My credit score is 821. How do I make it go higher? NECRO

[IronWing]

So Alex P. Keaton really did go in to finance!

 

[Imp]

So, how badly am I effing myself by overpaying my credit card by a few hundred?

I use my real credit card like a pre-loaded or whatever it's called - last year of balances have all been negative.

Also, I lowered my credit limits...

 

[Svnla]

So, how badly am I effing myself by overpaying my credit card by a few hundred?

I use my real credit card like a pre-loaded or whatever it's called - last year of balances have all been negative.

Also, I lowered my credit limits...

If you overpaid the due balance BEFORE or ON the due date = all good. But I do not understand why you did that. You would not get any extra/benefit from that.

Not good to lower your CC limits because it could increase your utilization ratio.

 

[OutHouse]

My goal is to hit 850.

I got to 821 by having a car loan and paying off and paying credit cards in full every month.

yet another one who lives by debt and credit...

want a higher score? buy more crap on credit.

 

[OutHouse]

Originally Posted by Tommy2000GT View Post
27 yrs old, not lying

I don't understand how the average american can be in the 500-600 range

by not being a slave to debt thats how.

having a high CREDIT score should not be a badge of honor like so many on here believe. having a high CREDIT score means you love debt, a high score should be a badge of shame not an accolade.. jesus christ its not rocket science.

 

[MrScott81]

by not being a slave to debt thats how.

having a high CREDIT score should not be a badge of honor like so many on here believe. having a high CREDIT score means you love debt, a high score should be a badge of shame not an accolade.. jesus christ its not rocket science.

I think you're over generalizing things here. Having a high credit does not mean you LOVE debt, it means you are responsible with money you are borrowing. There are plenty of reasons to not pay cash for everything you buy, especially a house.

 

[1sikbITCH]

But you do NOT have TO carry a balance.

For example, let say I have 5K CC limit and at the closing date, I have a 1K CC balance. Due date is coming and I sign a check/pay online the whole amount of $1K that I owed BEFORE or ON the due date.....==>> all good. I do not have to pay $900 and have a carried over balance of $100.

On the other hand I owe ZERO to anyone except my mortgage company which I have paid on time every time for 7 years. I write checks for bills and for POS transactions I pay cash or use my debit card. Because of this, I am penalized. For those 7 years I have paid cash, debit, Paypal, or written a check for absolutely everything. I don't borrow at all.

Now I pull my credit in preparation to refinance, and find that I've been sitting at 450 the whole time because I haven't been using a credit card. So yeah not carrying a balance has screwed me for now, and I'm trying to figure out the safest best company to get a CC that I will barely use from. Opinions?

 

[IndyColtsFan]

by not being a slave to debt thats how.

having a high CREDIT score should not be a badge of honor like so many on here believe. having a high CREDIT score means you love debt, a high score should be a badge of shame not an accolade.. jesus christ its not rocket science.

It must be rocket science, because you obviously aren't understanding it. My only debt is my mortgage and I have a very high credit score.

I think you're over generalizing things here. Having a high credit does not mean you LOVE debt, it means you are responsible with money you are borrowing. There are plenty of reasons to not pay cash for everything you buy, especially a house.

This.

 

[Imp]

If you overpaid the due balance BEFORE or ON the due date = all good. But I do not understand why you did that. You would not get any extra/benefit from that.

Not good to lower your CC limits because it could increase your utilization ratio.

Why? Cheapness. I guilt trip myself for blowing money on virtually anything, but especially fun stuff. If I "already spent it" (i.e. paid it to the credit card issuer), then the money's gone, so some guilt removed.

Limit lowering probably due to control-freak. Partly in case it gets stolen - yes, even though I wouldn't be liable for paying the stolen stuff.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

On the other hand I owe ZERO to anyone except my mortgage company which I have paid on time every time for 7 years. I write checks for bills and for POS transactions I pay cash or use my debit card. Because of this, I am penalized. My credit score has been a steady 450 for several years and will stay there until I start accumulating and paying off fluid debt (credit card, short term loans, etc). So carrying some sort of balance that I can pay off every month will indeed help increase my score.

