Best time to pay my bill?

[Anonymous]

My husband and I filed bankruptcy a couple years ago and have been living on a cash only basis.  If we don't have the money, we don't buy it.  I was recently approved for a CapOne Quicksilver card and I want to use it to start rebuilding my credit.  My game plan is to still operate on a cash basis, but to use the credit card during the month for certain purchases, then pay it off.  I'm setting aside money for every purchase I make (using the card instead of cash, then setting cash aside to pay the bill when it's due).  I'm looking for advice on when I should actually make the payments to pay off the card each month.  Billing date is the 9th of the month and due date is the 6th of the following month.  I could pay for purchases as soon as I make them, but I didn't know if that would help me build credit, or if I at least needed to wait until after the statement has been generated.  Any advice would be much appreciated.

By the way, I have a $1,000 credit limit.  How much is safe to charge each month without making it look like I'm maxing out the card?  I don't know if it even matters since I plan on paying it off every month, but I don't want it to appear like I'm carrying a large balance due to the timing of the credit reporting function.

One last thing, should I also have my husband try to open a card in his name and do the same thing with his so we both start rebuilding credit?  Since credit cards are not opened or reported jointly, each of our respective credit cards shouldn't have an impact on the other one.  Correct? 

Thanks everyone!!  Glad to be a new member of these forums.  I hope to learn a lot from all of you.

[coldnmn]

Welcome to the forum! You can use as much of your credit limit as you want without going over. Pay your balance down to 1%-9% before your statement closing date, so pay the balance a couple days ahead so balance isn't pending when statement closes. After statement posts pay statement balance due before due date to avoid interest. If you have one card reporting a 1%-9% balance gives you a higher score than paying all to 0% when statements closes. Good Luck with your credit journey!

[AzaleaB]

Since you only have 1 card, you should leave a small balance for the statement - then pay it off after the statement arrives. It should be < 10% - whatever you feel comfortable with. I used to leave just $10 when I only had one card. Yes, your husband should get his own card so he can be rebuilding in parallel with you. You can also make each other authorized users on your cards. 

[Anonymous]

Hello and welcome!

+1 to what the others above me have already said.

To build credit, you need positive tradelines. Use the card, always pay on time, don't leave a high balance, and let time do its thing.

Capital One will (generally) report once per month to the credit bureaus. In most cases, the reporting date is the day of or day after your statement cuts (billing date). Whatever your balance is then is what gets reported, simple as that. You could spend $950 in the month, but if you pay it off before the statement cuts, the $0 balance will be reported. Like the others said, for scoring purposes, with one credit card, a small balance reported is ideal.

What I do is this:

My Discover due date is on the 7th every month. Statement cuts on the 12th. I pay my full balance around the 5th. Then I'll charge a small (1-3% of credit limit) amount right after that. So, all that is left is that small balance when the statement cuts a couple days later. Works for optimum score, and never pay interest.

So, I would say in your case, pay the full balance on the 3rd or 4th ( I like a couple days buffer), then make a small charge ($10 or so) right away so it posts on your account by the statement date on the 9th.

Again, this is assuming Capital One reports to the credit bureaus on statement cut. Most credit companies do, but not all. Perhaps others can chime in there.

[takeshi74]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I could pay for purchases as soon as I make them, but I didn't know if that would help me build credit, or if I at least needed to wait until after the statement has been generated.  Any advice would be much appreciated.

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As indicated above since this is your only card you want a small balance to report.  Other than that you can pay immediately and still build credit.

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@Anonymous wrote:

By the way, I have a $1,000 credit limit.  How much is safe to charge each month without making it look like I'm maxing out the card?  I don't know if it even matters since I plan on paying it off every month, but I don't want it to appear like I'm carrying a large balance due to the timing of the credit reporting function.

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IIRC over 90% is maxed but you don't have to max out the card to get in trouble.  30% is the generally recommended maximum for utilization.  It does matter even if paying in full since a balance can report if you pay in full after the balance is reported.

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@Anonymous wrote:

One last thing, should I also have my husband try to open a card in his name and do the same thing with his so we both start rebuilding credit?

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If the intent is to rebuild his credit then he will need to work on rebuilding as well.

[Anonymous]

Thank you for all the good advice!  These forums are a great resource and it's nice to see people trying to help one another by sharing information and their own experiences.