VS3: Crossing the 30% utilization threshold

Wow, this was harsh! -36 points, with some amount coming from a card reporting above 50% util. When my Amex BCE updates to $0 this month, I'll be able to see what the penalty is on VS3 for an individual account above 50%. Aggregate will drop back to 24%, but my Discover card will still be showing above 50% util until it reports paid next month. (Setting that sweet High Balance for my theory about their internal lending algorithms. Hey it could be something to that...)

I'm with you on High Balance being a positive thing.

What is your experience on high balance being the highest statement balance ever reported verses the highest balance ever (between statements) on an account? I've always viewed it as being the highest statement balance ever reported. I had a few people tell me I'm wrong though and that it's the highest (current) balance ever, even if that balance is never a statement balance. That just doesn't sound right to me. For example take a card of mine that has a $7k high balance on that account on my CR. That $7k balance was easily $10k-$11k before I paid off the $7k previous statement balance, but I don't have a $10k-$11k "high balance" on my credit report for that card.

BrutalBodyShots wrote: ↑Wed Nov 09, 2022 8:24 am I'm with you on High Balance being a positive thing.

Lately I've been thinking more about how those custom, internal-only lender algorithms might work when they do these monthly soft pull account reviews. I see it like this: Their automated algorithm will see that I once 'borrowed' a very high dollar amount (High Balance sometime in past 24 months) and paid it off, which goes to 'ability/willingness to pay'. Pure speculation, of course, but if I were writing that code, I'd sure think about incorporating something like this.

What is your experience on high balance being the highest statement balance ever reported verses the highest balance ever (between statements) on an account? I've always viewed it as being the highest statement balance ever reported. I had a few people tell me I'm wrong though and that it's the highest (current) balance ever, even if that balance is never a statement balance. That just doesn't sound right to me. For example take a card of mine that has a $7k high balance on that account on my CR. That $7k balance was easily $10k-$11k before I paid off the $7k previous statement balance, but I don't have a $10k-$11k "high balance" on my credit report for that card.

You're not wrong, really. It's just that they have a lender that records it that way, and it is probably one of the 900 individual credit unions that uses a credit-union-owned payment processor named PSCU. My Mastercard is one of those. The High Balance will be the highest balance ever recorded at any time - it could even be a very high one-day balance that got paid to $0 the next day and well before statement closing. The minute it shows up as activity/pending, it's the new high balance on the next report to the CRAs. My AMEX BCE, Discover, and Citi Costco Visa cards don't report like this - their high balance is only the highest statement balance ever reported.

Cassie wrote: ↑Wed Nov 09, 2022 1:21 am Wow, this was harsh! -36 points, with some amount coming from a card reporting above 50% util. When my Amex BCE updates to $0 this month, I'll be able to see what the penalty is on VS3 for an individual account above 50%.

It looks like the VS3 penalty for being over 50% util on a single individual revolving account is -25 points! So yeah....don't do that. lol Equifax got the updated Amex balance of $0, which brought aggregate util from 31% down to 24%. TransUnion is still showing last month's Amex balance with aggregate util still at 31%. Discover is the one at 63% on both TU and EQ.

Yikes! Good data point though.