No open installment accounts in your credit file

VantageScore code numbers

Code numbers can differ by bureau and score version. The wording of the statement is what to match.

What puts this reason on your score

VantageScore's explanation says an installment account has a fixed monthly payment for the life of the loan, with auto and student loans as common examples. Once your last one is paid off, the file has no open installment loan showing current payments.

It's a credit mix code, and an easy one to overreact to. A new loan brings a hard inquiry, a new account and a balance that hasn't been paid down, which can set off codes 85, 06 and 53.

What to check on your credit report

• That a loan you're still paying shows as open
• That a paid-off loan shows as closed with a $0 balance

What you can do about it

• Usually, leave it alone.
• If you need a loan anyway, such as for a car, it clears this code as a side effect.
• A small credit builder loan can make sense for a thin file. It's not worth it for a file that only lacks an open loan.

How soon a change can show

It clears once a new installment loan reports. Without one, it stays.

If you are applying for a mortgage

Don't take out a loan right before a mortgage to fix this code. The new payment counts in your debt-to-income ratio, and the new account and inquiry can lower the score.

Guides that go deeper

• How much credit mix counts in your scoreCredit mix is 10% of a FICO Score, and FICO says you don't need one of each account type. The math on taking a loan just to improve mix rarely works.
• Why paying off a loan can drop your score (and why it's still fine)You made the last car payment and your score fell. What changed on your report, how long the dip lasts, and when the timing of a payoff matters.
• How credit builder loans work and who they helpA credit builder loan holds the money until you've paid it off. What gets reported, what it costs, and what a CFPB study found about who benefits.
• What your credit score reason codes are telling youReason codes list what held your score back the most, in order. What the common ones mean, which you can act on, and which to leave alone.