Early exclusion - it worked!

[Anonymous]

It worked!    My elderly $224 collection was deleted early from TU and EX.  It was not on EQ.   

My Experian score catapulted from 663 to 787!   At first, I was thinking the webpage was some sort of advertisement, and kept trying to re-check it.  When I realized it was me, I just about fell off my chair.   I called TU, and they said they would delete but I have to wait for snail mail confirmation.  I have not checked my TU score yet.  Thank you everyone, I would not have known about early exclusion without this forum.  

Now, I need your collective help to not screw this up.   This score is probably entirely due to a 27 year old closed joint card with a $13K limit which was never late.  This will fall off in 2022 and leave me with only one credit card, a Discover with a $2,200 limit, almost one year old as of now.  Nothing else.  I have zero inquiries. 

To buffer the coming cliff jump, I need to build a thicker (and older) file.  I plan on opening three new cards and a savings secured loan.  What is the smartest way to go about this, to protect my new score?  

1.  Should I open one card every 3 months, or should I do all three at once?  If I open all three at once, the cards will all age together.  Would my score dip more with this, or would it recover (and build) faster from the every-three-months strategy?   Would this not matter at all, and the score will fall to whatever level it will when the old card drops off? 

2.  Should I open the secured savings loan before the cards, or after?  I was thinking after, because the cards will likely be more sensitive to HPs than the SSL.  My student loans are long gone, and I want an installment loan to prep for a jumbo mortgage in a couple years.   

Thanks for any advice.  I feel like the dragon guarding my newfound treasure, LOL. 

[Queen_Etherea]

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@Anonymous wrote:

It worked!    My elderly $224 collection was deleted early from TU and EX.  It was not on EQ.   

My Experian score catapulted from 663 to 787!   At first, I was thinking the webpage was some sort of advertisement, and kept trying to re-check it.  When I realized it was me, I just about fell off my chair.   I called TU, and they said they would delete but I have to wait for snail mail confirmation.  I have not checked my TU score yet.  Thank you everyone, I would not have known about early exclusion without this forum.  

Now, I need your collective help to not screw this up.   This score is probably entirely due to a 27 year old closed joint card with a $13K limit which was never late.  This will fall off in 2022 and leave me with only one credit card, a Discover with a $2,200 limit, almost one year old as of now.  Nothing else.  I have zero inquiries. 

To buffer the coming cliff jump, I need to build a thicker (and older) file.  I plan on opening three new cards and a savings secured loan.  What is the smartest way to go about this, to protect my new score?  

1.  Should I open one card every 3 months, or should I do all three at once?  If I open all three at once, the cards will all age together.  Would my score dip more with this, or would it recover (and build) faster from the every-three-months strategy?   Would this not matter at all, and the score will fall to whatever level it will when the old card drops off? 

2.  Should I open the secured savings loan before the cards, or after?  I was thinking after, because the cards will likely be more sensitive to HPs than the SSL.  My student loans are long gone, and I want an installment loan to prep for a jumbo mortgage in a couple years.   

Thanks for any advice.  I feel like the dragon guarding my newfound treasure, LOL. 

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CONGRATS!!! Did you call or file a dispute online? When was the DoFD for this account?

[Anonymous]

Thing is, I don't really know the DOFD.  It was in a huge gray area in 2012-2013ish when I split up with my ex and moved.  I had switched my cell phone somewhere around then, thought I'd paid it off, but I guess I hadn't covered everything and they probably tacked on fees.  I never heard from AT&T or anyone else - ironic, because the phone number stayed the same.  So, when I started planning for a mortgage, I checked my report and found it.   Just went ahead and paid it, because it was so small, and I figured a paid would be more amenable to goodwill than unpaid. 

I disputed EX online, choosing 'other' and writing that I was requesting early exclusion.  I did the same with TU, but the request was lost in the ether and I finally called a couple days later.  As it turns out, TU had no documentation on it anyway, so I probably didn't need to pay it.  But they agreed to delete over the phone.  

Lesson learned, and now I'll be more on top of my credit.  And, good example of why you should never close your oldest card!  it will make a difference down the line. 

(edited to add:  my reports pulled from annualcreditreports.com showed the expected dates of drop off as June of this year (EX) and August (TU), so figured it was worth a shot at EE. )

[Marz2002]

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@Anonymous wrote:

It worked!    My elderly $224 collection was deleted early from TU and EX.  It was not on EQ.   

My Experian score catapulted from 663 to 787!   At first, I was thinking the webpage was some sort of advertisement, and kept trying to re-check it.  When I realized it was me, I just about fell off my chair.   I called TU, and they said they would delete but I have to wait for snail mail confirmation.  I have not checked my TU score yet.  Thank you everyone, I would not have known about early exclusion without this forum.  

Now, I need your collective help to not screw this up.   This score is probably entirely due to a 27 year old closed joint card with a $13K limit which was never late.  This will fall off in 2022 and leave me with only one credit card, a Discover with a $2,200 limit, almost one year old as of now.  Nothing else.  I have zero inquiries. 

To buffer the coming cliff jump, I need to build a thicker (and older) file.  I plan on opening three new cards and a savings secured loan.  What is the smartest way to go about this, to protect my new score?  

1.  Should I open one card every 3 months, or should I do all three at once?  If I open all three at once, the cards will all age together.  Would my score dip more with this, or would it recover (and build) faster from the every-three-months strategy?   Would this not matter at all, and the score will fall to whatever level it will when the old card drops off? 

