Dear Liz: I’m 28 and have had excellent credit since Day One. In May of this year, I leased a new car and found out my credit score was 780. In July I decided to lease a second vehicle. Instead of paying the leasing company monthly, I used a credit card balance transfer offer to write them a check for the entire two-year lease amount ($18,000). When I applied for two more credit cards in the following months, I was denied by both. I have never been late on any payments and always pay off my credit card debts (except for this balance transfer, on which I make monthly payments). Why was I denied credit? For a person with a great credit score, you can imagine how shocked I was.

Answer: You may not have the great credit you think you do.

You’ve been applying for a lot of credit in a short period, something that can adversely affect your scores. You also put a pile of debt on one of your cards, which can also hurt your numbers. Credit scoring formulas are sensitive to the amount of credit you’re using on each card. The narrower the gap between your balances and your limit, the greater the potential damage.

Even if your scores are still good, they might not have been good enough for today’s credit card issuers, especially if you applied for high-end rewards cards. These issuers often want FICO scores of 750 or above. Drop a point or two below, and you may be out of luck.

You didn’t ask, but you should know that leasing cars is an expensive way to go. Most people are far better off financially buying slightly used cars and driving them for 10 years or more. They don’t get to drive the latest models, but they save hundreds of thousands of dollars over their driving lifetimes compared with those who lease a new vehicle every few years.

Post to Twitter