The White Whales - Perfect Credit Scores?

[HI Bill]

I've been making payments multiple times a month on my credit cards, with the resultant ending balances being less than a few hundred $ for each active card, and I pay them off monthly. I have a house mortgage, but no car payment, and no other installment plans. I have a perfect payment record, going back more than 30 years.

Based on my lifelong experience, I thought that achieving a 'perfect' credit score was an unachievable white whale. But last month and this month, I managed to obtain 850/850 for my FICO score! My FICO Score 8 from a different credit card is simultaneously 879/900, so close, but not perfect!

Have you achieved a perfect score? I have no real reason to do this, other than striving for the unobtainable goal!

 

[ProspectiveBum]

No, never achieved a perfect score. My current score is 835, which is good enough for me.

 

[CardsFan]

Meh

I used to care, but then had a medical bill that was never submitted for payment send my score down 100 points. I told the collection agency to pound sand and submit it properly.

It now appears new laws have wiped that "delinquency" off my record. Yeah, I guess I am back over 800, whatever.

 

[Dash man]

I pay my credit cards off as soon as the charge hits, no mortgage, no other debt. My credit score varies from 805-830 or so depending on which agency you check. Never missed a payment. Not having any debt will never allow me to get a perfect score, but I really don’t care.

 

[Gumby]

Mine varies between 818 and 835. I have no idea why it varies, since my spending and payment habits are very steady, but it does.

 

[jebmke]

I don't even know what my score is. I've never known.

 

[Drake3287]

Your situation is one I think about every month when I get my free credit score through BofA. When they started doing these free monthly reports my first one had a score of 850 like you. Exactly what I figured it should and would be.

Since then, our home has been paid off and we currently have no car loans. My credit cards are also paid off in full each month and have been for years. Haven't missed or been late with a payment of any type in well over 35 years.

BUT, because of all that, my credit score is constantly in the lower 800 range now. I sort of feel cheated but I guess it's simply because of our current low credit usage. Apparently it pays to be in debt!

And yes, I realize being anywhere in the 800 range is better than most people. I also miss the days of applying for loans only to see the finance person's jaw drop when they read my credit score. Welcome to the 800 club as they would say!

 

[Car-Guy]

Never really tried to be "perfect" but when I check, mine is usually around 805 to 810. A little silly from my POV since for the last 30+ years, I have always paid my CC's in full each month, I've always paid my utility bills on time/early and I have/had no loans. Not that I really care, but what do they want?

 

[bada bing]

Yes. 850 FICO continuously for at least 7 years now. An 850 FICO indicates that you are not a good chance of being a potential customer for credit. An 850 FICO will actually be courted by creditors much less than say a 780 score. One of the benefits of a very high score is it cuts down on junk mail credit card offers.

 

[Aerides]

When I was first looking at this, I was around 810. The reason I can't reach much higher is I don't use enough credit.
Not enough cards, no loans, no recent car payments, mortgages.

So I'm fine staying put.

 

[COcheesehead]

I was buying a BWM and knew my score was high, but the credit guy at the dealer told me I had a perfect credit score. I didn’t even know that was achievable.

 

[EastWest Gal]

I got 100% on a lot of tests, even in college. Never cared to have a perfect credit score. I think it's been around 820 most of the time.

 

[2017ish]

I've hit it two times that I know of in the last year of so. I don't make it a habit of checking regularly though--especially in the months we are out of the country. DW may have hit it more often, but we tend not to check hers at all (the best rewards cards for big vacation purchases are in my name right now)

Then we make a payment for a big chunk of a vacation and it drops to 820 or even lower. (Say a 20 or 30K payment on a card with a 45K limit.) Then it comes back up as that "high" usage fades into the background.

Mainly a matter of curiosity, as even at its lowest, we are still fine for any hypothetical new loans we might wish to commit to.

 

[Telly]

Your situation is one I think about every month when I get my free credit score through BofA. When they started doing these free monthly reports my first one had a score of 850 like you. Exactly what I figured it should and would be.

Since then, our home has been paid off and we currently have no car loans. My credit cards are also paid off in full each month and have been for years. Haven't missed or been late with a payment of any type in well over 35 years.

BUT, because of all that, my credit score is constantly in the lower 800 range now. I sort of feel cheated but I guess it's simply because of our current low credit usage. Apparently it pays to be in debt!

And yes, I realize being anywhere in the 800 range is better than most people. I also miss the days of applying for loans only to see the finance person's jaw drop when they read my credit score. Welcome to the 800 club as they would say!

