@AmateurHour wrote:Hey guys,
I recently discovered this site while researching my second credit card. I acquired my first one, a Discover, about a year and a half ago. I just got approved for an AMEX BlueCash Preferred, so I'm feeling good right now.
I'm interested in beginning to increase my score while I'm still relatively young as I just looked at my credit score for the first time.
Thanks for having me!
Thanks for joining! Good luck on your journey ahead! You've done well already since you said you were young. 
March/April don't seem to have worked out quite the way I expected, although I have had my suspicions confirmed to a large extent. I began the year owing $25,000 on three auto loans, but everything else zeroed. I paid off all three loans in February, so have been completely debt free for just over a month now. I did leave a few small balances on some of my credit cards, just to show use, but am still paying them off every month without incurring interest charges, as I have done for the last ten years.
Now for the bad news. TU just docked me 8 points, apparently for having too many open accounts. I checked the report, and it does show 17 accounts, each marked "pays or paying as agreed." However, when I looked at the accounts one by one, seven of them were closed over the last few years (plus one closed last month, but I will give TU the benefit of the doubt on that one). The upshot is that my accounts have been paid in full every month for ten years, I have no installment loans, mortgages were paid off in 2011 and 2012, my credit usage is about 1%, and my FICO score is headed south. So much for becoming a high achiever.
March has been a learning experience for me. Unfortunately, my score has dropped a bit due to some high utilization, from 630 to 613. I didn't miss any payments or max out any cards, but apparently my utilization was high enough to lower my score. So, I am learning from this mistake and will try to avoid it in the future. And on a positive note, I am setting up reminders of when to pay as well as trying to even pay early and more than the minimum.
Starting Score: 611 (02/28/2014 EQ MyFico) 608 (Barclays TU 03/28/14)
I have been totally obsessed with my credit report for 2 months now. There has been a payoff. I had some bad luck in 2008 with my husband moving across the country for a job. He stayed there for 1.5 years. It was touch. Doubles rent, utilities and etc. So my my credit suffer had 3 small cards 2 from premier and i hsbc. I was paying on time then and working on my CS then. Once he moved they went to the crapper. They have been PIF for some time now. I also had some judgements, total of 9. I have disputed most of them some have come off. TU is touch I only have 4 left on there now. EQ and EX have removed them after much disputing. I do have the collection companies that those 3 cards went to and they are not removing them. No matter what. Moving on. I started with 515 EQ, 570 EX, and TU 582. I have constantly disputed looking for any reason for them to either remove the accounts or fix the information reported. It has been working. I am constantly checking them and looking for alerts. I started on 02/01/2014. Today is 04/23/2014. I have today Tu 675, EQ 618, EX 657. I have opened a CO secured credit card in 02/14. Keeping what on my ultilization. Uping my available credit. 2 wks ago was approved for Kays account for 3000. I bought a small necklace to use my credit. Always paying on time. I tried barclay, chase and was denied. I have to wait 6 mths, maybe ill try again. Recon denied with both too. On Recon not soft inquiry. So they were looking at lower scores and reporting. Did not want to do hard inquiry again. I find its a big game. Many years my husband and i payed cash did not want credit cards. We thought it was best not to be in debt. Boy how wrong we are now that we are in our 40s and trying to purchase our home. It is what it is.....Live and Learn.....making progress....