Score difference???

[Journey]

Hi everyone,

This morning I pulled my EQ and TU score reports.

This was after getting a SW alert that my EQ score went up 20 points (yay!!!) to a 666.

I was shocked to see that my TU score was 534? I posted a question on another board because it says I have recently missed a payment, yet I can find no report of it in the TU report.

I also have another question. The TU report shows me at 105% utility, which is ridiculous given that both of my credit cards have $0 balances, and I have one outstanding chargeoff to pay. I do have a car pymt, but that never hurt me before. I guess I'm wondering if TU would have suddenly decided to include outstanding student loans in the utility? I also just had an old pd collection go into dispute. Could this be why?

Last question (and sorry for asking a few at a time)...

Is it normal to have scores so drastically different? I don't know whether to celebrate or be discouraged...

[Anonymous]

Closed accounts with balances are counted in util with a $0 CL.

If the collection is listed under the collection section then it being in dispute should have no effect on score.

Look at flagged accounts with lates. What is the last updated/reported date on them? If one recently updated then that could be the recent late payment. You can always call myFICO customer service and they can likely tell you where the missed payment is.

As for the scores being different, is the information on both reports the same?

[Journey]

Hey Sidewinder,

Thanks for your response. I called customer service and although I spoke with a very nice and patient lady, she could only guess about what the late payment was (because there were none reported in the last year or so). After some pointed comments to me about what I needed to fix (which I already knew and am in the process of repairing), she pointed to one account and suggested I call them. It is a chargeoff acct that I pay through a CA, although OC reports and updates balance monthly, which has been going on since 12/07...so this is not the recent missed pymt. I tried to explain that it would be very confusing to call them to discuss a late that neither she nor I could find on the report, but....  *sigh*

I pointed out that if score watch was going to alert me to a recently missed pymt, why can I not find it anywhere. I pay for this service and right now it has created much confusion and frustration...for me and for the woman in customer service. 

Discouraged to say the least...

Thanks for the help sidewinder.

[Anonymous]

Look at your accounts that do have missed payments.

Then check the last reported/update date for those accounts.

Has any of them recently updated?

Did the SW alert not give you information about the account that had changed?

[Journey]

Hi Sidewinder,

Out of the four accts I have with missed pymts, only two of them show updating in March09. One was Macy's, which updated to show PIF, because I paid it off. The report has a line that says 30 day lates: none. The second is my discover card, which is a profit and loss writeoff, but which I pay through a CA monthly since 07. Every month the OC tradeline updates the balance owed to reflect my payment. It also says 30 day lates: none.

Credit alert alerted me yesterday, but in reference to my GTE account now showing dispute status. That account is listed as Verizon on my TU report, but this acct was last updated in feb 06 and again shows no 30 day lates.

I rcvd no SW alert for this, just pulled my TU scorepower report and noticed the huge discrepancy in my scores. SW alerted me yesterday that my EQ had gone up to 666. My TU is 534 so I guess SW only monitors EQ.

Message Edited by Journey on 04-04-2009 07:12 PM

[Anonymous]

Yes, SW only monitors EQ score.

On the accounts with late payments-- check them over real good comparing them to a previous reports.

Sounds to me that a date has changed somewhere causing this problem.

ETA: Is this a new negative factor that it never told you about?

When was the last late on the accounts?

Also, see what is listed in the "worst delinquency" box for those accounts.

Message Edited by sidewinder on 04-04-2009 10:07 PM

[Journey]

Thank you so much for walking me through this...

I am not sure what you mean by ETA negative factor. 

Okay, I compared the FICO TU report to a TU report dated 3/21/09 and 2/20/09. Here's what I found for your questions:

DISC

last lates: none reported on all three reports

worst delinquency: none reported

Date updated/ status as of: listed as the month the report is printed on all three

FICO report shows DOLA March 09...I think that must be because the balance updates every month.

Macy's

PIF in March 09, so shows status date of 3/09

worst delinquency: none reported

no lates listed on any of the reports

2/20 report lists it as +120 days past due

now listed as payment after chargeoff/collection

Verizon/GTE

status/ date updated 5/07 on two reports, 2/06 on one

worst delinquency: none reported

no lates reported on any of the reports

acct listed as payment after charge off/collection

Bank of America

status date/ last updated: 2/08 on all 3

worst delinquency: 120 days past due

listing of past due dates shows most recent late to be 11/07 on all three

acct status listed as 120 days past due on all three, yet shows date paid 1/08 on all three

all three show balance: 0 and past due:0 yet also show pay status as 120 days past due. How can I be past due when the acct is settled????  Guess I never caught that before. 

oh my...because I settled it, Should I dispute them still listing it as 120 days past due or can they do that after you have settled? The acct on all three reports also shows as closed. Even still the FICO TU power report said my most recent late was within the past 30 days, so this couldn't be it because that error is consistent across all three reports dating back to 2/20, right?

Also noticed that my EQ shows everything the same on this acct except they also have it noted that a settlement was accepted on the acct.

Whew!  This is exhausting for me so it must be for you because you help so many!!!

Thanks again for your time and thoughts!

EDIT: went back and checked the bank of america account against a TU report from 1/17, all is listed exactly the same.

Message Edited by Journey on 04-04-2009 08:55 PM

[Anonymous]

ETA means Edited to Add.....I edited the message to add some more questions.

I am going to do some looking around and checking and see what I can think of.

[Anonymous]

Ok...been doing some reading and thinking.

You recently paid the Macy's card....so I think that is the TL that caused the score change.

On your TU report, can you copy and paste exactly how the TL is being reported, minus account #.

Include all dates.

[Anonymous]

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Journey wrote:

I also have another question. The TU report shows me at 105% utility, which is ridiculous given that both of my credit cards have $0 balances, and I have one outstanding chargeoff to pay.

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Divide the balance that outstanding CO is reporting by your total CL from the other two active cards. What does that give you?