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Testing Credit Card Utilization Thresholds

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mowglidude
Frequent Contributor

Re: Testing Credit Card Utilization Thresholds

The only chenge in my EX FICO 8 today, was my AU Sams Club updated the $10K limit that wasn't posting before and my aggregate UT went from 32.09% - 29.48%. With that only change in my profile, my score increased 15 points, to 749 today. So I must have crossed a threshold with that 29.48% aggregate UT. More to come in the next week.

Starting Score: 589/599/598 5/8/14
FICO® Score 8: EX 788 TU 791 EQ 785 05/09/23
Goal: Was 740 across all bureaus. DONE!
Message 41 of 133
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Testing Credit Card Utilization Thresholds

@mowglidude Where are you getting your utilization percentages? Are you calculating them yourself? If so, where are you getting your data, they have to be truncated. And if you’re using the frontend from any CMS, that’s totally unreliable as they don’t do proper rounding like the algorithm does.

I suspect you’re using the utilization from the frontend and your real utilization dropped below 29%, if not, there’s another cause of the change.

 

that's one of the minutiae, trips up a lot of people, the algorithm rounds everything up, when it comes to money and amounts under a dollar are truncated when reported.  

Message 42 of 133
mowglidude
Frequent Contributor

Re: Testing Credit Card Utilization Thresholds


@Anonymous wrote:

@mowglidude Where are you getting your utilization percentages? Are you calculating them yourself? If so, where are you getting your data, they have to be truncated. And if you’re using the frontend from any CMS, that’s totally unreliable as they don’t do proper rounding like the algorithm does.

I suspect you’re using the utilization from the frontend and your real utilization dropped below 29%, if not, there’s another cause of the change.

 

that's one of the minutiae, trips up a lot of people, the algorithm rounds everything up, when it comes to money and amounts under a dollar are truncated when reported.  


I am using the numbers EX is using, to match their numbers. Then simple math from there. Using the utilization from the frontend meaning? No other changes than that today. Yesterday was 15 points lower. 

Starting Score: 589/599/598 5/8/14
FICO® Score 8: EX 788 TU 791 EQ 785 05/09/23
Goal: Was 740 across all bureaus. DONE!
Message 43 of 133
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Testing Credit Card Utilization Thresholds


@mowglidude wrote:

@Anonymous wrote:

@mowglidude Where are you getting your utilization percentages? Are you calculating them yourself? If so, where are you getting your data, they have to be truncated. And if you’re using the frontend from any CMS, that’s totally unreliable as they don’t do proper rounding like the algorithm does.

I suspect you’re using the utilization from the frontend and your real utilization dropped below 29%, if not, there’s another cause of the change.

 

that's one of the minutiae, trips up a lot of people, the algorithm rounds everything up, when it comes to money and amounts under a dollar are truncated when reported.  


I am using the numbers EX is using, to match their numbers. Then simple math from there. Using the utilization from the frontend meaning? No other changes than that today. Yesterday was 15 points lower. 


@mowglidude that's what it is, your percentages are off. the display we call the frontend that you're seeing on Experian does not show you the calculations from the algorithm.

 

it's a separate program that calculates it itself and it rounds differently and therefore you're getting incorrect results. You need to use an Excel spreadsheet and type in the amounts reported yourself and let it average the column and you will see your true utilization. 

Message 44 of 133
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Testing Credit Card Utilization Thresholds

By the way don’t use the amount reported from your statement, use what was reported to the bureau, which is truncated, then average it with Excel.
Message 45 of 133
mowglidude
Frequent Contributor

Re: Testing Credit Card Utilization Thresholds


@Anonymous wrote:

@mowglidude wrote:

@Anonymous wrote:

@mowglidude Where are you getting your utilization percentages? Are you calculating them yourself? If so, where are you getting your data, they have to be truncated. And if you’re using the frontend from any CMS, that’s totally unreliable as they don’t do proper rounding like the algorithm does.

I suspect you’re using the utilization from the frontend and your real utilization dropped below 29%, if not, there’s another cause of the change.

 

that's one of the minutiae, trips up a lot of people, the algorithm rounds everything up, when it comes to money and amounts under a dollar are truncated when reported.  


I am using the numbers EX is using, to match their numbers. Then simple math from there. Using the utilization from the frontend meaning? No other changes than that today. Yesterday was 15 points lower. 


@mowglidude that's what it is, your percentages are off. the display we call the frontend that you're seeing on Experian does not show you the calculations from the algorithm.

 

it's a separate program that calculates it itself and it rounds differently and therefore you're getting incorrect results. You need to use an Excel spreadsheet and type in the amounts reported yourself and let it average the column and you will see your true utilization. 


The amounts reported to the credit bureaus are rounded up, not to the penny. Does that matter? So I just type in what my balnces are reporting and divide that by my total credit limits? Wouldn't it be the same?

Starting Score: 589/599/598 5/8/14
FICO® Score 8: EX 788 TU 791 EQ 785 05/09/23
Goal: Was 740 across all bureaus. DONE!
Message 46 of 133
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Testing Credit Card Utilization Thresholds

@mowglidude That’s what I’m saying whatever the bank reports to the bureau is truncated for the metro2 format, so they’re zeroed out, whole dollars. Then you have to do the sum of reported balances over the sum of credit limits of all of them and round up result. @Anonymous can explain it more eloquently. 😉

Message 47 of 133
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Testing Credit Card Utilization Thresholds

If you go to Experian or whatever you’re going to see they are rounded to the even dollar as far as the bureau knows, so that’s the information the algorithm gets, but then you have to sum reported balances over TCL, then and round up and that’s the percentage the algorithm uses.

Message 48 of 133
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Testing Credit Card Utilization Thresholds

And I bet when you do, you’ll see you crossed that threshold because the threshold is at 29% and if you hit 29.01%, the algorithm sees 30%
Message 49 of 133
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Testing Credit Card Utilization Thresholds

As a matter fact there’s a great thread that Cassie did that explains you can actually do the exact percentage and even add a penny, I think because it’s truncated; hopefully she’ll link that thread so you can read it, it’s pretty cool!
Message 50 of 133
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