Hello all, I hope this is an appropriate topic for this forum since I think the majority of my work needing done will be based around credit cards. I also apologize for the long read. I'm looking for some input on how I can get to 800+. I'm currently sitting about 715-720 according to creditwise and credit karma with a %62 util on $41,600 available credit. This was from last month but I've been working on getting that down and should be well under %50 after everything updates this month.
I have zero inquiries, zero bad marks, perfect payment history and average account age just under 8 years. Here's how my CC balances should look after everything updates this month. I was really shooting to get the big cards down to %50.
Cap One Quicksilver - $6500/$13k
Cap One Platinum - $6500/$13k
Best Buy (citi) - $3350/$6k
Home Depot - $2800/$9100 (CL was actually just bumped $1500 and hasn't updated yet)
Kohls - $0/$2k
I have a few questions, should I apply for another card or two and try to increase my over all credit limit and help with utilization? I realize I need to stay strong with paying down current balances even if I do this. I'm guessing getting my util down to %30 or less would make a big impact.
I am thinking about switching phone carriers for our family to Verizon and I know they do a hard pull, and I'm going to purchase a new car in the next few months which would be a hard inquiry. How would that fit into my game plan?
Thanks!
Firstly, have you checked your true FICO 8s? Either here on MyFICO, or on Credit Check Total? Because neither CK nor CreditWise provide FICO 8s. They both provide Vantage scores, which are nearly usless, as most lenders use FICO 8s, or some variation of FICO. Moreover, your Vantage scores can vary wildly from your FICO 8s, by as much as 100 points either higher or lower.
Secondly, I'd focus more on paying down your balances if I were you. You'd be hard pressed to get an approval with 62% overall utilization and 5/6 cards showing balances. Even if you did get approved, the limit would probably be very small.
Inquiries are a minor thing, as you probably wouldn't lose many points from them, if any. Plus, they're only calculated into your score for 1 year. And while they will remain for another year beyond that, the FICO algorithm will ignore them.
Finally, getting to 800 scores just takes time, more than anything. Credit age helps a lot with that. People with 800 scores typically have LONG histories, as in 20+ years.
I have not checked the Fico 8 but sounds like that might be a good idea. I'll do that tomorrow.
My oldest account is 16 years and youngest is 2 years.
Check out my siggy as it will give you an idea on how to reach your goal score. Best of Luck!
@ChessChik47 wrote:
@JFox418 wrote:Hello all, I hope this is an appropriate topic for this forum since I think the majority of my work needing done will be based around credit cards. I also apologize for the long read. I'm looking for some input on how I can get to 800+. I'm currently sitting about 715-720 according to creditwise and credit karma with a %62 util on $41,600 available credit. This was from last month but I've been working on getting that down and should be well under %50 after everything updates this month.
I have zero inquiries, zero bad marks, perfect payment history and average account age just under 8 years. Here's how my CC balances should look after everything updates this month. I was really shooting to get the big cards down to %50.
Cap One Quicksilver - $6500/$13k
Cap One Platinum - $6500/$13k
Best Buy (citi) - $3350/$6k
Home Depot - $2800/$9100 (CL was actually just bumped $1500 and hasn't updated yet)
Kohls - $0/$2k
I have a few questions, should I apply for another card or two and try to increase my over all credit limit and help with utilization? I realize I need to stay strong with paying down current balances even if I do this. I'm guessing getting my util down to %30 or less would make a big impact.
I am thinking about switching phone carriers for our family to Verizon and I know they do a hard pull, and I'm going to purchase a new car in the next few months which would be a hard inquiry. How would that fit into my game plan?
Thanks!
I have to agree with the previous poster; paying down your debt will be better for your overall financial picture more than acquiring a new card with a questionable limit. Time is the main thing it takes to get to 800. You don't necessarily need a "thick" file either; just time and good payment history. I was in the mid 700s when I began paying attention again to my credit in 2016 and had student loans on my profile as my oldest account; then I added a mortgage, a few credit cards over 2 years (total of 5 revolvers and 1 AMEX charge card) and have even refinanced my mortgage and have been in the 800s consistently since 2018. I have grown my lines of revolving credit to over $215K on those same 5 cards instead of adding new cards to my portfolio, but that's what's worked for me. Good luck in whatever you decide to do!!
My main concern was I don't see my CL increasing much more than what my capital one cards currently have? That seems like a pretty high CL for them already most seem to be at $10k. My thought was go for a CC that has more CL potential.
I'll hold off though if having balances would keep my CL low on new cards.
@JR_TX wrote:Check out my siggy as it will give you an idea on how to reach your goal score. Best of Luck!
Interesting numbers!
@OmarGB9 wrote:Firstly, have you checked your true FICO 8s? Either here on MyFICO, or on Credit Check Total? Because neither CK nor CreditWise provide FICO 8s. They both provide Vantage scores, which are nearly usless, as most lenders use FICO 8s, or some variation of FICO. Moreover, your Vantage scores can vary wildly from your FICO 8s, by as much as 100 points either higher or lower.
Secondly, I'd focus more on paying down your balances if I were you. You'd be hard pressed to get an approval with 62% overall utilization and 5/6 cards showing balances. Even if you did get approved, the limit would probably be very small.
Inquiries are a minor thing, as you probably wouldn't lose many points from them, if any. Plus, they're only calculated into your score for 1 year. And while they will remain for another year beyond that, the FICO algorithm will ignore them.
Finally, getting to 800 scores just takes time, more than anything. Credit age helps a lot with that. People with 800 scores typically have LONG histories, as in 20+ years.
Ok I signed up for the 7 day free trial for Credit Check Total for a base point. Should I go ahead and run my credit report so I can see the equifax and transunion too? It says I get 1 free with the trial and won't be able to do it again for 30 days. Here's where I'm at.
Fico Score 8 - 767 (only negative is high credit usage)
Mortage Lending - 751 (high credit usage, high account balances, short revolving history)
Auto Lending - 717 (high credit usage, high account balances, short revolving history, high revolving balances)
CC Lending - 747 (high credit usage, high account balances, short revolving history, high revolving balances)
My auto loan score was lower than I anticipated which I plan to use soon. Haven't had a car payment in a few years.
How often can you expect to get a CLI? Both the cards were bumped from $10k to $13k a few months ago without asking them.