Can I raise my credit score?

[veremchuka]

It was 741 and Sears closed my account because I did not use my credit card for 2 years! My score just dropped to 731. OK this isn't a serious problem but I have always been bothered that my score was only 741 and now it is lower.

I am retired. I've used my current VISA cc since 2006, seldom have a balance over $800 per month and I ALWAYS pay the balance off every month. I have never paid 1 cent in interest so I'm not carrying a balance. My credit availability is about 90% maybe 93%, the limit on the card has always been $10,000.

I have had an LL Bean cc since 2008 that I seldom use, maybe once a year. I checked it and the limit is $2,500. In 2009 they reduced it to that level because I wasn't using it! I don't know what the original limit was but after 1 year they lowered it? Jeesh I guess banks punish you for not using their card!

I don't have any loans having paid off the mortgage a few years ago. I buy used cars and pay cash. Any time in the past that I bought something using "their" installment program I always took advantage of the free time period and then paid it off before any interest would start. I have very good (excellent?) credit. I have never missed any mortgage payment (I've had 4 or 5) or any payment of any kind. Needless to say I've never declared bankruptcy or had any credit issues. I check my credit report every 4 months and it's been OK for many years, no issues there.

I'd like my credit score to be in the 800's, is that possible and if so how? I just asked the bank where my VISA is for an increase in my cc limit yesterday thinking that will increase my available credit percentage, I'll know in a week or so. I'm thinking I should apply for another cc with another $10k limit and use it sparingly just to boost the score.

Any ideas?

 

[REWahoo]

Any ideas?

Find an inexpensive hobby to take your mind off something not worth worrying about...

 

[veremchuka]

Insurance rates/premiums are based upon your credit score no? Seems that alone is a good reason to get it higher? Good driving record too but I'd like the premiums lower.

 

[calmloki]

My score went up after deciding to scoop up some free money from the card companies. By adding some card accounts my available credit went way up - that & percentage of card utilization helped my score go over 800. Seems like a credit inquiry costs my score 5-10 points for about 3 months, then it bounces up.

Worthy cards to look into include Barclays Arival, Chase Sapphire Preferred, and Fidelity Amex. Include sign up bonus in your search. Dang I love free money.

 

[REWahoo]

Insurance rates/premiums are based upon your credit score no?

They aren't based on your credit score but a low score can negatively impact rates unless you live in Massachusetts, Hawaii, or California.

Note that there is a difference in your Auto Insurance Score and your Credit Score - they are measured on a different scale.

If you haven't done so already you might consider signing up for a free account at CreditKarma.com. You can see all your scores and get info on how to improve them. Maybe that can become your "inexpensive hobby"...

 

[FANOFJESUS]

I do not think 731 is anything to worry about. I always heard above 700 is good.

 

[sengsational]

Google clark howard credit score guide. The clark howard site tells you all the "do's and don't s" to get your score up.

 

[Amethyst]

That's nothing personal and not a credit demerit. Sears did this to me, too, and probably everybody else who stopped using store cards in favor of rewards credit cards.

Amethyst

....Sears closed my account because I did not use my credit card for 2 years!

 

[veremchuka]

Note that there is a difference in your Auto Insurance Score and your Credit Score - they are measured on a different scale.

If you haven't done so already you might consider signing up for a free account at CreditKarma.com. You can see all your scores and get info on how to improve them. Maybe that can become your "inexpensive hobby"...

I thought the insurance companies used the FICO score. It is at Credit Karma that I found out my score dropped, I've used them for a few years and this is the 1st time I've seen a decrease in the FICO score, the other 2 scores I ignore.

Google clark howard credit score guide. The clark howard site tells you all the "do's and don't s" to get your score up.

Thanks I'll look at that.

 

[REWahoo]

I thought the insurance companies used the FICO score. It is at Credit Karma that I found out my score dropped, I've used them for a few years and this is the 1st time I've seen a decrease in the FICO score, the other 2 scores I ignore.

