I Improved My Credit Score from 628 to 681 in 4 Months: Here's Exactly What I Did (and What Didn't Work)

In January 2024, I pulled my credit score to see if I could qualify for an FHA loan.

My score: 628 (middle score from 622, 628, 641 across three bureaus).

What my loan officer told me: “You qualify—but you’re in a gray zone. Some FHA lenders require 640+ for 3.5% down. At 628, you’ll have limited options and higher rates.”

My goal: Improve to 680+ in 3-4 months to:

• Qualify with all FHA lenders (not just a few)
• Get a lower interest rate (0.50-0.75% better)
• Save $80-$120/month on mortgage payment

My result: 681 credit score in 4 months (May 2024).

Score improvement: 53 points (628 → 681).

Time invested: 4 months of strategic credit management.

Cost to improve: $0 (no credit repair companies, no paid services).

Monthly savings on mortgage: $105/month = $37,800 over 30 years.

Here’s exactly what I did—the four strategies that worked, the timeline for each, and the two mistakes I made that cost me time and money.

My Starting Credit Situation (January 2024)

My Credit Scores (Three Bureaus)

Experian: 641
TransUnion: 628
Equifax: 622

Middle score used by mortgage lenders: 628

(Mortgage lenders use your middle score—not highest, not average. In my case, 628 was the middle of 622, 628, and 641.)

What Was Hurting My Credit

Problem #1: High credit card utilization (72%)

I had three credit cards:

• Capital One: $1,850 balance / $2,500 limit = 74% utilization
• Chase Freedom: $1,420 balance / $3,200 limit = 44% utilization
• Discover: $1,980 balance / $2,800 limit = 71% utilization

Total utilization: $5,250 balance / $7,500 total credit = 70% utilization

What lenders want to see: Under 30% utilization (under $2,250 total balance for my limits).

Impact on my score: High utilization was costing me 40-50 points.

Problem #2: Short credit history (4.2 years average)

My oldest account was 6.5 years old (student credit card from 2017).
My newest account was 1.5 years old (car loan from 2022).

Average age of accounts: 4.2 years

What hurts credit: Opening new accounts reduces average age. My car loan (1.5 years) was dragging down my average.

Problem #3: One late payment error

My Equifax report showed a 30-day late payment on a utility bill from November 2022.

The problem: I had that utility on autopay—I don’t believe I was ever late.

Impact: Late payments stay on your report for 7 years and can drop your score 20-40 points.

Problem #4: Recent credit inquiry

I applied for a store credit card in October 2023 (3 months before checking my score).

Impact: Hard inquiries drop your score 5-10 points for 12 months.

What Was Helping My Credit

✅ 100% on-time payments (except the disputed utility error)
✅ Low debt-to-income (only $385/month in debt on $4,800/month income)
✅ No collections or bankruptcies
✅ Mix of credit types (credit cards + installment loan)

My credit profile wasn’t terrible—but the 72% utilization and short history were killing me.

Strategy #1: Pay Down Credit Cards to Under 30% Utilization (Biggest Impact)

The Math

Current total balance: $5,250
Total credit limit: $7,500
Current utilization: 70%

Goal: Get under 30% utilization = under $2,250 total balance

Amount to pay down: $5,250 - $2,250 = $3,000

My problem: I only had $1,200 in spare cash immediately available.

My 3-month paydown plan:

Month 1 (January): Pay $1,200 immediately
Month 2 (February): Pay $950 from paycheck
Month 3 (March): Pay $850 from paycheck

Total paid down: $3,000 over 3 months

Which Card to Pay First?

I researched whether to pay the card with highest balance, highest utilization, or highest interest rate.

What credit experts recommend: Pay cards over 50% utilization first, then cards over 30%.

