Fifteen-point impact from a five-year-old 30-day late?

[Sidewinder]

I've wondered for a while why my Equifax score is so much higher than my other two (as of today, scores are EQ 773; TU 754; , EX 758) so I finally ordered my paper reports.

 

I've not had time to peruse them extensively, but I was surprised to see a 30-day late on my Express (Comenity) account from 2018, as myfico.com says there are no derogs whatsoever in my history.

 

My TU and EX reports have this 30-day late showing but the Equifax report does not. 

 

I have trouble believing that one 30-day late, as the only derog in a profile that consists of 20 bank cards, six store and gas cards, $270,000 in total credit lines, utilization well under 10%, a car loan closed as "paid as agreed" is having an appreciable impact on my score, let alone a double-digit one, these five years later.

 

[MP80]

21 minutes ago, Sidewinder said:

I've wondered for a while why my Equifax score is so much higher than my other two (as of today, scores are EQ 773; TU 754; , EX 758) so I finally ordered my paper reports.

 

I've not had time to peruse them extensively, but I was surprised to see a 30-day late on my Express (Comenity) account from 2018, as myfico.com says there are no derogs whatsoever in my history.

 

My TU and EX reports have this 30-day late showing but the Equifax report does not. 

 

I have trouble believing that one 30-day late, as the only derog in a profile that consists of 20 bank cards, six store and gas cards, $270,000 in total credit lines, utilization well under 10%, a car loan closed as "paid as agreed" is having an appreciable impact on my score, let alone a double-digit one, these five years later.

 

People familiar with the last derogatory account saying will uniquely cause the consumer to give and take ~50 FICO score points. 

 

Remember, the last negatives have substantial weight with the scores. You're lucky that the point loss is non-negligible.

[hdporter]

28 minutes ago, Sidewinder said:

have trouble believing that one 30-day late, as the only derog in a profile that consists of 20 bank cards, six store and gas cards, $270,000 in total credit lines, utilization well under 10%, a car loan closed as "paid as agreed" is having an appreciable impact on my score, let alone a double-digit one, these five years later.

 

Believe it.  (Some are disbelieving in the other direction:  They'll claim that you can't break a FICO 8 800+ score with a single 30-day late in your history).

 

Bev has a roughly similar credit profile (a little broader; $700k+ in revolvers, 5% util, 2 auto loans (1 active), 4 mortgages (1 active), 37 yr history.  Her 30-day late just turned the corner on 6 years in Aug.  I feel secure in suggesting that the late is good for a 15-20 pt hit.

 

Fortunately, she still comes in with a EX 813 FICO 8, so we're not sweating the late entry and will just wait for it to age off.  (Had thoughts of approaching BA with a goodwill request, but that's a thorny proposition -- BA is the only lender who attempts to stave off such requests by stating directly on their website that they don't accede to such requests.  There are scattered success stories, nonetheless.)  Absent that blemish, the similarity of her report to mine suggests that she would otherwise score 830-840.

 

 

 

 

Edited September 13 by hdporter

[shifter]

7 hours ago, Sidewinder said:

I've not had time to peruse them extensively, but I was surprised to see a 30-day late on my Express (Comenity) account from 2018, as myfico.com says there are no derogs whatsoever in my history.

Huh? This doesn't make any sense. You've had a LP for 5 years you've never known about? 

Edited September 13 by shifter

[shifter]

7 hours ago, Sidewinder said:

I have trouble believing that one 30-day late, as the only derog in a profile that consists of 20 bank cards, six store and gas cards, $270,000 in total credit lines, utilization well under 10%, a car loan closed as "paid as agreed" is having an appreciable impact on my score, let alone a double-digit one, these five years later.

You're right; 15 points is unlikely. It's likely costing you closer to 25 points at 5 years. 

 

https://creditboards.com/forums/index.php?/topic/527614-the-master-graphs-thread/&do=findComment&comment=5023928

Edited September 13 by shifter

[Sidewinder]

2 hours ago, shifter said:

Huh? This doesn't make any sense. You've had a LP for 5 years you've never known about? 

 

I might have known about it in 2018; I was on a different Rx regimen back then.

 

I faintly remember being bothered when I called to pay-by-phone and got some "bad news" about my last payment date.

 

I'm on different Rx's now; and as I noted, on myFICO, it says "Exceptional — Late payments 30+ days: 0" for all three CRA's.

 

Does anyone know if it's worth pursuing a goodwill deletion from Comenity?

 

 

 

 

(Comenity schmenity.)

[StantheMan]

That lousy late will affect the reports until it drops however most likely most won’t impact the decision making process of most FI’s Don’t sweat it.

[Sidewinder]

4 hours ago, StantheMan said:

That lousy late will affect the reports until it drops.

 

Gross.

 

Edited September 13 by Sidewinder

[hdporter]

2 minutes ago, Sidewinder said:

 

Gross.

