Letting CC balances report

[TrialByFire]

There have been some threads recently talking about dont always PIF and to let statements cut with balances to populate or refresh the "high balance" field on a CR. The thinking is this lets that lender and other lenders see you can handle credit and make payments. Side note: Personally I don't prefer to carry balances but will from time to time. I'd rather use it like a debit card and make 2--3 large payments/mo.

Anyways, I'm wondering why folks do this when the CCC will report your highest balance achieved, regardless if it was the balance at statement cut time or if you PIF? For example, I got the Ring in November and charged $39. I PIF before the due date. On my CR, the high balance is still listed at $39, current balance 0. Bear in mind it's this TLs first and only entry thus far.

All of this to say: to me it looks like you don't have to let balances report to show a high balance. I'm going to test this out again with my DC card. It's got a 2.4k balance and I'll PIF, statement should cut mid Jan.

Wondering what those who say let statements cut with balances think on this one (irrespective of floating purposes)

[Shogun]

I don't like to pay interest or carry balances.  Occassionally I'll carry a little bit.  I personally don't think it really matters.

[Anonymous]

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@TrialByFire wrote:
There have been some threads recently talking about dont always PIF and to let statements cut with balances to populate or refresh the "high balance" field on a CR. The thinking is this lets that lender and other lenders see you can handle credit and make payments. Side note: Personally I don't prefer to carry balances but will from time to time. I'd rather use it like a debit card and make 2--3 large payments/mo.

Anyways, I'm wondering why folks do this when the CCC will report your highest balance achieved, regardless if it was the balance at statement cut time or if you PIF? For example, I got the Ring in November and charged $39. I PIF before the due date. On my CR, the high balance is still listed at $39, current balance 0. Bear in mind it's this TLs first and only entry thus far.

All of this to say: to me it looks like you don't have to let balances report to show a high balance. I'm going to test this out again with my DC card. It's got a 2.4k balance and I'll PIF, statement should cut mid Jan.

Wondering what those who say let statements cut with balances think on this one (irrespective of floating purposes)

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I don't think they always report the high balance. Reports show my highest Discover balance at somehwere around $230, which may be the highest ever statement balance, but definitely not the highest balance on the card. Same with Amex.

[redpat]

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@Shogun wrote:

I don't like to pay interest or carry balances.  Occassionally I'll carry a little bit.  I personally don't think it really matters.

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I always let the statements cut with balances and pif before the due date, there is no interest charge.  Utilitization has no memory and letting statements cut with bigger balances builds a better profile in the long run if you pif before the due date.

[Blodreina]

Aside from the benefit of floating, the argument could be made that letting everything report demonstrates a more accurate picture of your spending habits.  For example, Amex can see how you typically use other lenders' cards and vice versa.  If you allow 1% util to report (as I've seen several members mention), yes, you are probably maximizing your score.  To what end, though?  Consistently having a maximized score does little (if anything) pragmatically (long-term).  Let's say you need to let some things report (life happens), whereas you previously reported 1% consistently.  Hypothetically, could this not trigger a computer algorithm red flag?  Of course, I do not know for sure, as I am speculating.  But it seems plausible that creditor algorithms look for changes in habits.  The difference between 1% and 25% is maybe not so negligible, in regards to how your creditors look at it.  If, however, you always reported 15% - maybe it's not as big of a flag.

Believe me, I understand the desire to pay everything before the statement cut; I used to do it.  The other camp of myFICO, the camp I reside in, argues that practicing this habit is useless if you're not applying for something.  There came a point when I realized that controlling utilization (1) doesn't provide any pragmatic long-term benefit to your credit file (unless an application for something is imminent, as mentioned), (2) you can choose to optimize utilization at any point (the avid 1% reporter's credit file doesn't look any different from someone who decides to optimize for an application), (3) it's easier to let everything report, and (4) reporting may show more accurate credit habits/data for your lenders that look.  Even if you completely nix the argument above (reporting = accurate reflection of spending habits), the other points remain.

[TrialByFire]

Great points from all...Falere I'm actually looking to join the camp that lets a statement cut w/ a balance, then PIF. I like to see what everyone has to say one way or the other. Admittedly, I'm apprehensive to do this bc my scores will most certainly fall sub 700 again . Marriott is going to see a ton of use to meet 3k spend as well as the citi DC to establish a track record with them. It's a psychological thing is what it amounts to. Profile is still the same I suppose.

If nothing else it's something to think about on a rainy Sunday

[masscredit]

I usually pay all but one of my cards down to $0 before the statements cut. Just leaving 1-2% total utilization on the one card. I'm letting most of my cards report a balance this month. Totaly utilization so far is 14%. I'm waiting for one more card to report. That will boost it up a litte more. My EQ08 score has lost 18 points so far. EQ04 will report soon (DCU). It didn't move much and I'm waiting for my TU score to update. That only lost 3 points with 14% utilization.  Both of my Barclay cards have a zero % offer so I'm going to let them keep reporting balances as I pay off everything else. Maybe I'll find a sweet spot that is higher than 1-2% that will give me a few more points.

[Gmood1]

I also started out in the micro-managing camp of balances reporting. I've since become too lazy to care. lol

Last night out of boredom, I went in the dispute back door of Transunion and noticed they show your payment history more in detail than the other two CBs.

They give a more accurate account of what you are paying monthly on balances. While the others only give me what was owed when the statement cuts.

Over the last 2 months, from the advice of a forum member. I've been allowing balances to report. Whether paid in full or not. It hasn't affected my scores one bit.

Nor has it affected my apping for credit. Even some of the accounts in TU that show zero balance. Still show where I paid a certain amount that month.

So now I'm firmly in the the let it report camp. In January I'll have at least 13 CC's that will report their balances.

[elim]

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@masscredit wrote:

I usually pay all but one of my cards down to $0 before the statements cut. Just leaving 1-2% total utilization on the one card. I'm letting most of my cards report a balance this month. Totaly utilization so far is 14%. I'm waiting for one more card to report. That will boost it up a litte more. My EQ08 score has lost 18 points so far. EQ04 will report soon (DCU). It didn't move much and I'm waiting for my TU score to update. That only lost 3 points with 14% utilization.  Both of my Barclay cards have a zero % offer so I'm going to let them keep reporting balances as I pay off everything else. Maybe I'll find a sweet spot that is higher than 1-2% that will give me a few more points.

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I let my spend report....  EQ is the enemy of utilization.  Your other 2 scores won't take near the hit.

[Pway]

• I used to pay all my balances before the statement cut, during my rebuild stage from bk.  However now I let those balances report and move on. It was tedious and sometimes stressful keeping up. Now I just pay when the statements cut, making my life so much easier.