I'm probably rehashing something already mentioned in this long thread (I didn't read the whole thing), but the argument I've heard for having 3+ is that it allows you to have AZEO while simultaneously not having balances on 50%+ of your revolving accounts. With only 2 cards, you can't achieve both those goals, you can only do one of them or the other - so you could be leaving a few points on the table.
Same is true for not having a solid credit mix - sure you can still get a really high score without it, but you'd be leaving "easy" points on the table. A 780 score is awesome, but it's only barely "top tier", with absolutely no wiggle room for unexpected point drops, potentially putting you in the next tier down with even the tiniest of changes on your report. Whereas, if you're comfortably well into the 800's, you have more wiggle room - you could charge an unexpected emergency medical bill and lose a few points and still be in the top tier.
On the other hand, of course, it really isn't that important to squeeze out those last few points when you're at 800+ already. Sure, an 850 would be awesome, but in reality it's treated no differently than an 800.
One final point, maximizing your score by squeezing out every possible point you can isn't really all that important for someone with a long, well-established credit history. But for someone who is building their credit, every point counts, and you shouldn't leave any on the table if you can avoid it. The difference between a 680 and a 700 is HUGE. Whereas, the difference between an 830 and 850 is negligible.
So does everyone need 3+ cards and a good credit mix to have a high score? No... but for some people, especially those in the 620-760 range, it's a necessity if they want to qualify for the best credit terms. Adding a 3rd card could, for some people who aren't already top-tier, knock a whole percentage point off their mortgage APR.
As with every other aspect of credit scoring, one size doesn't fit all. What works well for one person may not for another, and vice versa. There are exceptions to every rule.
Total Loan Balance: $43k / $65k
Total SL: $78k
Actually if someone went from 790 to 830 six months after adding a card, think that concretely proves 1 revolver is suboptimal.
That won’t happen assuming balance on that one card was roughly constant before and after with a single tradeline.
Birdman’s point of it depends what algorithm we are talking about is on point: FICO 8 is an *easy* score (compared to older algorithms) to get high enough for most underwriting, read as north of 740 or even 760 which is gold plated territory. You can have all sorts of things wrong and reach that actually as many people have proven on this forum.
Where the problem arises is the older scoring models, which includes mortgages here in the United States where a .25 or .5% swing has a big impact in terms of how much money it costs you.
That’s where the jury is still out, and 8 points there is almost half a mortgage tier, and my own TU and EQ mortgage scores move a lot more than that as a result of accounts / revolvers with balances... 20 and 16 points respectively.
Well to be fair we are still figuring out optimal there but TBH I really doubt it is at 2 revolvers.
I still can’t explain my TU FICO 4 score FWIW, 13 month old 60D late without the godlike 850 level files others have, and it’s gold-plated at 767: hard pressed not to think my file thickness has something to do with that.
That won’t happen assuming balance on that one card was roughly constant before and after with a single tradeline.
Birdman’s point of it depends what algorithm we are talking about is on point: FICO 8 is an *easy* score (compared to older algorithms) to get high enough for most underwriting, read as north of 740 or even 760 which is gold plated territory. You can have all sorts of things wrong and reach that actually as many people have proven on this forum.
Where the problem arises is the older scoring models, which includes mortgages here in the United States where a .25 or .5% swing has a big impact in terms of how much money it costs you.
That’s where the jury is still out, and 8 points there is almost half a mortgage tier, and my own TU and EQ mortgage scores move a lot more than that as a result of accounts / revolvers with balances... 20 and 16 points respectively.
Well to be fair we are still figuring out optimal there but TBH I really doubt it is at 2 revolvers.
I still can’t explain my TU FICO 4 score FWIW, 13 month old 60D late without the godlike 850 level files others have, and it’s gold-plated at 767: hard pressed not to think my file thickness has something to do with that.