Credit Score

[86 TR]

I went to apply for a loan at my local Credit Union today to get the ball rolling to get the car restored this winter. I was asking for about $7,000. I get a phone call back this afternoon from the loan officer and she said they couldn't give me a loan at this time because my credit score was too low!!

I had financial problems way back when I was in my late teen's early twenties. But ever since then have never been late on any payment. I do have 2 credit cards that are within 300 dollars of their limits and expect to have them paid off in 2 months.

Could these credit cards be causing my low credit score?? I only owe about $2,000 on both of them.. Ive been banking with this cu ever since I started my first job, which Im currently still at.

Whats the best way to boost my score?? I have checked my credit reports and everything appeared to be good there.

WTF!!!

P.S. I just bought a car last year for about $7,000. They never hesitated to give me money for that and its paid off.

[ncmalko1]

Run your credit report. You might have an outstanding debt. Or, god forbid, someone stole your identity. They factor in if you pay your bills on time, how much you owe, how much you make.

[dan lephart]

...ask the credit union those questions. They should be willing to help. Paying off the credit cards or getting them real low should help. You need the credit union to give you a small loan to help boost your score. Providing you pay on time or even pay it off early. A co signer may be beneficial too.

[bison]

First thing you should do is get your free credit report from them. Once you are denied credit they have to by law give you a free report at your request and the reason(s) why you were denied. It takes at least 7 years for hits on your credit to disappear and 10 years for a bankruptcy to disappear. Your score may not be high enough. There are a lot of things that will effect the score. Having revolving accounts at or near the limits is a big one. You can offer collateral to help in the approval process if you want to. Imo its crazy to put a further financial burden on yourself to restore a car. The return on investment doesnt make it a worthwhile idea if it puts you into debt for a couple years since you already owe on other accounts.

[ChavoLC2]

What was the score in the 600s or lower? Nowdays unfortunately they like to see mid 700s and up....

[bison]

The magic number is 680. If you have 680 or higher you will get approval on almost anything. If your over 750 you will get the best rates. If you have a score of 800 or higher you can usually get loans without income verification.

[86 TR]

Oops. Need to have a moderator move this thread to the turbo lounge. Thanks.....

[8AV8]

Were you trying to get the loan with no collateral?

Tell them you'll put the title up for collaterral and that might put you in a spot that they will approve you.

You may qualify for a secured loan, but not unsecured.

[86 TR]

Originally Posted by ChavoLC2

What was the score in the 600s or lower? Nowdays unfortunately they like to see mid 700s and up....

It was at 560!

Originally Posted by 8AV8

Were you trying to get the loan with no collateral?

Tell them you'll put the title up for collaterral and that might put you in a spot that they will approve you.

You may qualify for a secured loan, but not unsecured.

I told them I would put the the buick, my crown vic daily driver, and a snowmobile up for collateral..

[8AV8]

I do this every day...no offense...560 is not good.

Go to freecreditreport.com and see whats on your credit. Something is pulling your score down.

Loan officers aren't credit counselors, alot of them are instructed not to give advice. But you could try and see if the loan officer could give you some pointers.

[TexasT]

Why not just save up and pay cash? The borrower becomes the slave to the lender.

Put some money in their bank/credit union/financial institution. Then borrow against it. Pay it off and put some more money in there. Borrow again, pay it off again. At some point they will be sending you all kinds of offers to borrow money as you will have proven to them you are a good borrower.

I still recommend paying cash for what ever you want to buy.

Rich

[XLR8]

You will have an almost impossible time getting a loan with a credit score of 560. You need to look at your report and see what is on there. If there is erroneous information contact the repositories and have the derogatory credit removed. If you have recent outstanding collections - which can come from someting as trivial as an unpaid parking ticket - pay it off and make sure it shows paid. Do not close your credit card accounts but pay them down - pick one of the two and work on paying it down. It takes months and years to build good credit but only a day to ruin it.

For reference I am a regional underwriting manager of a top 10 commercial bank - although the opinions expressed above are my opinions only.

[ChavoLC2]

My wife and I will use a credit card we however try to pay cash or use a check if we can. If we use a card we make sure we pay off the balance monthly. That compounded interest is for the birds. Where people get in trouble is when you start just paying the minimal monthly payment. It will take years to pay off 5k at a minimal payment at 19-21% interest.

[chopped39]

My ex-wife ruined me.I had great credit till i got married. she maxed out all my cards and then stopped paying them. I got divorced and filed chapter 7 in2004 for about 100,000 . my credit score was 450 at the time. after getting new credit cards and paying them on time my credit score now is 700. the card i got was wasington mutual and they show my credit score on line.My girlfriend is the one that got all this staightened out for me.anyways try to pay off those cards. I put a 1,000 purchase on my card and my score went down to 680. and the back up when i payed it off. I dont know how they fiqure this out.

[Chuck Leeper]

"I put a 1,000 purchase on my card and my score went down to 680. and the back up when i payed it off. I dont know how they fiqure this out."

AKA: Debt to income ratio.

[SGRIM]

That score was low. This is what I do for my "main" job Are you a home owner? Home owners have a higher score simply becuase they have a mortage. Several things effect your score including inquires. Alot of good advice here. Get a copy of your report if you are qouting your facts right sounds like there is something wrong on your report. If you simply have a couple of credit cards and nothing else and all are current you should still have a near 600 score. Sometimes having just a little good credit hurts you. Did the place you paid off your car with report? Good luck this can be a nightmare!

[V6RACER]

Originally Posted by TexasT

Why not just save up and pay cash? The borrower becomes the slave to the lender.

Put some money in their bank/credit union/financial institution. Then borrow against it. Pay it off and put some more money in there. Borrow again, pay it off again. At some point they will be sending you all kinds of offers to borrow money as you will have proven to them you are a good borrower.

I still recommend paying cash for what ever you want to buy.

Rich

Man after my own heart.
You must listen to Dave....

[Sweet6]

I know one thing that dings you if you owe more than 75% of your credit limit. It does not look good when credit cards are maxed. Even if it is a relatively small amount.

[Boost231]

my credit score went up 58 points by just paying off one of my CC.

[Christophah]

I did something that EVERYONE can do to help build your credit FOR FREE!!! It is simple. DON'T USE CREDIT CARDS FOR CREDIT.....USE THEM FOR CONVENIENCE. Put things on your credit cards that you a