2.  Should I open the secured savings loan before the cards, or after?  I was thinking after, because the cards will likely be more sensitive to HPs than the SSL.  My student loans are long gone, and I want an installment loan to prep for a jumbo mortgage in a couple years.   

Thanks for any advice.  I feel like the dragon guarding my newfound treasure, LOL. 

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CONGRATULATIONS on your new Experian Score and Welcome to the 700+ Club!!!

Regarding your Next Steps, the 1st thing I would do is open a SSL of at least $500 with a 12 month term.  That's what I did when I only had 1 CC - OpenSky.

Next, as soon as you confirm your new TU score, I would request a CLI from Discover (you can do that online).  This will give you a higher CL which will be beneficial for new CC apps.

What is your EQ score?  I need to know that for next recommendations.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the reply, I appreciate it! 

As of this afternoon:  

TU   785

EX   797   ( ! ) (somebody stop this crazy ride)  

EQ   782   1 INQ  (Discover 4/2018) 

AAoA - 14 yrs 1 mo

So, you would open the SSL first?   I had planned on DCU $1,000 for 10 years, but I can't fund this for a while.  Pay off to 49% immediately, then coast for the next 5 years.  DCU doesn't pay forward more than a few months (but they have 6.17% interest on savings for the first $1k).  Should work more or less like the old defunct Alliant SSL, right?  My score doesnt need to be stellar until 2 years from now.

Good idea on waiting to app cards when I have a higher credit limit from my existing card.  I had planned on asking Discover for a CLI at 30-60 days, they auto-CLI'd me from $1800 at the beginning of Feb.  Think it's safe now? 

What's the general opinion on how and when to app cards?  

Thanks again, 

[Marz2002]

You're welcome!  I was where you are 1 year ago.  April 4th will be the 1 year anniversary of my 1st Rebuild card - Discover.

GREAT looking Scores you have!

Regarding the SSL plan, can you afford $500 to start one?  I used my local Texas CU for my SSL.

Discover doesn't penalize you for CLI requests, so you can online request once every 30 days.

Before we get into apping cards, what type of CCs are you interested in - Cash Back, Travel Rewards, Fast Growers, etc.?

[Queen_Etherea]

Holy freaking moly! Dude you hit the jackpot! See what wonders this forum can bring? LOL. 

[Marz2002]

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@Queen_Etherea wrote:

Holy freaking moly! Dude you hit the jackpot! See what wonders this forum can bring? LOL. 

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Thank you Very Much! 

I WOULD NOT have been able to achieve those CLs without the knowledge that I have gained and continue to gain on these FORUMS!

I am truly grateful to ALL of the FORUM Members for the information and encouragement they give EVERY DAY! 

[Anonymous]

Those are impressive limits for a one year rebuild! Awesome job.

Over the next couple of months, it’ll be tight for extra cash. I had planned on doing the SSL in summer. Income is okay, but I just got a serious blow to future plans yesterday when a key business deal fell apart. *sigh*

So, cash back rewards for now, I’ll wait on travel. I don’t want a ton of cards and to spend time chasing categories around. Keep it simple with room to upgrade/grow. No annual fee in case the cards get mothballed. I was thinking:

Chase Freedom Unlimited
AMEX Blue Cash Everyday
Citi Double Cash

I did hit the Discover luv button yesterday, got a whopping $500 increase. 🙄 But, I’m planning on doing this religiously every 30 days from now on.

Should I wait to app more cards until I get the Discover CL up to a certain limit?

[Marz2002]

Thank you Very Much!

I would not have been able to achieve those limits so quickly, without the knowledge so freely shared by the MyFico Community!

Sorry about the collapse of your key business deal, hopefully you have a few more opportunities in your pipeline.

I don't have any Chase CCs, so I am not sure of their Growth rate.  AMEX, on the other hand is a FAST grower, relatively speaking.  I started with the Blue Cash Everyday card, $1K SL, received a CLI to $2K on the 91st day.  Then, after being declined for the Cash Magnet card when my AMEX relationship was 30 days old, I apped again after the 6th BCE statement was cut and was Approved for the Cash Magnet card with a $15K SL.  I will be seeking another CLI on my BCE card next week.

Regarding Citi, I apped for the Double Cash card a week after my April 4th Discover approval for $10K SL and was declined for Insufficient Credit History.  My FICOs at the time were high 600s.  Fast forward to January and I decided to app for the AAdvantage WEMC card and was approved with a $11K SL.

With your FICOs, you shouldn't have a problem getting Approvals for the CCs you have selected.

CONGRATULATIONS on the Discover CLI!  You have a $2,700 CL now.  I was able to get my Disco account from $10K to $15K in 3 months,  which was BEFORE I started to add more CCs.  I think Disco likes to be the 'Go To' card ALL of the time.  Currently, my 'Go To' card is the card I am trying to capture a SUB with.

I think that you should app now, just to get the door open with your selected CC lenders. The longer they have experience with you, whatever the SL you receive WILL GROW.

For example, I was Approved for the Paypal 2% Cash Back MC on April 28th last year with a $700 SL.  By January 8th, my CL grew to $8,000.

Also, I would app for all 3 at the same time (they can GROW together and you will get All of the dings to your FICO scores all at once instead of spread out), with Chase - 1st App since they are most sensitive to Inquiries. Next, Citi for the same reason. When I first apped with AMEX, I already had 3 Inquiries on my CR and they Approved me anyway with a $1K SL (you know the rest of the story).

Let me know if you have other questions.