, the 32 inquiries were incorrectly coded.  They should have been coded as auto inquiries and then would have been viewed as 1 single inquiry since they were all received around the same time as a result of rate-shopping. 

[Anonymous]

Even if coded probably a credit report will still show the 32 individual inquiries. FICO just scores them as one.

[Anonymous]

Unfortunately it did happen to me and OpenG is correct.  While loan shopping provisions protect your *score* the inquiries themselves are preserved as they are an accurate reflection of who accessed your report.   I went rounds with all the bureaus and ironically it was only Equifax that ever conceded.  I eventually figured out that if I got rejected by the computers, to ask for recon and then explain myself to an actual human who 9 times out of 10 was understanding.

What I also did found rather upsetting is that these people with the authority to pull your credit reports (aka the secretary in the finance department of any dealership) really have no vested interest in doing anything the right way -- as in many of the inquiries were coded wrong.  A few of them were "Finance/Personal Loan" or "Finance/Other" instead of being Finance/Automotive like they should be which would have made my life much easier in dealing with people down the road.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:
Even if coded probably a credit report will still show the 32 individual inquiries. FICO just scores them as one.

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Right, but it would be 32 individual inquiries for 1 new account.  If coded correctly it should make a dramatic difference in how those inquiries and that profile is viewed, both by a human and by most software.

[Anonymous]

How do they know which inquiry coincides with which account?  Let's say  for example I apply for  a bank card and a car loan on the same day from a variety of lenders -- is there a way to see which inquiry goes with which account from my own report?   I ask because I had a horrible time trying to untangle the mess of all these inquiries and shotgun applications, Capital One Auto Finance was the worst.   They would run inquiry after inquiry from every division including the personal credit card ones as well as the auto financiers.