Assistance evaluating my Credit scores.

[Anonymous]

Hello All,

I am new here and I had some questions regarding my credit score and how to evaluate it. If you fine people can assist me that would be fantastic. I apologize for the length of this post, but I don't really know who else to ask, and I'm pretty sure most of you are more knowledgeable than I am on this topic.

First off here are my three scores as of 2/10/15:

          FICO® Score 8 based on Equifax data: 696

          FICO® Score 8 based on TransUnion data: 678

          FICO® Score 8 based on Experian data: 674

My main question here is what should I expect from landlords when attempting a new apartment to live in with these credit scores. The last time I rented an apartment was when I was in college for 3 years about 6 years ago. Since then I have been staying with different friends and relatives renting rooms, but now I have to find my own place to live and I am not really sure what to expect. Will my score cause me any grief or resistance from landlords when attempting to rent an apartment?

Also I had some questions regarding some of the negative factors affecting my credit. I have a missed payment on a card from 5 years ago, I think it was a small amount and I thought I completely paid off the card but apparently I did not. This card has since been closed and paid off completely. How bad is this missed payment affecting my credit?

The second negative factor question I have is, it states that my " The remaining balance on your mortgage or non-mortgage installment loans is too high."

This specific item is referring to an auto load I received a couple of years ago when I purchased my card. The loan was orginally for 6,000 dollars over 3 years and it is now down to 1,300 and will be completely paid off in August of this year. Am I missing something here, because this does not seem very high to me especially considering the balance will be 0 dollars in 6 months.

The last negative factor question I have is it states that, "You have few accounts that are in good standing"

I currently have 3 accounts and all 3 are in good standing so I'm not exactly sure what this means, how badly it is affecting my score, and what if anything I need to do to get rid of it. Do i have to get more accounts so this goes away?

The last negative factor I have is I have made heavy use of my revolving credit. I don't really have any questions about this because I am aware of it and am paying it off as best as I can. I assume this negative factor is the "big" one and is mostly responsible for my score being what its at. If this is a false assumption on my part please let me know.

If anyone has any information for me regarding my questions I would greaty appreciate it. Thanks again and sorry for the length of this post.

[Anonymous]

On the topic of your ability to rent an apartment.  Potential landlords aren't so much interested in your score but whether your credit reports show any past bankruptcies or issues with past housing.  If none of those present you will have no problems renting an apartment.

As for the 5 year old late payment it isn't affecting your score that much because of its age.  The reasons listed on your score report is typical.  Anytime you pull your scores they will list 3-4 reasons why your score isn't higher and often they don't particularly apply to you.  This happens to everyone unless your score is at 850.

You should look at what might be holding down your scores like average age of accounts and more importantly your overall utilization on your credit cards.  Also if your 3 accounts include your car loan I would suggest you look into adding another credit card or two to help your overall profile.

Hope this helps.

[CH-7-Mission-Accomplished]

I agree with Irish.

That 5 year old late isn't hurting you much at all.  You might try disputing it and/or sending a goodwill lender to see if you can get rid of it.

For most apartment screening services they want a 650 FICO so you should be fine.  The thing that most spooks apartment folks is any kind of tenant problems on your report (evictions, apartment collections).

Not sure what cards you have and what limits you have, but if you can get a couple of decent new credit limits you can get that utilization pecentage down right away.

Have you seen the new Capital 1 Venture card stampede?   It seems if you can breathe you get 5K - 10K easy, and those with higher scores and higher income are getting 20, 30 and a couple of reports of 50K limits.  (They say "the slots are loose" for this card).  You should app it and report back

Oh, and ignore their comment about your car loan balance being too high.  More likely when it pays off your FICO will drop 25 points due to a credit mix problem.  You might want to get a small credit builder loan ($500 - $1000) for 2-4  years from a CU for 2% to 3% before that auto loan pays off.

[Anonymous]

Thank you for the info. I will do both the credit builder loan, and look into the capital one venture card. Any infor I receive from those I will share. Thanks again.

[Anonymous]

I applied for a Capital One card and received one with a 7500 dollar limit. Very easy and painless application process. In regards to the credit builder loan, I am pretty unfamiliar with credit unions. Do I have to go to a local one, or can I go to one located in a different state and just access it online?

[Anonymous]

Either way on the loan. Highly recommended around here would be Navy Federal, State Department Federal (join American Consumer council to qualify) Alliant also has organizations you can join to qualify, NASA (same thing) or do it thru a local CU. I have a share secured thru alliant personally. loan is 500 dollars 2.8 percent interest and the savings account that secures the loan pays .9%. My net cost will be about 25 bucks or so over the 4 year term. Payments are 11.02/ month. I have roughly 2 grand in the savings account and last month my statement showed 1.16 pd in interest, 1.15 received in interest....Next month the 2 numbers will reverse. Personally,I am a credit union nerd, currently a member of 15 or so, so I would suggest joining both a local and a federal. CU's have great products, great rates and do things banks can't or wont at times.

[Anonymous]

Oh and congrats on the new CC, just the utilization help should give your score anice little boost.

[takeshi74]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Do I have to go to a local one, or can I go to one located in a different state and just access it online?

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You can join any that you are eligible to join.  You'd have to look at the membership requirements for the ones you're considering.

[bdhu2001]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Thank you for the info. I will do both the credit builder loan, and look into the capital one venture card. Any infor I receive from those I will share. Thanks again.

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You will find that the credit builder loan is also called a shared loan in this forum.  According to a different post: 

"It is really easy to do and there are three good credit unions to get a shared loan from and they are: here

Alliant Credit Union

State Department Federal Credit Union (SDFCU)

Digital Credit Union (DCU)"

Personally, I suggest DCU because if you get in with them, you'll get access to a free EQ FICO score (it's the version used for mortgage).  You have to join a charity to apply, but for a shared loan, I think that's the way to go.  I also suggest that you review the link for the other posts when you have the time.  It suggests that you get two shared loans and give you the steps.

Anyway, taking the steps mentioned should have you well on your way in your credit building journey.