Time since most recent account opening is too short

FICO 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

FICO's new credit category considers the age of your most recently opened account. A card opened last month or a car loan from two weeks ago can trigger it, even on a file with decades of history.

It differs from the code about too many accounts recently opened, which counts accounts. This one can show after a single new account.

What to check on your credit report

• Find the newest open date on each report.
• Confirm you opened it. An account you don't recognize is a fraud warning sign.

What you can do about it

• Avoid opening anything else.
• Let the new account age and pay it on time every month.

How soon a change can show

It fades as your newest account ages. FICO doesn't publish the cutoff, so plan on several months with no new accounts.

If you are applying for a mortgage

Finance the car or the furniture after closing, not before. A new account in the months before you apply brings this code, a hard inquiry and a new monthly payment.

Guides that go deeper

• Getting your credit mortgage-ready in 12 months, month by monthA month-by-month credit plan for the year before a mortgage: what to check, what to fix, what to leave alone, and the timing rules underwriters use.
• Hard vs. soft inquiries: which credit checks count against youA hard inquiry comes from a credit application and can trim your score. A soft one never does. A table of the common checks, gray zones included.
• How much does a hard inquiry lower your credit score?FICO says one more inquiry takes fewer than five points off for most people. What that figure leaves out, and the cases where a few points decide a loan.
• 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.