My credit score has been on a steady upward rise since I signed up to creditkarma. But when I checked my score recently I saw that it had dropped by 14 points. What could have caused the drop and what can I do to find out more about it and remedy it?

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Without knowing the specifics of your credit report, it is difficult to know the exact cause. Here are a list of things that can affect your credit that are not based on new inquires or a new accounts.

1. Changes in debt. Are you carrying more debt that before? Think about credit card balances, home equity lines of credit, or even mortgages that may have chanced recently.
2. Changes in available credit. These days most banks are lowering credit limits. Is it possible that you missed one of the notices in the mail? Credit cards and home equity lines of credit are top candidates for reductions in available limit. This will often trigger increases in your credit card utilization which could lower your score.
3. Closure of old or inactive accounts. Some credit cards companies are simply closing inactive accounts. To avoid this happening to you, use your cards every couple of months on necessities to discourage overspending.

Those are some speculative reasons. Lastly, remember not to worry about a perfect credit score. If you are in the high 700s, a drop of 14 points won’t hurt your ability to get the best pricing possible.

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Comments

(4 Total Comments)

I just wanted to mention that card companies are closing accounts for no other reason then to just close them. My husband and I both individually had 2 different card companies close an active account that was in good standing. Because of that, our scores dropped due to a closed account made by the card lender although not because of anything we did. Be aware!"

hwchck26 at 2:07 pm Dec 22

i paid off my car loan and am wondering if my score will drop after it is reported to the credit bureaus. my score is currently 762 with TU, 741 with Exp and 734 with EQ"

nuttsack34 at 4:32 pm Nov 29

It depends on the history of your other credit tradelines.

CK Moderator

I've r4ad that the credit scoring models basically compare you to others with similar characteristics, so as your score improves you might move into a different "band" and show a drop."

Charlie777 at 5:37 am Nov 22