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Has this ever happened to someone...fico drop from dormant account being used?

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Anonymous
Not applicable

Has this ever happened to someone...fico drop from dormant account being used?

Hey,

 

This I found very weird. I got an alert through score watch that my fico score had dropped from 804 to 760. The change it alerted me to was that my Macy's Account reported a $113 balance. My CL on the card is $2500. So this was about 4.5% of my CL. The account had not been used since last October. Could this really decrease my score that much? My other card is a BOA visa, which has a $900 balance (thats usually where it is every month) on a $6,000 CL.  I usually have a balance around this, 500-1200 and my score will stay between 790-806. Below is pasted what Scorewatch has told me....and now that I am looking at it...it seems Macys might appear twice on my report? Is that possible as well? Also do you think when I pay this balance off I will get back up to the 800 range?

 

"2 of your accounts reported balance increases

MACY'S/DSNB  (XXXXXXXXX)
New balance: $113


Account opened: 8/2008
Description: Charge


 Previously reportedNewly reported
Account balance:$0$113

You received this alert because this balance which was previously $0 increased to $113. This exceeded your alert limit of $5. You can change the settings for this kind of alert here.

Contact: MACY'S/DSNB, PO Box 8218, Mason, OH, 450408218   •   (800) 243-6552
MACY'S/DSNB  (XXXXXXXX)
New balance: $113

1 of your previously dormant accounts reported recent activity
This score decrease may be caused by this new reason:

  • You have too many credit accounts with balances.
MACY'S/DSNB  (XXXXXXXX)
Recent activity detected: 7/1/2010
My credit file is thin, but there are no derogs. Just my BoA and Macys card, a paid off car loan, and 2 closed credit cards.
Message 1 of 27
26 REPLIES 26
haulingthescoreup
Moderator Emerita

Re: Has this ever happened to someone...fico drop from dormant account being used?

Yes, this is pretty common. I get it on store cards pretty often, since I tend to not use them for long stretches.

 

I *think* that you get this if you haven't used it for 6 reporting periods.

 

But 44 points --that's pretty brutal! Smiley Surprised I think it's because you have balances showing on both of your two cards, in addition to the dormant thing. Since you ony have two cards, you're vulnerable to the "too many accounts with balances" ding.

 

Getting double alerts that makes it look like an account is listed twice is pretty common. It's generally because you have hit two different triggers. For instance, increase in balance + activity on dormant account.

* Credit is a wonderful servant, but a terrible master. * Who's the boss --you or your credit?
FICO's: EQ 781 - TU 793 - EX 779 (from PSECU) - Done credit hunting; having fun with credit gardening. - EQ 590 on 5/14/2007
Message 2 of 27
laz98
Senior Contributor

Re: Has this ever happened to someone...fico drop from dormant account being used?

didn't someone say that once you get scores that high, the penalties get higher as well?

Message 3 of 27
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Has this ever happened to someone...fico drop from dormant account being used?

Do you think if both these accounts show a zero balance next time around that my score will jump back up to 800ish?

Message 4 of 27
haulingthescoreup
Moderator Emerita

Re: Has this ever happened to someone...fico drop from dormant account being used?

If those two factors --dormant card with activity + all revolving TL's with balances --were the only changes, then yes. But be sure that EQ didn't dump a closed account early and other weird factors.

 

FWIW, TU usually rewards all accounts with $0 at your score level, but EQ dings slightly. It might be different in your case, as you only have two open revolving accounts. If you're really curious, you might check your scores after the first account updates to $0, and then again when the second posts $0. (Don't forget that it often takes EQ and TU easily a week to update their records. Smiley Tongue)

 

But anyway, yes, if these two factors were the only things that changed, then your scores should return to where they were. The score formula doesn't have a memory. It just crunches what's on your reports. If your reports after payoff are identical to your earlier reports, then your scores should be identical.

 

One possible caveat, but probably not: if either your average age of accounts (AAoA) or your oldest account got a year older, you might now be considered against those with older credit. But I doubt that's what happened here. You fit the profile of long-term credit consumers, so I wouldn't think that you were getting penalized.

 

I lost track --did you pull a new report when you dropped to the 760's, or did you just get an alert? If you got a report, check screen two and examine the list of negatives. I guess you didn't get any negatives listed when you were at 800 (for some reason, myFICO displays fewer and fewer negatives as scores climb), but the negatives on screen two are the factors keeping your scores lower, listed in order of importance.

 

 

edit: younger, older, sheesh...

* Credit is a wonderful servant, but a terrible master. * Who's the boss --you or your credit?
FICO's: EQ 781 - TU 793 - EX 779 (from PSECU) - Done credit hunting; having fun with credit gardening. - EQ 590 on 5/14/2007
Message 5 of 27
vanillabean
Valued Contributor

Re: Has this ever happened to someone...fico drop from dormant account being used?

It's my experience with EQ that the difference between one and two cards with a zero balance is minimal, if you have tree cards. The difference is much more substantal if you zero the first card or unzero the last of them.

 

You have two cards and such can't tell the difference between the two scenarios above, but the three card situation may help shed some light on why you lost so many points.

 

EQ, more so than TU, contributes with a fluctuation of points in the second scenario. Opposite for the first scenario.

 

In the situation of zeroing all cards, TU, more so than EQ, in my experience penalizes you.

 

And in the situation of getting a new inquiry, EQ, more so than TU, decreases your score.

 

YMMV. I guess it all evens out somehow. Aren't you glad you asked? Smiley Very Happy

 

Message 6 of 27
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Has this ever happened to someone...fico drop from dormant account being used?

also isn't having a $113 balance on a Macy's store card a 113% utilization since they don't report a CL?

Message 7 of 27
vanillabean
Valued Contributor

Re: Has this ever happened to someone...fico drop from dormant account being used?

 


@Anonymous wrote:

also isn't having a $113 balance on a Macy's store card a 113% utilization since they don't report a CL?


It would be 113% if the reported credit limit is $100.

 

I wouldn't attempt to divide anything by zero. Smiley Wink

 

But from a scoring point of view, a card isn't used for util when neither its credit limit nor its high balance is reported.

 

Message 8 of 27
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Has this ever happened to someone...fico drop from dormant account being used?

 


@Anonymous-own-fico wrote:

 


@Anonymous wrote:

also isn't having a $113 balance on a Macy's store card a 113% utilization since they don't report a CL?


It would be 113% if the reported credit limit is $100.

 

I wouldn't attempt to divide anything by zero. Smiley Wink

 

But from a scoring point of view, a card isn't used for util when neither its credit limit nor its high balance is reported.

 


 

then how come when my macy's reported a balance it was included in my total revolving balance on the "Credit at-a-glance" tab?

 

not saying you are wrong just trying to understand it more...

 

Message 9 of 27
AndySoCal
Valued Contributor

Re: Has this ever happened to someone...fico drop from dormant account being used?

It is being reported in you balances because it is being reported  as a revolving account. Is the high balance or credit limit being reported for the Macy account?  What is credit utilization on for all credit card accounts ? IE  total revolving balances / total credit limits  Are you getting FICO score reason about the number accounts with balances or any similair message?  I ask these questions for a reason. It may not be the macy account per say it may be a combination of factors.

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Message 10 of 27
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