Credit Score???

[jbee]

Hey guys,

I'm trying to pay down some debt before applying for a mortgage and wanted to see if someone can estimate how much of an score increase I should expect this month.

I paid off HSBC (the balance was 295.00 and the cl is 550).

Merrick balance was 788.00 and I paid 700 (cl is 1150).

The only others that are left:

Chase- balance 1300 (cl 1500) I'm tackling this next

Best Buy- balance 485 (cl 1175)

Shell- balance 203 (cl 400)

Do you think this would be a significant increase?  I want my score to be at least 720 when I apply for a mortgage loan.

Thanks for your help.

[Anonymous]

It could be a medium bump, but probably not huge. May get you over 720. Have you pulled a credit score from EQ and tried their FICO simulator? That will give you a good idea of your future score.

[jbee]

No, I was trying to wait until the statement hits, which won't be until 4/24.  Thanks for your help.

[Jazzzy]

You might want to pay off that small Shell balance next. That gives you one less balance reporting.

What type of mortgage are you looking at? Is there a break in interest rate at 720?

[jbee]

Thanks Lynette,

What I was going to do is pay 200.00 on Chase, 200.00 on BB and pay off Shell at the end of this month.  Next month, I would be able to pay off BB and then would only have Chase to pay off.  Does this sound right?

I'm going to try to do FHA, which I know is not score-driven, but 720 is just my goal score to apply since you really don't know what your score will be for TU and experian when you apply.  I just figured that if it was close to 700-720 with my fico, it can't be too much lower than 650-670 with their system.

[Jazzzy]

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@jbee wrote:

What I was going to do is pay 200.00 on Chase, 200.00 on BB and pay off Shell at the end of this month.  Next month, I would be able to pay off BB and then would only have Chase to pay off.  Does this sound right?

I'm going to try to do FHA, which I know is not score-driven, but 720 is just my goal score to apply since you really don't know what your score will be for TU and experian when you apply.  I just figured that if it was close to 700-720 with my fico, it can't be too much lower than 650-670 with their system.

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I think your payment idea is a good one. Normally I would advise people to pay down in order of highest interest rate first, but you have a specific reason (new mortgage) to do it in order of smallest balance first. That should help maximize your FICOs.

I wondered what type of mortgage you were aiming at when you mentioned wanting to hit 720 before your mortgage. FHA won't care, but if it gives you peace of mind, it's worth it.

I would certainly recommend that you pull both your TU report and score. The TU score you get here will likely not match the TU score your mortgage lender will pull, but at least you will know if there are any problems on your report. You should do the same with EX, even though you can't get a score (and, don't pay for a fake score). One place you can get your EX report for free is at Quizzle. You can get an EX report for free every 6 months from them. Just ignore everything else they want to sell you.

Sounds as if you are on the right track. Good luck!