Hard pulls vs time

[SouthJamaica]

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@KJinNC wrote:

Thanks - it's frustrating that a flurry of hard pulls at the start of my rebuild (about half of which were unnecessary) doom me in a sense to a form of "bad credit" for two years - which will make the overall build process slower, because my scores three or four years from now may still be influenced by what I couldn't qualify for in the next two years. Oh well, live and learn.

In my case, part of it was necessary or at least justifiable (going from zero open accounts to six open accounts), but a lot of it was just silly (applying for unrealistic stuff or applying for a car loan just to see what percentage they'd come up with, with no intention of buying a car soon).

I am not sure how someone with no credit is supposed to get (say) three credit cards, an installment loan and then six months later add a better credit card or an auto loan, without getting into this type of predicament, maybe not quite as extreme. Wish they could just figure out if you were desperate for cards to stay afloat financially, and if not, then don't treat it as such a major factor. "I'm going to pay deposits on some secured cards so I can use the cards and roll them into a bankruptcy I'm about to file," said nobody ever.

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Basically, after I spent some time on this forum and learned how things worked, I figured it this way:

1. First you go through a credit building phase: in this phase you do everything you can to keep your scores good, focusing on utilization, super prompt payment, avoiding sprees and the like, etc, but recognize that your scores will never be great while you're in this phase, due to new accounts and inquiries.

2. Second, after you've got some decent credit accounts, chill out on the new applications, and watch your scores rise.

My problem is I've never fully adapted to phase 2, because it's much less fun than phase 1.  Phase 2 is like watching paint dry.

[sarge12]

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@SouthJamaica wrote:

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@KJinNC wrote:

Thanks - it's frustrating that a flurry of hard pulls at the start of my rebuild (about half of which were unnecessary) doom me in a sense to a form of "bad credit" for two years - which will make the overall build process slower, because my scores three or four years from now may still be influenced by what I couldn't qualify for in the next two years. Oh well, live and learn.

In my case, part of it was necessary or at least justifiable (going from zero open accounts to six open accounts), but a lot of it was just silly (applying for unrealistic stuff or applying for a car loan just to see what percentage they'd come up with, with no intention of buying a car soon).

I am not sure how someone with no credit is supposed to get (say) three credit cards, an installment loan and then six months later add a better credit card or an auto loan, without getting into this type of predicament, maybe not quite as extreme. Wish they could just figure out if you were desperate for cards to stay afloat financially, and if not, then don't treat it as such a major factor. "I'm going to pay deposits on some secured cards so I can use the cards and roll them into a bankruptcy I'm about to file," said nobody ever.

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Basically, after I spent some time on this forum and learned how things worked, I figured it this way:

1. First you go through a credit building phase: in this phase you do everything you can to keep your scores good, focusing on utilization, super prompt payment, avoiding sprees and the like, etc, but recognize that your scores will never be great while you're in this phase, due to new accounts and inquiries.

2. Second, after you've got some decent credit accounts, chill out on the new applications, and watch your scores rise.

My problem is I've never fully adapted to phase 2, because it's much less fun than phase 1.  Phase 2 is like watching paint dry.

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I guess boredom is as good a reason to acquire more cards as any. I have actually seen some who want certain cards based on how the card looks...I am serious, they want the card because it has something they find appealing in the looks of the card. I have seen some also want a card just because it is made of metal. My Chase Amazon Prime card is metal...what that means to me is I can not shread the thing when it expires. I can't tell you how many people get the Marvel card because of the Marvel character on the card. This is all now normal behavior. I also vape, and one of my vape devices(mods) not only has spinning mirrored led's, if you say I love you to it, it will say me too back to you. It kind of scares me to think somebody bought it because it responds to I love you. I can mentally see some numnut with led's flashing on their face saying I love you to an electronic device in public...that is scary to me.

[KJinNC]

I will admit that I would rather have a card that looks better, though that's not the #1 factor for me. Right now, I think my ideal set of cards would be something like Amex gold, CSP, Citi Double Cash, and Discover. I'm nowhere near getting most of those (my secured Discover will hopefully graduate around the end of the year, and I do have a secured Citi card, but I think it would take a while to work my way from that to the DC), but anyway, that would be what I'd have in my wallet if I had a magic wand. Subject to changing my mind as I learn more or as different products come out. My true ultimate goal is a prime mortgage. Secondary goal is a prime auto loan or lease. Thanks for all information thus far!

