<prompt> Human: Still trying to learn the ins and outs of what effects my credit score. My Experian score has been at 652 for over a year, despite paying off all my credit cards and consistantly paying down my car loan. Last month I applied to rent an apartment and was approved. A couple days later, my score went down to 644. I can only imagine what it wouldve done to my score if I had applied to multiple apartment complexes. I understand the concept of creditors looking down upon people applying for multiple lines of credit or something like that, and having it negatively effect your score. But why when I apply to one apartment complex and get APPROVED would my score go down? Such a bummer.  <response>: Even if you got approved, the so-called hard credit check that the apartment complex did on your credit report brings the overall score down. 