Can a fixed home equity loan drop my credit score?

I requested $10,000 dollar home equity loan to roof my house.

My FICO score was 780 until approx March when I applied for a home equity loan at a fixed rate. Now my FICO score is 740. What happened? I am never late on any payments. I pay over the minimum amount do on my card every time.

There are a number of factors that go in to the scoring model and on time payments is a major one, but not the only one.

Having a new account can be a risk factor all by itself. Since it is a closed end loan, the balance is near the limit and it has probably only just started reporting.

I wouldn't freak out or anything. A 740 is still pretty darn good. My scores boucne around with little rhyme or reason.

Sometimes opening a new account can have a positive affect. I went to Home Depot to buy $300 worth of windows and walked out with 20K in new credit. Having the additional available credit had a very favorable affect on my scores. I don't have to use the credit if I don't need to.

Also, if you have a balance on a credit card that is more than 50% of the limit, you may want to pay it down or transfer some of the balance to another account so that none of your balances are over 50% of the limits.

Again, a 740 is a great score so you really don't need to be worried about anything and it will probably go back up in a month or two once the new loan is a little more seasoned.