[calyx]

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@SouthJamaica wrote:

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Basically, after I spent some time on this forum and learned how things worked, I figured it this way:

1. First you go through a credit building phase: in this phase you do everything you can to keep your scores good, focusing on utilization, super prompt payment, avoiding sprees and the like, etc, but recognize that your scores will never be great while you're in this phase, due to new accounts and inquiries.

2. Second, after you've got some decent credit accounts, chill out on the new applications, and watch your scores rise.

My problem is I've never fully adapted to phase 2, because it's much less fun than phase 1.  Phase 2 is like watching paint dry.

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I'm gardening for a minimum of 6th months now, and that Phase 2 statement is so true.
I'm kind of amazed at the number of spreadsheets I've made with my information to try to eat that time.

[sarge12]

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@KJinNC wrote:

I will admit that I would rather have a card that looks better, though that's not the #1 factor for me. Right now, I think my ideal set of cards would be something like Amex gold, CSP, Citi Double Cash, and Discover. I'm nowhere near getting most of those (my secured Discover will hopefully graduate around the end of the year, and I do have a secured Citi card, but I think it would take a while to work my way from that to the DC), but anyway, that would be what I'd have in my wallet if I had a magic wand. Subject to changing my mind as I learn more or as different products come out. My true ultimate goal is a prime mortgage. Secondary goal is a prime auto loan or lease. Thanks for all information thus far!

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If your primary goal is to get a prime mortgage, be a bit careful with credit limits that may affect DTI in a negative way, and Fico 08 is not the score used for mortgages. I do think that should be the #1 reason for building credit. Credit scores are a fairly minor consideration for getting a mortgage approved, but is the main factor in setting the interest rate. For approval they will pull a 3B report and examine it line by line. It is not like any other loan approval process in my experience. Once approved, they will take the middle score to set the interest rate. Even perfect scores will not guarantee approval, if other factors raise questions. Job Stability, DTI, arrest record and many other factors come into play. Unless it has changed, mortgage lenders ignore the scores until the loan is approved. They focus more on the reports and everything in the reports.

[KJinNC]

Well, job stability right now would probably appear minimal on paper, though in reality, it's a little better. I have been doing the same job, sitting at the same desk, for the same Fortune 50 since late 2016. However, in April, I was converted from contractor to regular employee. So on paper, I've had my job for a month. Right now, I have almost no debt (I do owe $500 on my Self Lender loan, and whatever little balances are on my secured cards at any given moment, I pay them off as soon as the apps allow). I don't plan to carry balances on cards at any point. The only debt I've considered that could happen prior to a mortgage would be an auto loan. I am not sure if that would help or hurt with the mortgage. Seems it might help my payment history and credit mix, but hurt my DTI. I'm certainly not planning to apply for a mortgage very soon, as the dust hasn't even settled from my burst of new accounts. In reality, I have six new accounts, but only three have appeared so far on my credit reports. I can't even see FICO scores on TU or EX. Just not the right time for me to apply for anything serious.

[DapprD]

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I also vape, and one of my vape devices(mods) not only has spinning mirrored led's, if you say I love you to it, it will say me too back to you. It kind of scares me to think somebody bought it because it responds to I love you. I can mentally see some numnut with led's flashing on their face saying I love you to an electronic device in public...that is scary to me.

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ROFLMAO !!!

[sarge12]

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@DapprD wrote:

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I also vape, and one of my vape devices(mods) not only has spinning mirrored led's, if you say I love you to it, it will say me too back to you. It kind of scares me to think somebody bought it because it responds to I love you. I can mentally see some numnut with led's flashing on their face saying I love you to an electronic device in public...that is scary to me.

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ROFLMAO !!!

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That was not a joke, if you say let's rock to it, it responds with rock and vape, if you tell the mod to take a break, it will say thank you my friend, oh and when it responds to I love you with me too...it puts a heart in the display. It is called the Joyetech Espion Infinite AI, the AI stands for artificial intelligence, which is ironic to call it intelligence for responding to 9 stupid things you say to get 9 stupider responses. I bought it because it uses dual 21700 batteries, and didn't even know about the AI part. The Chinese factory workers are probably laughing their a$$ off. I of course only use this device at home. As a 60 year old man, carrying that stupid thing in public is about as likely as me wearing a tutu and dancing to swan lake. Just go on Joyetech website and read the stupid things it says to the stupid people who talk to inanimate objects. Now take a break and thank you my friend.

[sarge12]

[Remedios]

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@sarge12 wrote:

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@sarge12  I think you just won the internet