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@Anonymous wrote:That $10k balance on a closed card shows infinite utilization -- $10,000/$0. That's probably the worst AA trigger -- not just being over limit but having a limit on a $0 TL.
Chances are if you pay everything down well you can recon some of your lost CLs if the accounts are still open. On the other hand, if you don't get those utilizations down, they will chase your balance down with CLDs and it'll keep your utilization high.
Work on your budget and cut all spending possible. Cable TV, cell phone bill, eating out: these are all places you can temporarily halt while you get your credit back under control.
Yeah I agree with you.
I think part of the problem with this forum is people get caught up in getting all the new credit they can. Once they have it, some learn they cannot manage it, then it starts to get ahead of them. This thread is a good example of that.
I'm not being disrespectful to the OP as I understand situations change. But in every case, it might be a good idea to only have as much open credit as you can manage.
Several solid lenders are Fifth Third Bank and FNBO, these 2 assign a limit and leave you alone, I have never seen AA from either one of them.
@AverageJoesCredit wrote:
Well at least we know maybe why we arent seeing the big increases on Discover . Ever since i had my bk7, as much as id love to use my available credit more, i just cant take that risk of getting so far behind that ill never catch up. This is why i try to stress the credit habit i learned most here, to try to pif when possible and buy whst you reasonably believe you can psy off by the end of the month. Im not perfect and never will be, balance will sometimes have to be carried but in the end we have to learn to use our credit more wisely or judiciously.
Sorry op, hope your situation improves, credit and monetarily, as this can happen to any of us with unforseen circumstances.
Very well stated.
@RockinRay wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:That $10k balance on a closed card shows infinite utilization -- $10,000/$0. That's probably the worst AA trigger -- not just being over limit but having a limit on a $0 TL.
Chances are if you pay everything down well you can recon some of your lost CLs if the accounts are still open. On the other hand, if you don't get those utilizations down, they will chase your balance down with CLDs and it'll keep your utilization high.
Work on your budget and cut all spending possible. Cable TV, cell phone bill, eating out: these are all places you can temporarily halt while you get your credit back under control.
Yeah I agree with you.
I think part of the problem with this forum is people get caught up in getting all the new credit they can. Once they have it, some learn they cannot manage it, then it starts to get ahead of them. This thread is a good example of that.
I'm not being disrespectful to the OP as I understand situations change. But in every case, it might be a good idea to only have as much open credit as you can manage.
I agree wholeheartedly with this. I feel that the "hobby" mindset that I've seen referenced to here as how some approach the field of credit can be very dangerous. It can cause people to lose sight of what the real purpose of obtaining credit is - not to amass huge amounts of funds to brag about and artifically inflate credit scores that there's no realistic prospect of ever actually using, much less of paying back if one actually borrows a lot of that money; nor to collect credit cards as if they were baseball trading cards or collectible-card-game cards - but to set up financial reserves that can be used, firstly, to purchase the things that one needs and/or wants that one couldn't obtain with available cash; secondly, to have funds available for emergencies of any sort from replacing blown-out tires to making copays on expensive medical procedures; thirdly, by responsible use of that credit, to establish the financial foundation necessary to gain credit for purchases of major goods such as vehicles and real estate, and also to help maintain and grow one's private business (if one maintains a business). In short, credit is not a game.
@Anonymous wrote:In short, credit is not a game.
Agreed! Managing credit is a job.
I limit the amount I charge in a month to no more than 5x my emergency savings fund. That amount still gets PIF every month, but if I lost my job or was injured, I'd have 12-18 months of minimum payments covered by that emergency savings fund. It's like a self-secured situation.
If you have $40,000 in balances, you need $8000 or so in your emergency fund to cover 18 months of minimum payments.
I am very glad that I've grown and matured in my financial habits.
Over the past year, I've added a LOT of available credit from decent cards. 20 years ago, I would have been buying furniture and electronics and other things that I THOUGHT I needed... Today, while I still have balance on some 0% cards, I always PIF any new spending, plus anything extra I can spare to keep balances going down.
Life happens, and sometimes you NEED to have access to a credit card with a respectable limit (major home repair or unexpected medical expenses, for example)... But the idea is to never spend more than you can pay in cash that month as a general rule. And also to build up an emergency fund in order to be able to keep paying bills in case you lose your job!
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