Paid off cards

[MyLoFICO]

Got my taxes today and paid them all off except 9% of one of the QuickSilver cards. This is what it looks like now. 

Card  |  Bal  | Limit

C1 QS1:                       $0 / $1750                

C1 QS1 #2:                  $180 / $2000               

Barclays Rewards:        $0 / $500                     

WalMart Store Card:      $0 / $4000

Amazon Store Card:      $0 / $4000

Chevron/Texaco:          $0 / $1500                     

Credit Union Visa:          $0 / $500                    

C1 Spark Classic:           $0 / $500 

Paypal Smart Connect    $0 / $800

Lowes:                         $0 / $5000

Discount Tire:                $0 / $500

Kohls:                           $0 / $500

Fingerhut:                     $0 / $400

Target Red Card:           $0 / $300

Old navy                        $0 / $3500

BP Gas Card                   $0 / $2000

Yes, I know its alot of store cards. I can't get prime cards yet because of my CS. My question is will this make the best of my current situation as I garden for the next 12 months or should I use these cards? Some of them have never been used and about half of them are new. 

[icyhot]

OMG. I was in your EXACT same position last year. I had 3 majors (all maxed) and loads of store cards that I used all the time cuz I figured if I had the credit there why not use it? Well, I got school refund and paid them off, and my credit score shot up and I started applying for loads of major cards and rapidly closing all my store cards, which has led me to where I am now. HOWEVER my AAOA is cruddy and I have more inquiries than I would like, so I wouldn't suggest doing that. Instead, I would suggest taking all those store cards, except maybe one that will give you discounts at a store you shop at and you can immediately pay it off (like Kohls or Target, maybe BP if you kind their savings program) but I would suggest taking all your store cards, tying them up together in a rubber band, and putting them in a dresser. You have more majors than I do, so you have a bit more flexibility, but I would focus on using and growing those. Designate one for bills, one for general spend, one for necessities like gas/groceries etc, spend what you can afford and make frequent payments. While the store cards are on ice, you'll have a lot of trade lines growing and building history, and reporting a zero balance. If they're closed for inactivity so what. Focus on growing your majors. Once the QS1s are eligible combine them and upgrade to a QS. Once your scores are higher and the store cards build more history, you may be able to begin applying for some higher tier cards, if that's what you wish to do. Just my advice from my experience, this is what I wish I would've done instead of running after fancy shiny cards as soon as I hit 700s LOL

OAN: if you WERE to close any of the stores now, I'd say PayPal and Fingergut. PayPal doesn't report to CRAs anyway and nobody needs Fingerhut lol

[MyLoFICO]

You read my mind. Most of these are tucked away in my safe. I should not have opened these store cards. I won’t use them. But that is another story in another thread.

Anyway, my goal is to use my QS’s and my Barclays because they have cash rewards. I will pay everything with them and then pay them off before the bill generates and build my rewards. I will pay the one QS down to the $180 like I have here. I just don’t want that plan to bring my score down. My inquiries are Exp: 23 TU: 15  EQFX: 17  so I won’t be applying for a long time. Once I lose those I will get my majors and cancel these store cards that haven’t already been closed by the creditor. One of the QS is old and one is 4 months old. Once it hits 6 months old I will combine them.

PP is going bye bye, and not by my choice. Long story but my PP account and this Smart Connect is going away as of today. I will close any that hit me with any fees, otherwise they can close due to inactivity.

[takeshi74]

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@MyLoFICO wrote:

My question is will this make the best of my current situation as I garden for the next 12 months or should I use these cards?

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Do not rely solely on usage.  Your entire credit profile matters.  The standard factors matter.

http://www.myfico.com/crediteducation/whatsinyourscore.aspx

This gets your revolving utilization (falls under Amounts Owed) down.  Revolving utilization has a significant impact but it is also not the only factor that matters.

[MyLoFICO]

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@takeshi74 wrote:

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@MyLoFICO wrote:

My question is will this make the best of my current situation as I garden for the next 12 months or should I use these cards?

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Do not rely solely on usage.  Your entire credit profile matters.  The standard factors matter.

http://www.myfico.com/crediteducation/whatsinyourscore.aspx

This gets your revolving utilization (falls under Amounts Owed) down.  Revolving utilization has a significant impact but it is also not the only factor that matters.

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Thank you, and I understand. My AAOA is not horrible but that's not because I didn't try to ruin it with all these new cards. Hind sight is always 20/20. I do have 1 bad debt but it falls off next January and I have decided to let it. I have some late payments on my mortgage that will haunt me for another year since the mortgage company turned down my goodwill request. I will monitor my score and the different parts in the meantime. I have a mortgage and a truck financed too. These cards are just the part I am focusing on now. Now that they are paid off, I can get back to the big picture. 

[MyLoFICO]

My CS’s before the new cards hit and before the payoffs are reflected. I will update in a week or so. This is just for tracking purposes.

EXP F8: 639

TU F8: 663

EQF (From CK): 631

[MyLoFICO]

Just got an Alert From Barclays Credit Tracker. TU F8 jumped to 675. This is from the new accounts reporting. My UTI still shows over 24%. Should update soon though. 

[MyLoFICO]

Equifax FAKO just went up 10 pts too. 

[Anonymous]

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MyLoFICO wrote: 

Yes, I know its alot of store cards. I can't get prime cards yet because of my CS. My question is will this make the best of my current situation as I garden for the next 12 months or should I use these cards? Some of them have never been used and about half of them are new. 

Hmm, here's the thing. Using cards actually doesn't matter as long as you pay the statement balance off. If your question is actually how to get and keept he best score, than yes, you want to sock drawer all those cards and stick to one, keeping that balance below  9 %. I keep mine below 5 % but I'm trying to buying a house in a few months. BTW, I still use my other cards, I just pay them off before they report a balance to anyone. Having said all that, there is no real harm and optimizing your best score by using only one card as long as you remember to use the sock drawered card every so often. I get the mental bump that could give you while you wait the year for your baddies to fall off. 

Congrats on paying down your debt! I That is such a huge step.

[MyLoFICO]

Yes, that is my plan now. I have them all in my safe. I alternate my QS cards to pay my bills for the cash rewards and pay one off before the bill generates and paying the other down to 9%. I have a secured Discover IT on the way that I am going to use for all my petty stuff like lunch and whatnot and pay it off too. I need to nurture the MC's, Discover, and the 1 Visa I have so they will grow. I really don't care about the store cards but I got them because they are stores I might actually need to buy from so if the need arises and I need the card to have activity then i will use it.