Hegemony's score tanks!!!! removal of last installment line

[hegemony]

Seems it has been 10 years since paying off our mortgage. An older me would have been appalled. Still seems weird that having a mortgage obligation makes someone a better relative risk. 

 

[trachkids]

Ugh. I am not looking forward to that day.

 

So few things in this world make any sense any longer. 

[MP80]

Fair Isaac Corporation’s FICO credit-scoring algorithm is biased toward creditors and lenders. If consumers wish to avoid incurring a punitive score reduction of more than 30 points, they must hold some form of installment loan to gain "immunity effectively."

 

You said: "How is it that carrying mortgage debt actually makes one a relatively lower-risk borrower?"

 

GEORGE once says: What's my driving got to do with my credit? 

Edited April 6 by MP80

[Flyingifr]

23 hours ago, hegemony said:

Seems it has been 10 years since paying off our mortgage. An older me would have been appalled. Still seems weird that having a mortgage obligation makes someone a better relative risk. 

 

Count your blessings. When I paid off my mortgage I lost 60 points. The following month I paid off  my car loan and lost another 40. In the span of 60 days I lost 100 points and gained $3,000 a month in disposable income to not make payments with. Since I would no longer be paying my mortgage or car loan, FICO branded me a terrible risk. I had to go out and get $50,000 in credit card lines to start getting any of those points back.

Edited April 6 by Flyingifr
Clarify my disposable income increase

[chicagorich]

Didn't somebody on here try to get around this by paying down their mortgage and then having the smallish balance recast to a small monthly payment to keep the account active?

[hegemony]

12 hours ago, chicagorich said:

Didn't somebody on here try to get around this by paying down their mortgage and then having the smallish balance recast to a small monthly payment to keep the account active?

I vaguely recall this. was it @cv91915?

[Flyingifr]

12 hours ago, chicagorich said:

Didn't somebody on here try to get around this by paying down their mortgage and then having the smallish balance recast to a small monthly payment to keep the account active?

The TL wouldn't make much sense. $1 a month for 30 years? Only a computer would count that as creditworthiness.

[cv91915]

1 hour ago, hegemony said:

I vaguely recall this. was it @cv91915?

 

 

 

My payment was initially $2.80.  

An ARM is a ticking time bomb. 

[laynlow]

8 hours ago, cv91915 said:

 

 

 

My payment was initially $2.80.  

An ARM is a ticking time bomb. 

About $3 per month in interest.  Who can put a price on good credit?

[hdporter]

13 hours ago, hegemony said:

I vaguely recall this. was it @cv91915?

 

I more than "vaguely" recall this.  I was prepared for him to tattoo this fact on his forehead  .

[hdporter]

On 4/5/2026 at 1:22 PM, hegemony said:

Seems it has been 10 years since paying off our mortgage. An older me would have been appalled. Still seems weird that having a mortgage obligation makes someone a better relative risk. 

 

Having a mortgage doesn't make you a better risk.  However, as a whole, present/past mortgage holders manage their credit better than those without a mortgage and you're no longer riding their coattails  .

 

Of course, your actual risk profile hasn't changed at all.  Credit scoring, however, can only evaluate based on what's present in your report.

[StarkRaven$]

On 4/7/2026 at 8:09 AM, cv91915 said:

 

 

 

My payment was initially $2.80.  

An ARM is a ticking time bomb. 

Ingenious!

[Krish]

I was excessively obsessed with perfect score and had paid off several accounts before the statement is realased.

 

That was old.

 

New me - dont care for credit score anymore, only care to maximize my finances while not paying high interest or no interest at all. Only worry when the score dips below 800.