Feedback - Score Increase & Strategy

[credit8502020]

Hi All!

I'm working to improve my Experian FICO 8 score/profile and could use some feedback and helpful insight. 

Experian - 761 FICO 8

Experian - 796 FICO 2

5 Open Accounts

3 Primary Cards

1 AU Home Depot Card

1 Auto Loan

*2 New Accounts that have not posted yet
Avg Age of Accounts - 11.8 yrs

Experian Inquiries - 0

1 Account Late (Closed Discover Account - 10/18)

3 Closed Accounts

Utilization - AZEO ($10 on NFCU Card) 

It's clear the late is costing me, but I want to find out where I'm losing other points and work on gaining those points until I'm able to get this late removed.

Soon I'll be getting a new installment loan only replace my auto loan that will be paid off soon.  

Here are my questions:

1. I know AZEO works well for mortgage scores, but what's best for FICO 8 scores? 
2. If I recall correctly, to optimize your FICO scores it is best to have a certain number of accounts. If so, what is that number and should those all be open?  
3. While having more payment history, via primary accounts and/or AUs will help, are there any other advanced strategies to improve my score now that I'm missing?
4. Any ideal suggestions for the best installment loan to get when you only need it for scoring purposes. Should I just be looking to the SSL strategy or is there another better alternative? 

Thanks in advance for your help! 

[Anonymous]

Getting that one dirty account cleaned up will be the best thing you can do for your scores.

You've already got a thick file, so adding more accounts isn't a necessity nor is it really a score-building strategy for you.

You mentioned that you opened 2 new accounts that haven't yet reported.  What types of accounts are these?  Opening new accounts lowers you age of accounts and can result in score drops.  Your best bet would be to not open any new accounts for 12+ months if you're trying to optimize any of your Fico scores.

[credit8502020]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Getting that one dirty account cleaned up will be the best thing you can do for your scores.

You've already got a thick file, so adding more accounts isn't a necessity nor is it really a score-building strategy for you.

You mentioned that you opened 2 new accounts that haven't yet reported.  What types of accounts are these?  Opening new accounts lowers you age of accounts and can result in score drops.  Your best bet would be to not open any new accounts for 12+ months if you're trying to optimize any of your Fico scores.

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@Anonymous Thank you for your feedback. Yes. Getting the late payment removed will help. However, I'm looking to identify what is causing not having the additional 59 points, if we factor in that late payments may cost about 30 points. I actually hadn't considered my file as thick considering I only have 3 primary revolving accounts that are all no more than 4 yrs old. My AU revolving account has longer history and my installment accounts have longer history as well. 

The two new accounts are revolving accounts.

[Anonymous]

What is the severity of the late payment on your account?  I'm thinking 30D?

As for file thickness, once you get to 6+ accounts you're no longer thin.  You mentioned 5 open + 2 new ones reporting soon, so that's 7 right there... but remember that file thickness includes both open and closed accounts.  How many closed accounts do you have on your CR?  If it's a number > 0 you already have a thick file.  That's not to say you have a thickness-related optimized file, which may happen somewhere around 20 total accounts, but any additional scoring gains from your file being thicker than it already is would be extremely minor. 

What is the age of your youngest revolving account (AoYRA) currently before those 2 new revolvers land on your CR?  If it's > 12 months, you may see a score drop related to the AoYRA reset to 0 months once one of those new revolvers reports for the first time.

[SouthJamaica]

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@credit8502020 wrote:

Hi All!

I'm working to improve my Experian FICO 8 score/profile and could use some feedback and helpful insight. 

Experian - 761 FICO 8

Experian - 796 FICO 2

5 Open Accounts

3 Primary Cards

1 AU Home Depot Card

1 Auto Loan

*2 New Accounts that have not posted yet
Avg Age of Accounts - 11.8 yrs

Experian Inquiries - 0

1 Account Late (Closed Discover Account - 10/18)

3 Closed Accounts

Utilization - AZEO ($10 on NFCU Card) 

It's clear the late is costing me, but I want to find out where I'm losing other points and work on gaining those points until I'm able to get this late removed.

Soon I'll be getting a new installment loan only replace my auto loan that will be paid off soon.  

