Requests for new credit from Refi affecting credit score?

[Anonymous]

I was denied a credit card  because my credit score was too low (698) one of the reasons was "total number of requests for new credit.  Well, I just finished a refi.  I had multiple requests due to 2 different mortgages companies dragging their feet, so I started over.  Can I request that those requests be taken off my credit report?  I heard that mortgage inquires do not count or should not count.  (BTW, my score was in the mid 700's prior to this).

Just FYI,  My reason for opening a new CC is that It was 18 months no interest, and I want to transfer my only credit card onto that one, if I were to be approved. 

Thank you for any help,

Whitney

[scarrollprint]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I was denied a credit card  because my credit score was too low (698) one of the reasons was "total number of requests for new credit.  Well, I just finished a refi.  I had multiple requests due to 2 different mortgages companies dragging their feet, so I started over.  Can I request that those requests be taken off my credit report?  I heard that mortgage inquires do not count or should not count.  (BTW, my score was in the mid 700's prior to this).

Just FYI,  My reason for opening a new CC is that It was 18 months no interest, and I want to transfer my only credit card onto that one, if I were to be approved. 

Thank you for any help,

Whitney

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First, Welcome.

Secondly, your mistaken in the regards to mortgage inqs don't matter.

They do, however if they happen within the same time frame (I think its 2 weeks) they are only supposed to be considered as 1 inq. IF all these inquries happened at the same time I would call the credit card company that denied you and discuss with them that you had been appling to refi a mortgage and that all these happened with a time frame of ____ days and that they are to be considered as 1 inq and if they could reconsider the situation?

If it was 1 inq a month, then I think its beyond the timeframe to consider it all 1 inquiry.

[llecs]

FICO will ignore duplicate inquiries for mortgages, auto loans, and SLs if you app within a given time frame. That time frame is anywhere from 14-45 days depending on the CRA and FICO version used by the lender reviewing your credit (e.g. the CC company). The newer FICO versions ignore the dupes within 30-45 days. So, if you app 100 times within a week for a mortgage or refi, FICO will ignore 99 of them.

While most CCs use a FICO score in their scoring decisions, some companys do use an internal score they created on their own to judge credit worthiness. Just because FICO ignores them, it won't mean that the CC company would do the same. They can also factor in the inquiries aside from the score and deny based on the number alone. Your comment, "total number of requests for new credit" is not a FICO scoring code and certainly points to a non-FICO or computer review of those inquiries.

It might be worth calling the creditor back and asking for a reconsideration. Explain the circumstance behind the inquiries and maybe a human being will factor that out vs. a computer including it. Also know that some creditors will deny you if you have any inquiries whatsoever. I've been denied credit just for having one inquiry and they wouldn't budge on that.

Also check your before and after score comparison. You might be comparing two different models of scores. A couple of inquiries won't drop your FICO scores 50 or so points. A new refi can drop your scores considerably, but not 50 or so. Now adding a refi and relaxing on your util can drop your scores by that much, but in reality, your score didn't drop like you think it did if comparing different scoring models.