ScoreWatch and decreasing balances

[expatCanuck]

Greetings -

I read on an old post on this forum that ScoreWatch does not alert one to balance decreases.

Is this accurate and, if so, does it mean that SW won't alert me to an increased FICO score

as a result of paying off my balances?

Context:

My EQ FICO roughly 2 weeks ago was 718 with maxed cards (but ~perfect payment history).

A recent refi has allowed me to pay off one $5K and one $6K balance, 

and pay down the remaining $10K-limit card to under $3K.

Insight welcome.

[Barry]

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expatCanuck wrote:

Greetings -

I read on an old post on this forum that ScoreWatch does not alert one to balance decreases.

Is this accurate and, if so, does it mean that SW won't alert me to an increased FICO score

as a result of paying off my balances?

Context:

My EQ FICO roughly 2 weeks ago was 718 with maxed cards (but ~perfect payment history).

A recent refi has allowed me to pay off one $5K and one $6K balance, 

and pay down the remaining $10K-limit card to under $3K.

Insight welcome.

---

Yes, it's true that SW won't alert you to balance decreases. For more info on what SW does and doesn't alert you to, you may want to take a look at the Score Watch Guide.

As for score increases resulting from reducing balances, you will be alerted if your new score reaches or crosses your target score.  To get the most possible score alerts, most folks here recommend setting your target to your current score.  We've added a free report/score to your SW subscription so you can get your most up-to-date score and immediately reset your target..  Good luck!