Raising FICO scores

[DznyDreams]

We have 23 open and closed accounts that show on our credit reports. All closed accounts were paid on time and then closed. A few of these were unsecured credit cards but most were bank loans, secured by property.

Of the 12 open accounts, 8 are credit cards, most of which have $0 balances. The 2 with balances get paid off each month, unless we are paying for something with a no-interest promo.

DH's FICO is 766. I am under the impression that the number of open/closed accounts on the record has had an effect on the score. I am wondering if the score would increase over time if I closed out some of the unused dept. store cards or the newer credit cards we do not use.

We are looking to finance a new car in 2 years, and possibly a new home in 3-4. So we have time, right?

Any thoughts?

 

[mrsklamc]

766 is actually a quite good score. I wouldn't worry about trying to improve it. Just keep doing what you are doing.

http://www.bargaineering.com/articles/what-is-a-good-credit-score.html

 

[DznyDreams]

Hmmm....I guess it is not bad, but for some reason, DH is under the impression that it needs to be in the 790-810 range to get the best interest rates.

 

[disneyfans95]

His rating is very solid now. If you started to close cards, it might actually lower your score, so be careful.

 

[r&kmommy]

Ditto disneyfans! DONT mess with it. I was petrified that my credit score of 783 (and dh's of 765) would get us bad rates on our car loan, but my friend who used to score credit for a car loan company said anything over 725 automatically got the BEST rates and given the current economy that 725 is probably lower for a lot of car places. DONT mess with anything...

 

[DznyDreams]

OK Cool!

Thanks to all of you!