Ultilization and points

[Anonymous]

I like to keep my cap1 under 8.9% ultilization. I went from 1% to 3% and lost 14 pts even though I'm under 8.9% ultilization. So if I continue yoyoing from 1% to 8.9% I'm assuming my score will continue to yoyo?

Another question: if I keep my card(s) at 5%(just a general ultilization percentage), and the following statement I do the same will that ding my score and gain nothing?

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymouswrote:
I like to keep my cap1 under 8.9% ultilization. I went from 1% to 3% and lost 14 pts even though I'm under 8.9% ultilization. So if I continue yoyoing from 1% to 8.9% I'm assuming my score will continue to yoyo?

What happened is that your reported CC balances changed.  That caused whatever credit monitoring system you are using to pull your scores again.  What is certain is that, between today and the previous time your score was generated, something else changed on your report (not the CC balances) that caused your score to go down.  It's just that this other change in your report was not considered by your CMS to be an "alertable event" and therefore you did not find out about it.  Your CMS is giving you the impression that your score went down BECAUSE your CC balances changed, but this is not so.  As long as the individual utilization on your cards remained fairly low (< 29%) and your total util was very low (as yours was), utilization changes won't cause a score change.

Another question: if I keep my card(s) at 5%(just a general ultilization percentage), and the following statement I do the same will that ding my score and gain nothing?

If your score is dinged it means that you lose points ("gain nothing" implies that your score remained the same).

But as I mention above, you have a big ballpark to play in without your utilization causing any changes to your score.

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[Anonymous]

Now that I'm looking at my 3b quarterly report and alerts it was due to an inquiry and the ultilization alert popped up with it.

Reading your last sentence from your first response, if I keep my ultilization under 29% my score doesn't change? I was under the impression that it does. Due to a 14pt bump from bringing my ultilization from 10% to 1% with nothing else on my file besides this one cc. So pretty much I just have to play the waiting game and make sure I pay everything on time and I should see a bump in score.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymouswrote:
Now that I'm looking at my 3b quarterly report and alerts it was due to an inquiry and the ultilization alert popped up with it.

Reading your last sentence from your first response, if I keep my ultilization under 29% my score doesn't change? I was under the impression that it does. Due to a 14pt bump from bringing my ultilization from 10% to 1% with nothing else on my file besides this one cc. So pretty much I just have to play the waiting game and make sure I pay everything on time and I should see a bump in score.

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@Anonymous is what I wrote:

As long as the individual utilization on your cards remained fairly low (< 29%) and your total util was very low (as yours was), utilization changes won't cause a score change.  (Emphasis added.)

Individual utilization is the utilization on each card with that card's balance and credit limit considered by itself.

Total utilization is the utilization of all cards and their limits combined.

Total U is ideal when it is anywhere between 0.01% and 8.99%.

[SouthJamaica]

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@Anonymouswrote:
I like to keep my cap1 under 8.9% ultilization. I went from 1% to 3% and lost 14 pts even though I'm under 8.9% ultilization. So if I continue yoyoing from 1% to 8.9% I'm assuming my score will continue to yoyo?

Another question: if I keep my card(s) at 5%(just a general ultilization percentage), and the following statement I do the same will that ding my score and gain nothing?

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There are those on this forum who will tell you that your score won't change as long as you're under 8.9%. But my experience, like yours, has been that differences in overall utilization between 1% and 8.9% do have substantial effects on my FICO 8 score.

[NRB525]

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@Anonymouswrote:
I like to keep my cap1 under 8.9% ultilization. I went from 1% to 3% and lost 14 pts even though I'm under 8.9% ultilization. So if I continue yoyoing from 1% to 8.9% I'm assuming my score will continue to yoyo?

Another question: if I keep my card(s) at 5%(just a general ultilization percentage), and the following statement I do the same will that ding my score and gain nothing?

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Which bureau did the 14 point change happen on? 

You have a very large difference between bureau scores, why is that? 

How old is your oldest account? 

You have three CC. When were each of these obtained? What are the CL of each?

Do you have any late payments at any time?

[Anonymous]

Hey SJ.  Can you describe further the changes you saw in total utilization and the connected score changes?

Assuming that the score changes really owed to CC balances and not to anything else, it would make me wonder whether some FICO models look at the raw dollar value of debt and not only the utilization percent.  If so, your profile would exhibit changes going to from 0.1% to 8.3% (say) since the dollar value of your debt would be going from $500 to 43k -- whereas a guy with a 10k total limit would always have a fairly small dollar value (< $899).

Again, I am assuming you'd ruled out individual util as a factor, and wonky things like a credit card with a 50k limit or a charge card or an AU card (and other entirely unrelated factors like accounts falling off and affecting age, number of cards reporting a balance, etc.).

[Anonymous]

Which bureau did the 14 point change happen on?

Experian

You have a very large difference between bureau scores, why is that?

My EQ and TU has not yet updated since Dec and I believe it could be no credit activity since my two car loans years ago. Next month is my sixth month on my Cap1, hopefully I see an update on EQ/TU but EX has been reporting ever since. First car loan just fell off, second car loan is still on my EX report until 2012.

How old is your oldest account?

11 yrs 2 months

You have three CC. When were each of these obtained?

Cap1 in Oct. '17
AMEX Feb. '18
Chase Feb. '18

What are the CL of each?

Cap1 - $400
AMEX - $500
Chase - $500

Do you have any late payments at any time?

No late payment. Clean profile other than my inquires.

[Thomas_Thumb]

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@Anonymouswrote:
I like to keep my cap1 under 8.9% ultilization. I went from 1% to 3% and lost 14 pts even though I'm under 8.9% ultilization. So if I continue yoyoing from 1% to 8.9% I'm assuming my score will continue to yoyo?

Another question: if I keep my card(s) at 5%(just a general ultilization percentage), and the following statement I do the same will that ding my score and gain nothing?

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Are you reporting balances on the same # of cards for each Fico score update? A change in # cards reporting can affect score - especially if balances are reporting on new/recently opened accounts. 

[Anonymous]

Yes, this is only for 1 card which is my Cap1. Chase just reported, AMEX should report on the second statement.