What should I do?

[BobbyJ]

Hello,

Hello, I have some accounts that are almost maxed out to their limits and I am getting  an extra $1500 next week to spend on bills.

I would like to know do I pay off a few of them or should I pay down some of the cards to a smaller balance?  Which would be better for my Fico scores?

Not sure what is the best course to take....

Store/Limit/Balance

Target / 500 / 422

Exxon / 400 / 368

Orchard / 400 / 322  new AF on May 1st - should I close this account for good?

Juniper MC / 600 / 475

Thanks for your input....

[Itsmeagain]

For the most score impact, I would do the following.

Pay off Target, Exxon and Orchard.  Pay the remaining $388 to Juniper leaving a balance or $87 or 14.5% utilization.  If possible, put a few bucks with the 1,500 and pay Juniper to below $54 which will lower your utilization to 9% on that card and zero on the others.  Wait for the statements to post before using again and you should see a good jump in your score (assuming no derogs or other influences).

Good luck.

[BobbyJ]

Thanks for the advice. 

Should I close the Orchard since I will be hit with another AF of $79 in May?

I have both an NFCU MC & Visa with 4K limits each, as well as a Chase Visa with 1300 limit.  I dont think I need  the Orchard anymore but I am trying to be careful not to close unless advised to do so.

[Itsmeagain]

Closing the Orchard should have no negative effect on your score since it is such a small credit line and will remain as a positive TL for up to 10 yrs. (or longer).  It will also save you $79/yr. which is a good thing.  It appears that you are making a serious attempt to improve your score and paying down the high balance cards is an excellent way to do it.  Just remember that when they are paid off, try to keep your utilization below 9% to get the most score impact.

[MarineVietVet]

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@BobbyJ wrote:

Thanks for the advice. 

Should I close the Orchard since I will be hit with another AF of $79 in May?

I have both an NFCU MC & Visa with 4K limits each, as well as a Chase Visa with 1300 limit.  I dont think I need  the Orchard anymore but I am trying to be careful not to close unless advised to do so.

---

I would give Orchard a proper burial and think of it no more. It has served it's purpose.

From a BK years ago to:

9/09 EX pulled by lender 802
3/10 EQ- 800
4/10 TU -772

You can do the same thing with hard work

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[blacklotus]

This is just my opinion nothing more nothing less:

I would take $1000 and save it.  Keep that in cash and do your best not to touch it.  Then use $500 and pay down your highest interest APR card this is also called the "debt snowball effect".  Reason behind keeping $1000 in cash- you never know when you might need it so why not resort to this rather than CC? 

EDIT:  Then keep making at least a little more than minimum payments on your high APR cards- basically whatever you can afford extra.  But make your largest payments toward the next highest APR card that you haven't paid down with the $500 keep doing this until you are debt free- keep in mind never touch that G while doing this.

IMHO

[Wolf3]

I would pay off Orchard and then close it.  Then pay off the rest in order of highest APR.

[Anonymous]

Maybe a dollar more here or a dollar less there but this is the only good answer there can be. In fact, that $1500 means everything to your credit score if everything else is in order.