Score Is Not the Whole Decision
Underwriting looks at risk patterns: how you manage revolving credit, how recently you have missed payments, how many inquiries you have, and whether your profile is stable and verifiable. A credit score is a summary number, but lenders dig deeper into the signals that make up that score—and sometimes override it entirely based on what they find.
The Big Four Signals
The four signals that matter most in underwriting are: 1) Utilization—how much of your available revolving credit you are using, 2) Payment history recency—whether you have any recent late payments and how severe they are, 3) Primary revolving depth—how many primary accounts you manage and for how long, and 4) Inquiry velocity—how many new credit applications you have submitted recently. Fixing these improves approvals more than chasing score points.
Start With Clarity
Run prequalification first so you are not applying blind. Understanding how your profile looks to lenders before submitting applications prevents unnecessary denials and protects your long-term approval capacity.
Start Prequalification →