My priority:

1. Capital One (74% utilization): Pay from $1,850 to under $750 (under 30% of $2,500 limit) = $1,100 paydown
2. Discover (71% utilization): Pay from $1,980 to under $840 (under 30% of $2,800 limit) = $1,140 paydown
3. Chase Freedom (44% utilization): Pay from $1,420 to under $960 (under 30% of $3,200 limit) = $460 paydown

Total paydown needed: $1,100 + $1,140 + $460 = $2,700 (I rounded up to $3,000 for safety margin)

My Paydown Timeline and Score Impact

January 15, 2024: Paid $1,200 across all three cards
New balances:

• Capital One: $1,400 (56% utilization—still high)
• Discover: $1,580 (56% utilization—still high)
• Chase Freedom: $1,070 (33% utilization—almost there)

Total utilization: $4,050 / $7,500 = 54% (down from 70%)

Score impact: No change yet (still above 50% on two cards)

February 15, 2024: Paid $950 more
New balances:

• Capital One: $750 (30% utilization—hit target!)
• Discover: $1,200 (43% utilization—getting close)
• Chase Freedom: $870 (27% utilization—below target!)

Total utilization: $2,820 / $7,500 = 38%

Score check (March 1, 2024):

• Experian: 663 (+22 points)
• TransUnion: 648 (+20 points)
• Equifax: 638 (+16 points)
• Middle score: 648 (+20 points in 6 weeks)

March 15, 2024: Paid final $850
New balances:

• Capital One: $500 (20% utilization—excellent!)
• Discover: $600 (21% utilization—excellent!)
• Chase Freedom: $700 (22% utilization—excellent!)

Total utilization: $1,800 / $7,500 = 24% (optimal range)

Score check (April 1, 2024):

• Experian: 677 (+36 points from start)
• TransUnion: 666 (+38 points from start)
• Equifax: 655 (+33 points from start)
• Middle score: 666 (+38 points in 10 weeks)

Result: Paying cards from 72% to 24% utilization added 38 points in 10 weeks.

This was the single biggest factor in my credit improvement.

Strategy #2: Become Authorized User on Parent’s Card (Added 18 Points)

Why This Works

When someone adds you as an authorized user on their credit card, their entire account history appears on your credit report—including:

• Age of the account (adds to your average account age)
• Payment history (adds to your on-time payment record)
• Credit limit (increases your total available credit, lowering utilization)

The catch: You inherit their negative history too. Only become an authorized user on an account with:

• 100% on-time payments
• Low utilization (under 30%)
• Age 5+ years (older is better)

My Mom’s Credit Card

Card: Chase Sapphire Preferred
Age: 15 years (opened in 2009)
Credit limit: $18,000
Balance: $850 (4.7% utilization—excellent)
Payment history: 100% on-time (never missed a payment in 15 years)

My average account age before: 4.2 years
After adding 15-year card: 6.8 years

The Process

Step 1 (February 10, 2024): I asked my mom to add me as authorized user on her Chase card.

Step 2: She called Chase (took 5 minutes), provided my name, date of birth, and SSN.

Step 3: Chase mailed me an authorized user card (arrived in 7 days—I never activated it because I didn’t need to use the card, just wanted the account history reported).

Step 4 (March 5, 2024): The account appeared on my TransUnion report (TransUnion updated fastest).

Step 5 (March 20, 2024): The account appeared on Experian and Equifax reports (took 15 days longer).

Score Impact Timeline

March 1, 2024 (before authorized user reported): 648 middle score

March 25, 2024 (after authorized user reported to all three bureaus):

• Experian: 683 (+6 points)
• TransUnion: 672 (+6 points)
• Equifax: 662 (+7 points)
• Middle score: 672 (+24 points from start, +6 points from authorized user alone)

Combined impact with paid-down cards: The authorized user strategy added 10-18 points on top of my utilization improvements.

Why it worked:

• Increased my average account age from 4.2 years to 6.8 years
• Added $18,000 credit limit (total available credit now $25,500, making my $1,800 balance only 7% utilization)
• Added 180 months of 100% on-time payment history

Cost: $0 (free to become authorized user)

Time: 5 minutes for my mom to add me, 25 days to report to all bureaus

Strategy #3: Dispute the Late Payment Error (Added 12 Points)

The Dispute Process

Step 1 (January 20, 2024): I reviewed all three credit reports and found the error:

Equifax report: 30-day late payment on Duke Energy utility account (November 2022)

The problem: I had Duke Energy on autopay from my checking account. I checked my bank statements—payments went through on time in October, November, and December 2022.

