Credit Card Balance = Lower Score?

If you have 3 Credit Cards – and one of them is “Max’d Out” and One has a zero balance, and one you pay off monthly… you could be pulling your score down!Look at the following example:

Credit Card Balance Available Credit

Visa $10,000 $10,000Visa $0 $10,000•Leave Credit Card Balance As Is = Lower Credit Score•The smarter move is to spread the balance between Cards ($5,000 each).  This makes it look like to the COMPUTER SYSTEM that checks all of this – that you are NOT max’d out!  This will = Higher Credit Score!Everybody wants to get RID of credit – but please know that you need at LEAST 2 credit card accounts, and at least 1 installment loan to get the minimum credit scores needed for a home loan! The current minimum scores are 620.Just getting negative credit off of your file will not get your score up high enough for the 620 score!  The BEST idea we’ve heard of recently is this:Go to your Credit Union.  Open a Secured Credit Card.  If you want a card with a $250 limit, then put $500 in a savings account tied to the card.  By putting TWICE the amount of the limit – most institutions will NOT pull your credit, which means you will not have an inquiry.  We want to AVOID inquiries, as they generally pull your score down at least 5 points PER PULL!REMEMBER, if you are a First Time Homebuyer you might qualify for a $8000 Tax Credit!  For more info, click here!If you have questions about your credit, and live in NC, contact Steve and Eleanor Thorne, First Financial Services, Inc at 919-851-3031.  We are residential mortgage lenders!