Hey guys! So I think I'm going to play around with the whole "one card reports small utilization" to see if this will result in a rise in my scores next month! 
the question of the night is: when do YOU PIF on the cards you don't want to report?? What is the recommended time frame to PIF before statement cut if I only want to make one payment a month to my CC? Any companies do an odd reporting, like mid-statement? Feel free to input your personal experiences based on my cards and their affiliate companies, or any other companies you have! Think I'll just have the small utilization report on my JCPenney!
i make sure to pay by due date and then dont spend anything until a statement is put up.
for example my chase freedom is due 12/7 i pif on that day and then dont use it for a few days (usually the 10th) and then use it whenever. i use another card for the time being
my balance due is always 0 since i pay in full so if for whatever reason i forget to pay it no hard since they are all new charges.
daybreakgonesXe wrote:I only want to make one payment a month to my CC
If you make only one payment/month, then you should pay your current account balance (which should be more than your last statement balance) by the due date AND stop using the card until the next statement date. That will result in a zero balance on your next statement.
If you make payments on the credit card company's website via checking account debit, you can schedule a payment 1 day before the due date. The payment will be on time and the payment will be posted before the next statement.
brother7 wrote:
daybreakgonesXe wrote:I only want to make one payment a month to my CC
If you make only one payment/month, then you should pay your current account balance (which should be more than your last statement balance) by the due date AND stop using the card until the next statement date. That will result in a zero balance on your next statement.
If you make payments on the credit card company's website via checking account debit, you can schedule a payment 1 day before the due date. The payment will be on time and the payment will be posted before the next statement.
Great advice! I just checked my Equifax report to see when each company reports each account and marked it down in my calendar. But I agree, paying a day or two before the due date on both my statement and current balances will result in the $0 reporting for the next month as long as I don't spend between the due date and statement cut, and then from there it's always the current account balance to keep at it. I'm sure after a couple go-rounds I'll have it down to a science! Now, it's just a waiting game for my free annual report to see when Transunion and Experian receive information from my CC companies...
brother7 wrote:
daybreakgonesXe wrote:I only want to make one payment a month to my CC
If you make only one payment/month, then you should pay your current account balance (which should be more than your last statement balance) by the due date AND stop using the card until the next statement date. That will result in a zero balance on your next statement.
If you make payments on the credit card company's website via checking account debit, you can schedule a payment 1 day before the due date. The payment will be on time and the payment will be posted before the next statement.
depends which bank/cu you send it from.
i have to set it up 3 buisness days ahead of time.
and do the math if i have any pending charges so there is no surprises.
Joesh wrote:So does reporting 0% utilization actually help your score? I thought the goal was to report between a small nonzero amount (like 5%)
Not really; you're right, reporting a small nonzero amount is best! I'm just discussing having an overall utilization with just one card reporting, instead of all my cards reporting balances.
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