 

 

No, not "gross".  Just a factual data point.  One that hasn't prevented your FICO 8's from nudging above the 740-760 threshold that will largely see you to approvals with the best rates and terms (the same likely goes for mortgages as well.).  In my book, you're sitting on gold.  As someone else might suggest, "Take the win".

 

[Sidewinder]

16 hours ago, hdporter said:

a factual data point. 

 

Gross.

 

Now where's the Frisbee...

[cashnocredit]

On 9/12/2023 at 7:33 PM, Sidewinder said:

I've wondered for a while why my Equifax score is so much higher than my other two (as of today, scores are EQ 773; TU 754; , EX 758) so I finally ordered my paper reports.

 

I've not had time to peruse them extensively, but I was surprised to see a 30-day late on my Express (Comenity) account from 2018, as myfico.com says there are no derogs whatsoever in my history.

 

My TU and EX reports have this 30-day late showing but the Equifax report does not. 

 

I have trouble believing that one 30-day late, as the only derog in a profile that consists of 20 bank cards, six store and gas cards, $270,000 in total credit lines, utilization well under 10%, a car loan closed as "paid as agreed" is having an appreciable impact on my score, let alone a double-digit one, these five years later.

 

 

I'm not surprised the old late is causing a smallish drop relative to the other CRAs that don't have a late

 

What does surprise me is that with such a diverse file your scores on the clean files aren't > 800.  To me that's what stands out as odd.

[hdporter]

20 minutes ago, cashnocredit said:

 

I'm not surprised the old late is causing a smallish drop relative to the other CRAs that don't have a late

 

What does surprise me is that with such a diverse file your scores on the clean files aren't > 800.  To me that's what stands out as odd.

 

Not stated explicitly that these are FICO 8 scores ... but, within the context of the post, I would imagine that they are. (If not, then these scores are within an "anything goes" realm until nailed down further).

 

Assuming FICO 8, there are two likely factors that are score depressors:  Average account age and credit inquiries.  SW relishes the card hunt

 

Allowing for greater speculation, he states "utilization well under 10%".  A scenario consistent with that would be a diverse card portfolio with overall utilization <= 5%, yet with some individual cards as high as 40%+.  Were this the case (not saying it is), the high individual card util, in conjunction with the previous factors, could be expected to push a seasoned score sub "800".

 

But, don't get me wrong:  There's no question that SW maintains excellent credit.

 

 

[Sidewinder]

2 hours ago, cashnocredit said:

 

I'm not surprised the old late is causing a smallish drop relative to the other CRAs that don't have a late

 

What does surprise me is that with such a diverse file your scores on the clean files aren't > 800.  To me that's what stands out as odd.

 

FNBO:  $5,500 (limit $16.5K)

CSP:  $4,000ish (limit $19.9K)

BOFA Visa: $3,000 (limit $18K)

Amex CashMagnet: $2,700 (limit $14K)

 

...is, I bet, what's keeping my scores under 800 for the time being.  : /

[cashnocredit]

1 hour ago, Sidewinder said:

 

FNBO:  $5,500 (limit $16.5K)

CSP:  $4,000ish (limit $19.9K)

BOFA Visa: $3,000 (limit $18K)

Amex CashMagnet: $2,700 (limit $14K)

 

...is, I bet, what's keeping my scores under 800 for the time being.  : /

Yep. FBNO and CSP are a bit high for best 800ish scores. Also, total util over 5% will start to have an effect.  OTOH, if you were over 800, the one late will have a bigger effect. Basically, the higher your score normally, the more sensitive it is to things like high util on a single card, old lates, or any baddie. And, as @hdporter noted, your scores are already quite good,

[hoapres]

Getting rid of your last negative on a CR often leads to a 50 point gain. 

[hdporter]

On 9/14/2023 at 3:11 PM, Sidewinder said:

 

FNBO:  $5,500 (limit $16.5K)

CSP:  $4,000ish (limit $19.9K)

BOFA Visa: $3,000 (limit $18K)

Amex CashMagnet: $2,700 (limit $14K)

 

...is, I bet, what's keeping my scores under 800 for the time being.  : /

 

That's a reasonable asserssment.  Also, don't discount account age (particularly average age).  A average account age of over 10+ years is a strong anchor to 800+; 5 (or less) years not so much.

[shifter]

33 minutes ago, hoapres said:

Getting rid of your last negative on a CR often leads to a 50 point gain. 

Usually quite a bit more than that. Closer to 80 points depending on other factors. 

[Sidewinder]

8 hours ago, shifter said:

Usually quite a bit more than that. Closer to 80 points depending on other factors. 

 

What's the likelihood of getting a goodwill deletion from Comenity anyway?

[hdporter]

Reports appear to be "hit or miss".  The one request that I see granted, appealed to the CEO's office directly.

 

From personal experience I can say that when I asked Comenity to forgive a late fee a few months ago for a payment that was late by just a few days, they established themselves as the only creditor to refuse to do so in my experience (where there was no prior fee remission).

 

Hope you have better experience!