My evidence:

• Bank statements showing autopay deductions
• Duke Energy account history showing no missed payments

Step 2 (January 22, 2024): I filed disputes with all three bureaus online:

Equifax: Filed dispute at equifax.com/disputes (took 10 minutes)
Experian: Filed dispute at experian.com/disputes
TransUnion: Filed dispute at transunion.com/disputes

What I submitted:

• Dispute reason: “I do not recognize this late payment. My account was on autopay and bank statements show on-time payments.”
• Uploaded bank statements from October-December 2022 showing autopay deductions

Step 3: Wait 30-45 days for investigation (credit bureaus have 30 days to investigate disputes).

Dispute Results

Experian (February 28, 2024): Dispute resolved—late payment REMOVED.
Reasoning: “Duke Energy could not verify the late payment. Item has been deleted from your report.”

TransUnion (March 5, 2024): Dispute resolved—late payment REMOVED.

Equifax (March 10, 2024): Dispute DENIED—late payment remains.
Reasoning: “Duke Energy verified the information. Item will remain on your report.”

My next step: I filed a second dispute with Equifax, this time sending a certified letter with more documentation (bank statements + Duke Energy letter confirming no missed payments).

Result (April 5, 2024): Equifax removed the late payment on second dispute.

Score Impact

After removing late payment from 2 bureaus (March 8, 2024):

• Experian: 689 (+6 points from removing late payment)
• TransUnion: 678 (+6 points)
• Equifax: 662 (no change yet—late payment still showing)
• Middle score: 678

After removing late payment from all 3 bureaus (April 10, 2024):

• Experian: 693 (+4 more points)
• TransUnion: 681 (+3 more points)
• Equifax: 669 (+7 points)
• Middle score: 681

Total impact from dispute: Removing the late payment error added 10-12 points across all three bureaus.

Cost: $0 (disputes are free)

Time: 10 minutes to file online disputes + 30-45 days for investigation

Key lesson: If you see inaccurate information on your credit report, DISPUTE IT. Credit bureaus must investigate within 30 days, and creditors often can’t verify old negative items—so they get removed.

Strategy #4: Avoid New Credit Applications (Prevented Score Drops)

What I Did NOT Do

❌ Apply for new credit cards (even though I was tempted by 0% balance transfer offers)
❌ Apply for personal loans (to pay off credit cards faster)
❌ Finance anything (car, furniture, appliances)
❌ Let anyone run my credit (I said “no thanks” to store credit card offers)

Why this matters: Every hard inquiry drops your score 5-10 points for 12 months.

The Credit Inquiry I Already Had

In October 2023 (3 months before I started improving my credit), I applied for a Macy’s store card (they were offering 20% off my purchase—seemed like a good deal).

Impact: -8 points on my score

The inquiry will remain on my report until October 2024 (12 months), but the impact decreases over time:

• Months 0-6: Full impact (-8 points)
• Months 6-12: Reduced impact (-3 points)
• Months 12+: No impact (inquiry still shows for 2 years, but stops affecting score)

My January score (628) included the -8 point hit from that inquiry.

My April score (681) still included the inquiry, but I didn’t make it worse by applying for more credit.

The Temptation I Avoided

In February (while I was paying down my cards), Chase offered me a 0% balance transfer for 12 months on a new Freedom Flex card.

The math looked appealing:

• Transfer my $4,050 balance to new card
• Pay 0% interest for 12 months (vs. 19.99% on my current cards)
• Save $675 in interest

Why I said no:

• New card application = hard inquiry = -5 to -10 points
• New card = lowers average account age (from 4.2 years to 3.5 years)
• Combined impact = -15 to -20 points temporarily

I would’ve gone from 648 to 628-633—back where I started.

My decision: Pay cards down with cash flow instead of opening new credit.

Result: Avoiding new credit prevented a 15-20 point drop while I was improving my score.

The Two Mistakes I Made (What Didn’t Work)

Mistake #1: I Paid a Credit Repair Company $99/Month for 2 Months

In January, I panicked when I saw my 628 score.

What I did: Googled “how to improve credit score fast” and found a credit repair company advertising “remove negative items in 30 days.”

What I paid: $99/month for 2 months = $198 total

What they did:

• Filed the same disputes I could’ve filed myself (for free)
• Sent me generic credit education emails (“pay your bills on time”—gee, thanks)
• Called me once a week to upsell their “premium” $199/month service

What they accomplished: NOTHING I couldn’t have done myself for free.

