Need guidance! Should I close a secured cap1 card?

[Anonymous]

Hello,

I'm looking to close my secured Cap1 card and I need to know if it will negatively impact my credit scores.  As you can see below most of my credit lines are joint type accounts on my fiance's cards.  The secured card is one of my newest accounts so it shouldn't affect my AAoA.  I'm just not 100% sure that it being an Individual Account it may be helping my current score more than the joint accounts.  My hunch is I doubt it.....

I'm looking to close the secured card and pay the $500 on my student loan.  My current credit scores range from 640-698.  Not prime yet, but getting there.  Started in the mid 400's about a year and a half ago.

Here are my current revolving lines of credit:

Chase: CL : $16,000 / Opened: 2008 / Balance: $0 / Joint Account

Discover: CL: $8,500 / Opened: 2009 / Balance: $0 / Joint Account

Macy's: CL: $300 / Opened: 2007 / Balance: $0 / Joint Account

Cap1 Biz: CL: $750 / Opened: 2011 / Balance: $0 / Individual Account

Cap1 Secured: CL: $500 / Opened: 2010 / Balance: $0 / Individual Account

Thanks for all of your help!!!!!!  

[gijoe4500]

Have you contacted Cap1 to see if you qualify to graduate your secured card to an unsecured card?

[Anonymous]

Yeah, I tried at the 1 year mark.  No dice.  That's one of the reasons I'm looking to just close it out.  

Maybe if I say I'm going to close it they will?

[Wolf3]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Hello,

I'm looking to close my secured Cap1 card and I need to know if it will negatively impact my credit scores.  As you can see below most of my credit lines are joint type accounts on my fiance's cards.  The secured card is one of my newest accounts so it shouldn't affect my AAoA.  I'm just not 100% sure that it being an Individual Account it may be helping my current score more than the joint accounts.  My hunch is I doubt it.....

I'm looking to close the secured card and pay the $500 on my student loan.  My current credit scores range from 640-698.  Not prime yet, but getting there.  Started in the mid 400's about a year and a half ago.

Here are my current revolving lines of credit:

Chase: CL : $16,000 / Opened: 2008 / Balance: $0 / Joint Account

Discover: CL: $8,500 / Opened: 2009 / Balance: $0 / Joint Account

Macy's: CL: $300 / Opened: 2007 / Balance: $0 / Joint Account

Cap1 Biz: CL: $750 / Opened: 2011 / Balance: $0 / Individual Account

Cap1 Secured: CL: $500 / Opened: 2010 / Balance: $0 / Individual Account

Thanks for all of your help!!!!!!  

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It shoiuld not change your score, since AAofA and Utilization will not change.

Cap1 secured does not unsecure, they expect you you apply for a unsecured card, which you have successfully done.

You have to wait for 2 full cycles to get deposit back, so I suggest you charge up most of the deposit amount and close it right after the next closing.   They will apply the deposit to the balance and you will have a negative balance for a few months.   Then you can wait on the small amount left.  

[Anonymous]

Thanks Wolf3  your advise is dead on!

 I just called Cap1 to ask them about it.  They told me the same thing.  They also mentioned that they do graduate secured cards 'sometimes' and he couldn't tell me when it would happen for my secured card. I'm envisioing and huge mouse maze with a mouse for each secured account holder.  When your mouse reaches the cheese your card gets graduated.

[SevenNEW]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Thanks Wolf3  your advise is dead on!

 I just called Cap1 to ask them about it.  They told me the same thing.  They also mentioned that they do graduate secured cards 'sometimes' and he couldn't tell me when it would happen for my secured card. I'm envisioing and huge mouse maze with a mouse for each secured account holder.  When your mouse reaches the cheese your card gets graduated.

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LOVE IT!

I would close it. Are you an AU on the prime cards? (But, regardless, I would really close it.)

[Anonymous]

Thanks! I'm a joint account holder. All signs point to close,

[Anonymous]

I would say close it. If you don't need it, why keep it open? You're just going to be paying them an AF, and it's going to take a miracle to graduate to unsecured. I asked several different 'senior account specialists' about it a few months back when I was curious about it, and they all basically stated that I should close my card and apply for an unsecured one. Since I already have an unsecured card from them, I haven't bothered. I'm waiting for my Cap One secured card to post a 0 balance one more time and then I'm going to be calling them to cancel it.

They said it can take up to two statements to get the deposit back, but apparently it's usually faster than that. The last guy I spoke to said that if your balance is all paid off, the check should arrive within 14 days.

But I'm expecting to wait 2 months, since it is Capital One, after all. Nothing their reps say actually matters in any way.