Tracking the ups and downs of our credit scores has been an unexpectedly fun adventure. We've always valued the importance of having a strong credit score so thought we might endure some form of "buyers remorse" the first year we implemented this strategy. We simply didn't know how well we could stomach a sharp decrease in our scores. What resulted, however, was a more keen interest in the science of the credit score formula and a quest to better understand how this number relates to the way we are perceived by marketers and lenders.

We begin each year with credit ratings in the "excellent" category. Marketers are all over us, like bees on honey, complimenting our efficiency as borrowers and trying to entice us with low interest offers. Every piece of marketing mail or phone solicitation begins with a phrase like, "because of your excellent credit history....". We are loved and respected by all. ;}

However, after about 2 months, our scores generally drop down to "good" and then to "fair" as multiple credit inquiries and high balance-to-available-credit-limit ratios are reflected on our credit reports. In direct contrast to a few months earlier, we are now popping up on all the "distressed borrower" marketing lists and start receiving pitches from credit repair companies and bankruptcy specialists. The solicitation begins with a phrase along the lines of, "we know you are struggling with debt but you don't have to....".

I treasure these pieces of mail. Here we are earning a great living plus adding an additional $15,000 in free annual income and these companies think we're "struggling to get by". Classic!

These kinds of offers come in steadily through about month 6. Starting in month 7, our scores start to improve as credit card balances are whittled down through the process of paying the minimum payments each month. By month 9, our credit scores have improved markedly and we once again start receiving marketing pitches from lenders who respect our solid credit history.

12 months in, all balances are paid off, the inquiries are a year old, and we are once again credit superstars, loved and respected by all.

Interestingly, each year our overall credit scores have not only rebounded all the way back to where they started but have actually surpassed the original totals.

There are really 2 ways to go about the strategy as relates to credit score:

1. Use only use a small portion of the credit limit on each card. Using this strategy, we obviously make less money overall but our credit score stays much higher, in some cases dropping only a few points over the course of 12 months.

2. Throw caution to the wind and use every last cent of our available credit limit. This strategy produces much higher returns while hitting our credit score really hard, really fast.

After trying both methods, we prefer the second because it leads to much bigger results and also for some of the reasons stated above. We actually enjoy seeing how low our credit scores can go before skyrocketing back up by year's end.