Credit Karma shows four different credit scores - at least it does for me. If you are concerned about your auto insurance rate you probably shouldn't ignore the one titled "Auto Insurance Score". Click on it and it will show you a chart of how your score has changed over time.

Also, if you click on the "credit score simulator" in the left column you can see the impact to your score of adding new cards, closing accounts, etc.

 

[veremchuka]

I'll check that out, how adding new cc effects score. I don't spend much time there, just signed up to see my score years ago. Thanks!

Yeah there are 4 scores, I last saw 3, I guess they added one but I am not sure which.

Apparently adding a new cc decreases your score as they pull your credit report. Maybe this is not worth worrying about, I don't want it going lower my goal was to increase it!

I'll start to use the LL Bean card for small stuff a couple of times a month. I get cash back with the VISA so I use it for everything. Maybe using the other will help the score and at least they won't lower or cancel it if I use it... hopefully!

 

[rodi]

This thread prompted me to go look at CreditKarma. I see that my transunion score dropped 5 pts (still in the "a" range) - but my Vantage score dropped 115 pts and is now a "b".

What happened in the last 40 days? I paid off my mortgage.

Yep - that's a credit threat.

Fortunately, I'm not planning on borrowing money. I saw no impact when I moved my insurance this month - my new insurance prices are a little cheaper than my old prices. I still have "a"s for home and auto insurance credit scores.

 

[RonBoyd]

It is quite difficult to get your score in the 800 range. For instance, our score is 782. We use our four Credit Cards extensively and never have less than $3,000 in charges in a month and sometimes in the $7-8,000 range. We, of course, pay it off every month. In addition, we have a HELOC that we keep active by paying as little as we can get away with.

Nevertheless, we are dinged for a couple things out of our control. Of the six, criteria for the Credit Rating (On-time Payments, Oldest Credit Line, Credit Utilization, Recent Enquiries, New Accounts, and Available Credit) all get a "Grade A" except two.

We get a "B" for Oldest Credit Line -- 18 years is under the >25 year requirement for an "A" score.

We get a "B" for Available Credit -- $48,000 is under the >$50,000 requirement for an "A" score.

This data is from our Capital One Credit Card's -- Credit Tracker application.

 

[sengsational]

I have two recurring events on my calendar to make sure I make a purchase with my almost never used credit cards. So instead of closing the card, you keep it "active" by using it every 6 months. I keep the one card because it lets me board early on a USeless Airline, but I'd drop it in an instant if it had an annual fee.

 

[Rustward]

They aren't based on your credit score but a low score can negatively impact rates unless you live in Massachusetts, Hawaii, or California.

Several years ago the agent for my auto carrier called out of the blue and told me they were lowering my rate based on my credit score and the fact that I had been there 20 years without a claim. IIRC the agent told me that the company internalizes credit scores converting them to letter grades A - F, F being the highest. I made an F.

I second the use of CreditKarma. There is a pretty decent explanation of how credit score is determined there.

We pay each card in full each month, except for one that has six months no interest.

We also make sure to use each card at least once per quarter, except for one store card at a sporting goods place that we opened just to get 10% off on a $1100 elliptical trainer. If a card goes unused for a long period, it is a no-brainer for the card company to take back that credit and tempt someone else to use it so they can make some money with it.

 

[EveryLady]

US Airways offered a free FICO report last week. Mine was about 10 points or so over 800 with the notation it would have been higher if I had some sort of installment payments. The mortgage was paid off about 7 years ago; its been about 6 years since there were payments to make on our HELOC.

Credit Karma comes up with 766, with a minor ding of B for total accounts (need more) and a major ding of D for age of credit history. I churn credit cards for airline miles.

 

[braumeister]

Just out of curiosity ...
I have a number of credit cards (about ten) and I use a few of them all the time, the rest seldom (but at least a couple of times a year).

