Anonymous wrote:It’s all such a mystery. I’ve been married with joint finances for 18 years. I’ve been a SAHM for the last 14. DH has an 810 and I have an 830 even though every single bill we’ve paid for 14 years was with only money earned by him. We rotate whose name we open the CC’s so we can churn the bonuses more quickly.

Credit score isn't based on 'who is earning the money.' The score is based on 'is the person paying the account on time?'

Anonymous wrote:Very difficult to impossible. 830 is already 'perfect' credit. PP is not correct. You can have a mortgage. If you owed nothing, you can't get perfect credit either. There's no formula. At 830 you could qualify for the best credit terms available anywhere.

There absolutely is a formula. Credit scores are just an algorithm.

Anonymous wrote:It’s all such a mystery. I’ve been married with joint finances for 18 years. I’ve been a SAHM for the last 14. DH has an 810 and I have an 830 even though every single bill we’ve paid for 14 years was with only money earned by him. We rotate whose name we open the CC’s so we can churn the bonuses more quickly.

Explain to me how you open new CC's for the bonus: how often do you do this, do you cancel an old card when you open a new one, opening a card lowers score so how long before it goes back up, etc etc.
I never actively did open cards for bonuses, so I wonder if its worth the time and effort. Thanks. Also, are any particular bonuses the best?

It’s all such a mystery. I’ve been married with joint finances for 18 years. I’ve been a SAHM for the last 14. DH has an 810 and I have an 830 even though every single bill we’ve paid for 14 years was with only money earned by him. We rotate whose name we open the CC’s so we can churn the bonuses more quickly.

You have to be older as one of the criteria is credit history and you need 25+ year to get the top score for that category

You do realize you're in the top 1% of credit scores, right? It doesn't matter after 800.

Mine is 845. Just for fun I'd like to see it at 850. But it never gets higher. Once in awhile for some reason it drops to 835 but the next month it goes back up to 845.

Zero debt isn't what the credit score is supposed to show. It is supposed to show that one is able to take out loans and then pay them back on time and in full. So, PP, take out a loan or two and pay it back immediately. Make sure that there is no penalty for early repayment, though. Note that your score will go down initially if the lender makes a credit inquiry.

Absolutely ZERO debt, score 805.

Very difficult to impossible. 830 is already 'perfect' credit. PP is not correct. You can have a mortgage. If you owed nothing, you can't get perfect credit either. There's no formula. At 830 you could qualify for the best credit terms available anywhere.

Anonymous wrote:no student loans, no bank mortgage either or car loan, but enough different credit cards

Incorrect. My students loans were paid off prior to us securing a mortgage. Because I didn't have any installment debt my score dropped 50pts. That was years ago though. With my mortgage I'm sitting around 835-840.

Anonymous wrote:no student loans, no bank mortgage either or car loan, but enough different credit cards

Credit mix is 10% of FICO. The best scores are a mix of installment and revolving accounts.

no student loans, no bank mortgage either or car loan, but enough different credit cards

How old are your accounts and do you have a wide variety of accounts? I have an 840 and my partner has an 810 and the only difference is that they never had student loans and I had them and paid them off. We've had joint finances for well over 20 years with just that one difference.

Just for fun, how can I get my credit score at 850? Is it possible to do that?

The score is 830 now, and I dont understand why its not 850. No debt, everything paid on time forever.