If you're paying it off every month, you're not carrying a balance.

 

[badb0y]

I am 22 and my credit score is 730 is it really that hard to hit 800?

 

[MrScott81]

On the other hand I owe ZERO to anyone except my mortgage company which I have paid on time every time for 7 years. I write checks for bills and for POS transactions I pay cash or use my debit card. Because of this, I am penalized. For those 7 years I have paid cash, debit, Paypal, or written a check for absolutely everything. I don't borrow at all.

Now I pull my credit in preparation to refinance, and find that I've been sitting at 450 the whole time because I haven't been using a credit card. So yeah not carrying a balance has screwed me for now, and I'm trying to figure out the safest best company to get a CC that I will barely use from. Opinions?

Hold the phone. You're trying to tell me that you have a mortgage that you've paid on time for 7 years and NO other credit cards/debts/foreclosures/bankruptcies and your credit score is 450. I call complete BS on that, sorry.

 

[Svnla]

On the other hand I owe ZERO to anyone except my mortgage company which I have paid on time every time for 7 years. I write checks for bills and for POS transactions I pay cash or use my debit card. Because of this, I am penalized. For those 7 years I have paid cash, debit, Paypal, or written a check for absolutely everything. I don't borrow at all.

Now I pull my credit in preparation to refinance, and find that I've been sitting at 450 the whole time because I haven't been using a credit card. So yeah not carrying a balance has screwed me for now, and I'm trying to figure out the safest best company to get a CC that I will barely use from. Opinions?

I think you are confused about credit.

The problem that you are in the low range of credit score BECAUSE you have NOT use any credit for years, NOT because you did not carry a balance. As I said in previous post in this thread (post #5), you are good if you pay off your bill on time, carry balance or not.

If I was you, try to get a credit card with low limit, buy a few small items, pay off the bills promptly and after a couple years, your score should go up. Get a better card with reward/cash back then rinse, repeat. Good credit score takes time to build, can't rush it overnight.

Also, you need to go to https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp and check your free credit report (NOT score) from all 3 major bureaus. Make sure your reports do not have any mistakes/errors. I wonder why your score is only 450 if you did not have any blemishes.

 

[Svnla]

I am 22 and my credit score is 730 is it really that hard to hit 800?

Hard? No, as long as you follow the suggestion in my post #5 above, you will be in the upper 700 to low 800 range within a few years. Right now, you are not doing well in #3 (length of credit). It requires time to build.

I think I need to be a mod in the Finance/Credit Card sub forum. I will charge ya'll for my wisdom..hehehehehe.

 

[1sikbITCH]

If you're paying it off every month, you're not carrying a balance.

I know but I already edited about 3 times and never caught the error. I did this with BOA in January 2001 and it worked well. By 2002 I had my money back, an unsecured card, and a bump in my score. By 2004 my score was 790 and I was signing the loan for my house. However, since then I was one of the millions BOA was caught scamming and so obviously will not use them again. That bank is the reason we went strictly cash in pocket in the first place.

So, looking for alternatives.

 

[KDOG]

I just wish I could find out what mine is... every site I visit wants me to pay something...argh.

 

[Svnla]

I just wish I could find out what mine is... every site I visit wants me to pay something...argh.

You can try CreditKarma, it is free. Many said that score is close enough to FICO. Some CUs and banks could run the score for you for free if you are a good customer.

 

[KeypoX]

My goal is to hit 850.

I got to 821 by having a car loan and paying off and paying credit cards in full every month.

lol you are so cool

 

[Leyawiin]

I look at 25-30 credit reports per day, and the only time I have seen that high of a score is with someone who is senior.

I'm in my 40s. Last time I checked my credit was two years ago (when I bought a house) and it was 817. Been fortunate and have never had any serious personal finance issues that would make me late on a payment.

Edit: How funny. Just checked and its now 787. Nothing has changed - well, the house is payed off. My aunt passed away last year and left me some money. Completely debt free and can't hit 800!

 

[angminas]

Keeping a balance can also make it less likely that they'll cancel your card.

