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How early should you pay in full?

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Thomas_Thumb
Senior Contributor

Re: How early should you pay in full?


@joltdude wrote:

Im wondering though if the OP is letting any balance report...  Still would PIF but id let at least a balance report (PIF after statement) on one of the cards..... its that 0 utilization on all cards problem.... No?

 


Based on the statement from OP pasted below, the OP is not paying off balances completely before statement cuts.

 

[But does it matter *how* early I pay it off? In other words, if I pay my statement off the very next day after the statement comes out, does that look better than waiting merely a day or two before the due date? Does this even matter at all?]

 

P.S. Fico score would be depressed if utilization were zero but, that is not the case for the OP (per the below statement from the OP).

 

[As far as the grace period goes, my statements are very low for now, as my starting limits are only $500. So for example I just payed my Capital One statement and it was $25.]

 

Fico 9: .......EQ 850 TU 850 EX 850
Fico 8: .......EQ 850 TU 850 EX 850
Fico 4 .....:. EQ 809 TU 823 EX 830 EX Fico 98: 842
Fico 8 BC:. EQ 892 TU 900 EX 900
Fico 8 AU:. EQ 887 TU 897 EX 899
Fico 4 BC:. EQ 826 TU 858, EX Fico 98 BC: 870
Fico 4 AU:. EQ 831 TU 872, EX Fico 98 AU: 861
VS 3.0:...... EQ 835 TU 835 EX 835
CBIS: ........EQ LN Auto 940 EQ LN Home 870 TU Auto 902 TU Home 950
Message 11 of 17
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: How early should you pay in full?

joltdude, I am letting a balance report. That's the $25 statement I was talking about. On both cars I pay off the majority of the balance before the statement will cut, but I leave a small amount there to post a low utilization statement.

So for example I might make $400 worth of purchases on a card, but I would make a $350 payment before the statement posts so that my actual statement is only at 10% UT. And when I get the statement I pay the 50 bucks off and start new again.
Message 12 of 17
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: How early should you pay in full?

I meant cards*, not cars. You can't edit posts here?

Thomas Thumb has the story right.
Message 13 of 17
Stryder
Frequent Contributor

Re: How early should you pay in full?


@Anonymous wrote:
I meant cards*, not cars. You can't edit posts here?

Thomas Thumb has the story right.
Click "Options" in the upper righthand portion of your post, select Edit

 

Message 14 of 17
longtimelurker
Epic Contributor

Re: How early should you pay in full?


@Kevin86475391 wrote:

@Anonymous wrote:
While I am fully aware of the time value of money, given the relatively short timeframe and the interest earned in the type of account that a payment would be made out of, it makes absolutely no financial difference if you use all of the grace period or one day. It also makes no difference to the credit score. If you're concerned, just turn on autopay and pay before the due date.

I very much agree. Interest rates are so low right now that unless someone's statement balances are huge...it's barely worth considering. Do whatever works for you. Your creditor won't care either way since it's the balance at the report date that affects your score.


Yes, but there's no financial advantage in paying early either (and no score advantage) so it's really is you belong to the "a little over a long time adds up" school of thought.  For those that can always PIF, setting autopay on the issuers site, statement balance in full on due date, is the way to go IMO, and you can always pay early if you choose

Message 15 of 17
joltdude
Senior Contributor

Re: How early should you pay in full?

I wasn't sure I was reading it correctly.... Thats all.. Yeah. it doesnt matter if its right after the statement is generated or near the end of the billing cycle to pay it off...  Just that its not before.. I misunderstood and thought the OP was paying it off before the statement date... which would not be productive ... Reason I asked what I did...

 

Im actually starting to see a few cases of folks in the forum who have paid in full before the statement generates.. and have problems with not enough experience with credit type issues.. Because it appears as if they arent using any credit, ergo no experience with credit... though thats not the case.....

 

-J

 

Message 16 of 17
newhis
Valued Contributor

Re: How early should you pay in full?


@Anonymous wrote:
Thanks for the responses guys.

As far as the grace period goes, my statements are very low for now, as my starting limits are only $500. So for example I just payed my Capital One statement and it was $25. Grace period means nothing to me right now and I'd rather just pay it right away.

If you want to increase your score a little (befor an app), you can pay 1 card to $0 before statement close and let just 1 report around $25 (out of $500). It should be a few points better than having both cards reporting a balance.

Message 17 of 17
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