We had one mortgage, which we paid off early in 7 years back in 1986. Never bought a car on credit. Had ONE, only ONE credit card bill that we had to pay a few bucks interest on, due to a mistaken button push. Every other bill paid off before the due date. Haven't opened a new credit card for ages. The highest we got was ~825, the lowest ~815. Usually stuck on 820. This has been going on for years and years. We can't believe that there are many people who are better credit risks than us. But still, hovering around 820. Sure seems like we are being dinged for NOT paying interest!

 

[foxfirev5]

I'm in the same range as some of the above. It's pretty steady, around 825, with only cc activity which is paid off in full monthly. The reason I care at all is for insurance ratings.

 

[Dtail]

I check monthly.
Usually in the 815 to 820 range. I don't have the right mix to achieve 850.

 

[DrRoy]

820's to 830's.

 

[Andre1969]

I just checked my score at CreditKarma. Trans Union is 803 and Equifax is 795. I don't think CreditKarma is all that accurate, though. I recently applied for a Wells Fargo Visa, and in the response they mailed, they showed my Equifax score at 842. Although oddly, it was typed "00842"

I think CreditKarma tends to ding me because my credit history is young. They have the average at only two years and two months! That happened partly because I applied for some credit cards that give you $100-200 back if you spend $1000 or whatever in the first three billing cycles, and I've been taking advantage of that. But, I had a few really old cards that I let go dormant for too long, and they were closed. My oldest account now is only 10 years old.

That applying for a lot of credit cards might have dinged me too, because of a lot of hard inquiries, but my online report only shows two.

I think my online score also gets dinged a bit because I tend to put everything I can on the credit card(s), and then pay it all in full when the bill comes due. So, depending on when they run my numbers, that could be well into the thousands of $, especially if I've just paid an oil bill, the annual car insurance bill, or had something else big come up. Or it could be almost nothing, if they ran the numbers right after I made the payment.

 

[Dtail]

I just checked my score at CreditKarma. Trans Union is 803 and Equifax is 795. I don't think CreditKarma is all that accurate, though. I recently applied for a Wells Fargo Visa, and in the response they mailed, they showed my Equifax score at 842. Although oddly, it was typed "00842"

I think CreditKarma tends to ding me because my credit history is young. They have the average at only two years and two months! That happened partly because I applied for some credit cards that give you $100-200 back if you spend $1000 or whatever in the first three billing cycles, and I've been taking advantage of that. But, I had a few really old cards that I let go dormant for too long, and they were closed. My oldest account now is only 10 years old.

That applying for a lot of credit cards might have dinged me too, because of a lot of hard inquiries, but my online report only shows two.

I think my online score also gets dinged a bit because I tend to put everything I can on the credit card(s), and then pay it all in full when the bill comes due. So, depending on when they run my numbers, that could be well into the thousands of $, especially if I've just paid an oil bill, the annual car insurance bill, or had something else big come up. Or it could be almost nothing, if they ran the numbers right after I made the payment.

I also put almost everything on my credit cards and pay it off monthly.
However, I pay it off on the first of the month and chose to have the credit cycle statement on the 4th of the new month.
Thus there is typically limited charges, which continuously keeps that aspect of the score higher.

 

[Amethyst]

Mine is around 835, which should be good enough for anybody.

 

[COcheesehead]

Credit Karma will show you exactly what affects your score. I think there are a total of six factors from available credit to hard inquiries to credit age to payment history to derogatory remarks to number of accounts.

 

[MarieIG]

No, I never had a perfect credit score. I don't have that many cards, have cancelled annoying ones along the way, pay the charges as soon as they hit, don't have late payments, and don't have "revolving credit" as I paid off the mortgage early and never had a car loan. Some of my oldest history has disappeared. I bounce around in the low 800's.

 

[The Cosmic Avenger]

Mine tends to hover just above or below 800, even though we haven't had a mortgage or car note in over 5 years now, and no delinquencies. It annoyed me just because it seemed odd, but word is that over 770 or 780 you don't see much difference in loan rates anyway, so even if we ever do take out another loan it shouldn't matter.

 

[sengsational]

The only reason I have to think about credit score is not to pay the penalty rate for homeowners insurance. I'm not sure where that cut off is, but much lower than where my score has typically been. But when playing the credit card sign up bonus game, I did get nicked on the premiums once.

 

[Golden sunsets]

Mine has been 850 two of the last 3 months. DH's is 835 and is consistently 15 points less than mine every month. Not sure why, as we are co-owners of all credit cards and a 0% car loan.

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