 

[Red Squirrel]

Last I checked I was at 826/850. I recently put 17k on my credit line (house repairs + new car), then went to the bank to see if I could somehow add that to the mortgage instead, and they did what they call a blend. Basically it gets added, my interest goes up very slightly (can renegotiate when it opens in 2 years) and the payment increases to make up for the extra money so I pay it off at the same time. That way I'm only paying one interest, and I save like 100 bucks a month as the credit line is higher interest than the mortgage.

I'd be curious to know what that did to my credit. Not sure if it would raise it more, or lower it. I want to start making higher mortgage payments though. I just always forget to call during the day to change it. Too bad they can't just add the option in online banking, would be so much easier.

As for how I got my credit to 826, I'm not really sure. I can't say I really tried, it just happened. I've always paid off credit as fast as I can, never had any late payments, and I use my credit card a lot then pay it off when I get my paycheck.

 

[kranky]

You can try CreditKarma, it is free. Many said that score is close enough to FICO. Some CUs and banks could run the score for you for free if you are a good customer.

Nothing wrong with using CreditKarma or CreditSesame for a free pseudo-score but if they are close to FICO scores, it's almost a coincidence. My CreditKarma score is 30 points less than my FICO, and my CreditSesame score is 20 points higher than my FICO - all on the 850-is-max scale. And my VantageScore is at the max according to CK.

I have seen people say that compared to their actual FICO, CK and/or CS were as much as 50 points off - sometimes that much higher, sometimes that much lower. And others have said their CK and CS scores were very close to their actual FICO. It's a crapshoot.

Never thought of asking my CU to pull a FICO score for me but I will keep that in mind if I need to know - better than paying, that's for sure.

 

[gorcorps]

I just wish I could find out what mine is... every site I visit wants me to pay something...argh.

Yeah, same here. You can get your free credit CHECKS from the 3 companies every year but those don't have a score.

 

[highland145]

Hey, OC, is that a copy of a social security card on your desk? I can just about make out the #s.

The biggest ding on my credit score is that I stopped using my oldest (and only for many years) credit card when I got my rewards card...and then the company got bought out and cancelled the card on me. Suddenly my credit history was more than halved. In retrospect I probably should have made small purchases on it every month or so, but it's too late now.

The biggest ding on my credit it the FUCKING STATE OF SC GAVE AWAY MY SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER. Along with 3.8 million other people's and 600K business tax IDs. Dumb asses.

by not being a slave to debt thats how.

having a high CREDIT score should not be a badge of honor like so many on here believe. having a high CREDIT score means you love debt, a high score should be a badge of shame not an accolade.. jesus christ its not rocket science.

Nope. I have no debt and mine's ~815. I do have lines of credit (visa, heloc) but no debt. Also, I'm old (long credit history). Had my visa since 1988.

 

[Svnla]

Nothing wrong with using CreditKarma or CreditSesame for a free pseudo-score but if they are close to FICO scores, it's almost a coincidence. My CreditKarma score is 30 points less than my FICO, and my CreditSesame score is 20 points higher than my FICO - all on the 850-is-max scale. And my VantageScore is at the max according to CK.

I have seen people say that compared to their actual FICO, CK and/or CS were as much as 50 points off - sometimes that much higher, sometimes that much lower. And others have said their CK and CS scores were very close to their actual FICO. It's a crapshoot.

Never thought of asking my CU to pull a FICO score for me but I will keep that in mind if I need to know - better than paying, that's for sure.

Of course they would not be the same. All credit bureaus grade their scores in different ways. They don't even keep track of the items or errors/mistakes in your credit report the same. Plus your credit file is dynamic and not static, it is subject to change.

What I was saying is if you don't want to pay for the score, use CreditKarma or other sites as an estimate/guess/ball park figure to see where you are at.

I would rather get all 3 of my free reports once a year, read them word for word, correct any mistakes or errors, follow the steps in my post #5 above rather than worry about every little thing.

Keeping a balance can also make it less likely that they'll cancel your card.

Again, urban legend and not true. See my post above (#5). If you do not want your old CC to be cancel, use it once in a while and pay it off promptly.