Here are my questions:

1. I know AZEO works well for mortgage scores, but what's best for FICO 8 scores? 
2. If I recall correctly, to optimize your FICO scores it is best to have a certain number of accounts. If so, what is that number and should those all be open?  
3. While having more payment history, via primary accounts and/or AUs will help, are there any other advanced strategies to improve my score now that I'm missing?
4. Any ideal suggestions for the best installment loan to get when you only need it for scoring purposes. Should I just be looking to the SSL strategy or is there another better alternative? 

Thanks in advance for your help! 

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1. AZEO works well for FICO 8, too, but if you have 2 accounts with a balance you're good.

2. No there's no certain number, but you have enough total accounts not to worry about that.

3. No.

4. Any loan which you don't pay down right away is going to cost you points. So the SSL would be the one; take it out then pay it down to 9%. But personally I would give serious consideration to not opening any new accounts, not even a SSL.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

What is the severity of the late payment on your account?  I'm thinking 30D?

As for file thickness, once you get to 6+ accounts you're no longer thin.  You mentioned 5 open + 2 new ones reporting soon, so that's 7 right there... but remember that file thickness includes both open and closed accounts.  How many closed accounts do you have on your CR?  If it's a number > 0 you already have a thick file.  That's not to say you have a thickness-related optimized file, which may happen somewhere around 20 total accounts, but any additional scoring gains from your file being thicker than it already is would be extremely minor. 

What is the age of your youngest revolving account (AoYRA) currently before those 2 new revolvers land on your CR?  If it's > 12 months, you may see a score drop related to the AoYRA reset to 0 months once one of those new revolvers reports for the first time.

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@Anonymous 20 accounts will cost you points on TU4. Less than that actually. Like TT, I don't think there is an advantage really to more than ~10.

[Anonymous]

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@credit8502020 wrote:

Hi All!

I'm working to improve my Experian FICO 8 score/profile and could use some feedback and helpful insight. 

Experian - 761 FICO 8

Experian - 796 FICO 2

5 Open Accounts

3 Primary Cards

1 AU Home Depot Card

1 Auto Loan

*2 New Accounts that have not posted yet
Avg Age of Accounts - 11.8 yrs

Experian Inquiries - 0

1 Account Late (Closed Discover Account - 10/18)

3 Closed Accounts

Utilization - AZEO ($10 on NFCU Card) 

It's clear the late is costing me, but I want to find out where I'm losing other points and work on gaining those points until I'm able to get this late removed.

Soon I'll be getting a new installment loan only replace my auto loan that will be paid off soon.  

Here are my questions:

1. I know AZEO works well for mortgage scores, but what's best for FICO 8 scores? 
2. If I recall correctly, to optimize your FICO scores it is best to have a certain number of accounts. If so, what is that number and should those all be open?  
3. While having more payment history, via primary accounts and/or AUs will help, are there any other advanced strategies to improve my score now that I'm missing?
4. Any ideal suggestions for the best installment loan to get when you only need it for scoring purposes. Should I just be looking to the SSL strategy or is there another better alternative? 

Thanks in advance for your help! 

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@credit8502020 

1. AZEO works fine for 8/9, but it must be modified if you have an AU account, by also leaving a small balance on the AU as well.

2. no one knows the exact number but I theorize around 7. 

3. that depends on what strategies you are executing and what your profile looks like. 

4. A small five-year loan that doesn't advance the maturity date works fine SSL or otherwise. 

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous 20 accounts will cost you points on TU4. Less than that actually. Like TT, I don't think there is an advantage really to more than ~10.

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What negative reason code is provided on TU4 and at what number of accounts has it been reported?

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous 20 accounts will cost you points on TU4. Less than that actually. Like TT, I don't think there is an advantage really to more than ~10.

---

What negative reason code is provided on TU4 and at what number of accounts has it been reported?

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@Anonymous The reason code is too many or too few accounts, go to Cassie's Score Factor thread under TU4 and you can look it up and view it verbatim. I would have to go back and count now for total accounts, but it appeared around 15 or 16 Revolvers, so that would be approaching around 20 accounts, somewhere around there at that time, I would have to go look. 

but we have had numerous people report it, including Rev just recently.

[Anonymous]

As a matter of fact, it’s our number one code, we’re losing more points for that than anything, both of us.