I never carry a balance on any of them; most are set to auto-pay the full balance every month.

With no mortgage, low insurance rates, and no plans to borrow anything in the foreseeable future, is there any reason why I should care what my credit score is?

 

[EveryLady]

Just out of curiosity ...
With no mortgage, low insurance rates, and no plans to borrow anything in the foreseeable future, is there any reason why I should care what my credit score is?

Only reason I would care is that it's gratifying to get those instantaneous affirmative responses to credit card applications (for airline mile churning). No need to wait and wonder for 24-48 hours while analysts or some other minions review.

 

[NW-Bound]

...
If you haven't done so already you might consider signing up for a free account at CreditKarma.com. You can see all your scores and get info on how to improve them. Maybe that can become your "inexpensive hobby"...

The last time I checked my credit score on the Web was perhaps 6 years ago, but I do not remember which agency. Should I care, particularly as I do not plan to borrow money? But the credit score affects my insurance rate? That, I care.

So, I decided to check with CreditKarma, just for the heck of it. Creating an account took but a couple of minutes. Nice! Here's the result.

TransUnion: 781 out of 850 - Rating: Excellent
VantageScore: 966 out of 990 - Rating: A
Auto Insurance Score: 928 out of 950 - Rating: Very Good
Home Insurance Score: 950 out of 950 - Rating: Very Good

OK! Now, what's next?

Oh, there's no next. That's it!

 

[sengsational]

...With no mortgage, low insurance rates, and no plans to borrow anything in the foreseeable future, is there any reason why I should care what my credit score is?

When your insurance renews, if your credit score drops, they could raise your rate. They did it to me when I was playing the credit card / airline miles game. Just bad timing...the policy renewed right after I got high credit limit cards for both myself and spouse.

 

[tryan]

Just heard on the radio 2 ways to improve credit scores:

Ask for an INCREASE in your credit line since the ratio of debt to allowed credit is a large component. Lower the ratio the better but zero is not good (see below).

Use your credit occasionally. You can go "stale" and thus a lower limit.

 

[RonBoyd]

Or as Credit Tracker puts it:

Credit Utilization

Lenders usually look at how much credit is available as well as the amount that's been used. An individual who has "maxed out" his or her credit cards and/or other lines of credit may not be able to obtain additional credit or competitive rates. Tip: To help your score, pay down your balances and keep your average account balance at or under 30-35% of your card’s total available credit line.

Credit Score Impact High

Grade Scale

Grade Scale % of population
A <10% 45.16%
B 10%-30% 19.57%
C 31%-61% 15.32%
D >61% 19.95%

 

[tryan]

Credit karma is nice ... and you only need the last 4 of your ssn. Mine was :

TransUnion: 782 out of 850 - Rating: Excellent
VantageScore: 896 out of 990 - Rating: A
Auto Insurance Score: 899 out of 950 - Rating: Very Good
Home Insurance Score: 931 out of 950 - Rating: Very Good

Now if I could only refi out of a HELOC ... geez.

 

[aja8888]

With no mortgage, low insurance rates, and no plans to borrow anything in the foreseeable future, is there any reason why I should care what my credit score is?

Not really.....mine is 780 last time I checked. Two years ago we walked into a Hyundai dealer to look at a car for DW. They check your credit and do that quickly. They never once asked about whether or not I had income, or anything else about finances. No problem buying a car.

I just signed up for a Marriott (Chase) CC to grab 70,000 points for my account (use for room nights). I was approved in a minute. I did not claim job income.

 

[meierlde]

Just heard on the radio 2 ways to improve credit scores:

Ask for an INCREASE in your credit line since the ratio of debt to allowed credit is a large component. Lower the ratio the better but zero is not good (see below).

Use your credit occasionally. You can go "stale" and thus a lower limit.

One simple way if it can be done to get usage of a card, is if the utility lets you charge your utility bills to a card. That gets a once a month charge. Put each utility on a different card and you can keep several active at one time.