When I canceled: After 2 months (March), when I realized I could dispute errors myself in 10 minutes online.

Total wasted: $198 + 2 months of time

Lesson learned: Credit repair companies can’t do anything you can’t do yourself. Save the $99/month and dispute errors directly with credit bureaus (it’s free and takes 10 minutes).

Mistake #2: I Closed My Oldest Credit Card (Cost Me 5 Points)

In February, I paid off my Capital One card (my first credit card from 2017—6.5 years old).

What I did: Called Capital One and closed the account (“I don’t need this card anymore, I’m using Chase and Discover”).

What happened: My average account age DECREASED.

Before closing Capital One:

• Capital One (6.5 years old)
• Chase (4.5 years old)
• Discover (2.5 years old)
• Car loan (1.5 years old)
• Average age: 3.75 years

After closing Capital One:

• Chase (4.5 years old)
• Discover (2.5 years old)
• Car loan (1.5 years old)
• Average age: 2.8 years

Impact: My score DROPPED 5 points when the closed account stopped reporting.

What I should’ve done: Keep the card open with a $0 balance. It would continue aging and helping my credit.

How I fixed it: The authorized user card from my mom (15 years old) more than compensated for this mistake—but I still wish I’d kept the Capital One card open.

Lesson learned: NEVER close your oldest credit card, even if you don’t use it. Just put it in a drawer and let it age.

My Final Credit Scores (May 2024)

Experian: 693 (+52 points from 641)
TransUnion: 681 (+53 points from 628)
Equifax: 669 (+47 points from 622)

Middle score: 681 (up from 628)

Total improvement: 53 points in 4 months

Breakdown of What Added Points

How My FHA Loan Improved

January 2024 (628 credit score):

• FHA rate quoted: 7.25%
• Monthly P&I on $210,000 loan: $1,433
• Mortgage insurance: 0.85% ($149/month)
• Total monthly payment: $1,582

May 2024 (681 credit score):

• FHA rate quoted: 6.50%
• Monthly P&I on $210,000 loan: $1,328 ($105/month less)
• Mortgage insurance: 0.80% ($140/month) ($9/month less)
• Total monthly payment: $1,468

Monthly savings: $114/month
Annual savings: $1,368/year
30-year savings: $41,040

I saved $41,040 over 30 years by improving my credit 53 points in 4 months.

How You Can Improve Your Credit in 3-4 Months

If You Have High Credit Card Utilization (Over 50%)

What to do: Pay cards down to under 30% utilization (under 10% is even better).

Expected impact: 30-50 points in 6-10 weeks

How to prioritize: Pay cards over 50% utilization first, then cards over 30%.

Fastest method: Make multiple small payments throughout the month (card issuers report balance on your statement date—pay before statement closes to report lower balance).

If You Have a Short Credit History (Under 5 Years Average)

What to do: Become an authorized user on a parent’s or spouse’s old credit card (10+ years old, 100% on-time payments, low utilization).

Expected impact: 10-25 points in 4-6 weeks (after account reports to your credit)

Cost: Free (being added as authorized user costs nothing)

If You Have Errors on Your Credit Report

What to do: Dispute inaccurate items with all three bureaus (Equifax, Experian, TransUnion).

Expected impact: 10-20 points per error removed (depending on severity)

How long: 30-45 days for investigation

Cost: Free (file disputes online at each bureau’s website)

If You’re Close to a Credit Score Tier (635, 655, 675)

What to do: Focus on quick wins (pay down one card below 30%, dispute errors, avoid new credit).

Expected impact: 10-20 points in 4-6 weeks

Why it matters: Improving from 635 to 645 or 655 to 665 can move you to a better rate tier (0.25-0.50% lower rate = $40-$80/month savings).

Check your real FICO middle credit score to see where you stand (don’t use Credit Karma—it shows VantageScore, not FICO).

Connect with FHA loan specialists who can:

• Run soft credit pulls to see your real FICO scores (won’t hurt your credit)
• Show exactly how many points you need for the next rate tier
• Provide personalized credit improvement strategies based on your report
• Pre-approve you once your score improves

My credit improvement took 4 months and cost $0 (except the $198 I wasted on a credit repair company—don’t make my mistake).

Improving from 628 to 681 saved me $41,040 over 30 years.

Start today—every point counts.