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Should I close this card ???

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lylesvegas
Contributor

Should I close this card ???

I got this Cap One cash card on Thanksgiving in my spree. The card only has a 500 limit, the lowest of all my cards. Since they are terrible with cli and I always pif and dont need it for utilization, and it has a 39 dollar AF............ Why do I keep it ???

Amex BCE...Amex ED...Barclay WMC...Priceline Rewards Visa...Cap One Venture...Total Rewards Visa...Wells Fargo Visa...Discover IT...Pay Pal Smart Connect...Overstock Store Card...Lowe's Store Card


Message 1 of 18
17 REPLIES 17
Tryon2improve
Regular Contributor

Re: Should I close this card ???

Keep it to help build AAoA, and next October ask them to remove the fee or waive it.  If you do not need it at that point and they don't waive the fee then cancel.



Message 2 of 18
visorboy1974
Valued Contributor

Re: Should I close this card ???


@Tryon2improve wrote:

Keep it to help build AAoA, and next October ask them to remove the fee or waive it.  If you do not need it at that point and they don't waive the fee then cancel.


I agree with this.  You have the card already...try to maximize the value from it and then dump it at the one year point if they don't waive the fee for you.  

FICO Scores Updated 07/15 EQ08 748 EX08 748 TU08 818
Message 3 of 18
bs6054
Valued Contributor

Re: Should I close this card ???

Keeping it open or closing has no impact (for probably the next several years) on AAoA.  Only impacts utilization. 

 

If there are no rewards or other value to the card, there is no real point in keeping it till next year to see if the fee will be waived.  If you really don't need it, may as well close it and move on.

Message 4 of 18
Tryon2improve
Regular Contributor

Re: Should I close this card ???


@bs6054 wrote:

Keeping it open or closing has no impact (for probably the next several years) on AAoA.  Only impacts utilization. 

 

If there are no rewards or other value to the card, there is no real point in keeping it till next year to see if the fee will be waived.  If you really don't need it, may as well close it and move on.


BS, you are correct in that AAoA has no impact currently, but in the future it could mean a quite a bit depending on his/her credit profile.  I have $65k in available credit to me and Cap 1 would not budge on the fee or CL so I dumped them at the 1 year mark.  At the time it helped established that I was using my credit effectively.  When reconning with Chase they asked me why I had the card for only a year and closed it, so an UW may see opening cards and then closing them quickly as risky (people do this often to just get the bonuses). As always YMMV.



Message 5 of 18
lylesvegas
Contributor

Re: Should I close this card ???

I would wonder if other cc would not like the toy limit though....

Amex BCE...Amex ED...Barclay WMC...Priceline Rewards Visa...Cap One Venture...Total Rewards Visa...Wells Fargo Visa...Discover IT...Pay Pal Smart Connect...Overstock Store Card...Lowe's Store Card


Message 6 of 18
Tryon2improve
Regular Contributor

Re: Should I close this card ???

During recon I don't think the toy limit matters that much when you are getting going.  If you have $10k, $10k, $10k, $500 then it might>  I have found that when you explain that you were establishing credit and that is all Cap One would give and ever give on the account, most of the CSR's and UW understand and know this about Cap 1. 

 

Once you have a Cap 1 you are screwed anyway you look at it. :-)   j/k to all the loyalists out there. 



Message 7 of 18
lylesvegas
Contributor

Re: Should I close this card ???

LOL......

Amex BCE...Amex ED...Barclay WMC...Priceline Rewards Visa...Cap One Venture...Total Rewards Visa...Wells Fargo Visa...Discover IT...Pay Pal Smart Connect...Overstock Store Card...Lowe's Store Card


Message 8 of 18
tpmlls
New Contributor

Re: Should I close this card ???

I also have the Crap One Cash Rewards MC with a lower limit of $1000, but when I got the card, it was my biggest limit and I was thrilled to have it. I have not had it for a year yet, so I have no incured an AF, but I called Capital One and the CSR said that after I make 5 consecutive payments, that they would auto-raise my limit to $1500. I now have a Chase Freedom Visa and am now wanting to close the Cap One card(s) that I have, but my credit is not great, so I figure it is better to keep the cards open and not close anything until my credit limit reaches the 700+ range. Just my opinion though, don't know if this helps..

 

-Wes

Message 9 of 18
bs6054
Valued Contributor

Re: Should I close this card ???


@Tryon2improve wrote:

@bs6054 wrote:

Keeping it open or closing has no impact (for probably the next several years) on AAoA.  Only impacts utilization. 

 

If there are no rewards or other value to the card, there is no real point in keeping it till next year to see if the fee will be waived.  If you really don't need it, may as well close it and move on.


BS, you are correct in that AAoA has no impact currently, but in the future it could mean a quite a bit depending on his/her credit profile.  I have $65k in available credit to me and Cap 1 would not budge on the fee or CL so I dumped them at the 1 year mark.  At the time it helped established that I was using my credit effectively.  When reconning with Chase they asked me why I had the card for only a year and closed it, so an UW may see opening cards and then closing them quickly as risky (people do this often to just get the bonuses). As always YMMV.


Right, but your experience shows that even if it is kept for a year,  it may not help!  (The options after a year are to succeed in getting the annual fee waived, to pay the annual fee, or to close the card then and then later a UW may ask your question.) 

 

I think people are overly scared of UW questions, that's their job, and not every question is make-or-break, but as you say, YMMV.  At my last mortgage refinancing, two days before closing the underwriter came up with a long list of questions, which was certainly a pain but a lot of it seemed mechanical.  "Your CR shows three inqs in the last three months.  Describe what they are and whether they led to new credit lines".  I had to answer one "No idea what that is." (which was true) and that answer was apparently perfectly acceptable.  The others (involving matching money flow via international wires from bank account to bank account) were more challenging but not common I would think.

Message 10 of 18
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