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AZEO Best Practices?

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Anonymous
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AZEO Best Practices?

I have scoured the forums for the difference between due date and Statement date and the best way to optimize the AZEO strategy. After reading 100+ posts I am still confused. So I ask does any1 have a bare bones, talk to me like I'm a 5th grader primer?

 

Specifically I am going to pay my Cap1 card today, I want to get it down to the 9% threshold. Does that mean I shouldn't use it again until the 20th? Or have I already missed my window and $350 is going to hit my CR?

- Due Date: 2/16

- Cycle Close: 2/19

- Amount Due: 0.00

- Current Balance: $350

Message 1 of 20
19 REPLIES 19
HeavenOhio
Senior Contributor

Re: AZEO Best Practices?

Keep in mind that because utilization fractions round up, aim for 8.9% or below if your objective is to get below 9%.

 

With the statement cutting on the 20th, making a payment on the 18th should be safe. You can probably pay on the 19th or even the 20th, but keep Sundays in mind as Sunday payments won't clear until after Monday's business day ends.

 

If you make a payment now and are potentially willing to pay again in a few days, you can use the card to your heart's content as long as you allow adequate time for pending transactions to post. When paying near the statement date, pay down to a low balance, and make sure that any new charges keep you at 8.9% or below.

 

If your objective is to pay to zero and have a zero balance report, that's the time you'll want to fully "rest" your card for a couple of days to make sure that no pending transactions sneak in at the last minute.

Message 2 of 20
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: AZEO Best Practices?

Thanks for the fast reply. I have a better understanding now. As long as the balance is paid b4 the statement cut date I will be AZEO compliant?
Message 3 of 20
HeavenOhio
Senior Contributor

Re: AZEO Best Practices?

Capital One reports the statement balance on or right after the statement date, so yes, you'll be fine. Simply pay your balance down to your desired amount, and be careful not to let new transactions interfere with your plan.

 

Most cards report the way Capital One does, although there are exceptions. US Bank reports on the first of the month. And Chase will report the statement balance like other cards, but they'll also report zero whenever you pay to zero. With Chase, it's easier to use their cards as "zero" cards rather than trying to have a small balance continuously reporting.

Message 4 of 20
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: AZEO Best Practices?

My experience with Cap1 is that they are a bit slow with payment application made online. You may wish to pay a day or two earlier.

Message 5 of 20
MakingProgress
Senior Contributor

Re: AZEO Best Practices?


wrote:

My experience with Cap1 is that they are a bit slow with payment application made online. You may wish to pay a day or two earlier.


I get a quicker payment application when paying from my banks online bill pay than I do when paying on Cap One's website.   Cap One has always reported the balance at statement cut, so as long as you have your balance where you want it you will be fine. 



 

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Message 6 of 20
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: AZEO Best Practices?


wrote:

I have scoured the forums for the difference between due date and Statement date and the best way to optimize the AZEO strategy. After reading 100+ posts I am still confused. So I ask does any1 have a bare bones, talk to me like I'm a 5th grader primer?

 

Specifically I am going to pay my Cap1 card today, I want to get it down to the 9% threshold. Does that mean I shouldn't use it again until the 20th? Or have I already missed my window and $350 is going to hit my CR?

- Due Date: 2/16

- Cycle Close: 2/19

- Amount Due: 0.00

- Current Balance: $350



For Capitalone the statement cut is three days after the due date. So if like me you have due date on the 7th, they cut the statement on the 10th. So for me I pay very month on the third (4 days early). Then I don’t use the card again till the 11th of the month. Then I use it all the way up to the 1st of the month. Gives two days for all transactions to post. So for this card besides paying I’m not using the card at all for 10 days to make sure it’s PIF always showing a $0 balance. It’s my daily driver so it gets used for most my bills that aren’t in a higher cashback on my other credit cards. I do this with all cards except one. Where I allow a small balance for constant FICO score purposes. I use my Amazon VISA for my non zero reporting. I use it because it’s my restaurant card for now until I get the Uber. So yes it’s easy to PIF and always still have a balance report. For most I wouldn’t recommend a Chase card as the not zero card unless you know what you are doing.

Message 7 of 20
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: AZEO Best Practices?

Ben, don't you find it inconvenient that you don't use your daily driver for 1/3 of the month?

Message 8 of 20
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: AZEO Best Practices?


wrote:

Ben, don't you find it inconvenient that you don't use your daily driver for 1/3 of the month?


Nope. Because I don’t have any bills due that part of the month. And I only make one payment a month. I don’t need to constantly pay off that card. Just before statement date.  I use my restaurant card constantly. And until I decide to get the Uber card, my restaurant card is my Amazon VISA Card it’s also my buy on Amazon card which is thruout the month.  My daily driver card is my bill card. For now. Once I add my last two cards how I pay will change a bit. Uber card will be the one I report a balance and my daily driver will be split between citi DC and quicksilver. Which will have different due dates. Then there will be no week without using because Quicksilver and Citi will be interchangeable. It is what works best for me. Others will have their own system. But to keep a card at zero you have to payoff at least a couple days before statement cut to be safe. So a couple or three days without use. I choose to wait ten days to only pay one. I could wait to pay till the 7th if I wanted and shorten to the fifth to tenth. I just don’t.

Message 9 of 20
SBR249
Established Contributor

Re: AZEO Best Practices?

I'll just point out that the "due date" of 02/16 refers to the when you need to have paid the balance on your previous statement, which would be the January statement covering the period 12/19 - 01/19. The statement cut date of 02/19 is when your statement of transactions between 01/19 and 02/19 will cut. The 02/16 due date does not refer to your current statement period and whatever statement balance that is "due" on that date has already been reported to CRAs when your last statement cut. Just wanted to make sure there is no confusion about that. 

 

As for when to stop using your card, I would say at least 5 business days before the statement cut date to be safe. That leaves 3 business days for things to post and 2 for you to make a payment and have that posted. You'll want to be careful to not include weekends and holidays in that margin. 

Message 10 of 20
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