So frustrated and Confused ...

[DjWesley]

I've started my credit building in January 2012, I've had no credit cards, home loans, or auto loans.  Just a few delinquencies of other bills on my credit (phone, medical), I have paid them off by the end of January. I grabbed a 300.00 First Progress Secured card & a Capitol One 500.00 Secured card.  I just recently in September applied for a Capitol one card and was approved for a 500 unsecured limit (SMH)  ... My utilization is never above 30% ..  It has been 10 months of great payments, low utilized card use. 

I started off with a 602 from equifax 593 experian and 595 transunion ... Today, 10 months later, I'm at a whopping 615 respectively ... Someone please tell me what I'm doing wrong.  I want to purchase a house this time next year, but the future is looking dismal...    Thank you for your input in advance...

[mmmagique]

You're not being patient. Building good credit takes time for most of us.

Yes, there are those whose numbers seem to grow exponentially, but for me, (and I'm sure for many others) it's many small steps (and small increases) that add up over time. 

[nicholasyud]

i dont know why your score slowly grow.....but letme ask you a question ? does your card report to all three credit bureaus ? because with both of those credit card company you had...they are very messy.......Check your credit report again and see if there some baddie on your report maybe some charge off or collection that you dont know ? .......

[nicholasyud]

i just read your thread again...well those baddie is holding your score down.....paid them ASAP but only if the company agree to Pay for Delete.....and get it in paper before you paid them anything......

[Dustink]

Those late payments are and will continue to hold your score down. Starting will bad credit is a lot harder than starting with no credit. You are just going to have to wait it out. It is going to take several years for your credit to grow.

I would recommend you open up a large secured card. Anything over $5,000 is good. If you can, open up a few of them. This will create some good credit lines on your credit report prior to the home purchase. Having a few low limit credit cards isn't going to help you much. You need to show the bank that you can handle large lines. Also, these lines might go unsecured around the time of your mortage. This will give you more money towards your down payment.

[SnackTrader]

The above posters are right.  Your late payments mean you are in rebuilding mode, and there aren't many things besides time that are going to help you out at this point.  

Head on over to the rebuilding forums within MyFico  http://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Rebuilding-Your-Credit/bd-p/rebuildingcredit  and start reading up on some of the successful things others have done.  Not everything will fit in your situation, but it should give you a good idea on the timeline for rebuilding and some of the good methods to bring your scores up.

Good luck!

[rootpooty]

First things first. Where are you getting your scores from? You only listed your most recent score once where did you get that one from also? What was the reported util? What derogs do you have on your reports? If they are fairly new then yes it will take some time with age they will start to affect your score

[Jlu]

you can accuse me of being an optimist but as somebody who has made the climb from the low 500's to the high 600's I can tell you that the 600 to 700 score range goes by much quicker than the 500 to 600 range. 

But as the poster above me asked, where are you getting your score?

[youngandcreditwrthy]

You're just going to have to build it and ALWAYS pay on time. Make sure you manage your debt/finances effectively. Your credit score is a direct consequence of your financial actions/obligations. In 6 mos to a year, you may try to open some GECRB store cards. If you want a mortgage, you can get an FHA loan with 3.5% down, I think. HOWEVER, if you cannot afford to put 20% down, you should wait.

Good luck... You're going to be at it awhile :-)

[Jlu]

---

@youngandcreditwrthy wrote:
You're just going to have to build it and ALWAYS pay on time. Make sure you manage your debt/finances effectively. Your credit score is a direct consequence of your financial actions/obligations. In 6 mos to a year, you may try to open some GECRB store cards. If you want a mortgage, you can get an FHA loan with 3.5% down, I think. HOWEVER, if you cannot afford to put 20% down, you should wait.

Good luck... You're going to be at it awhile :-)

---

Wow its 3.5% now? That's like $10k on a $300k house.. I think I put more than that down when I financed my car.