Starting over from scratch - rebuilding credit

[Anonymous]

How long have you had the card? Have you received any statements yet?

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Cool thanks! But what do you mean before the statement is cut. Do you mean due?

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No. The statement closing date. Typically the current statement will close a few days after the due date (from the previous statement). The idea is to have the balance paid down before the statement closes, so a low balance is reported.

[Anonymous]

I was just approved a few days ago.

Is it better that a low balance be reported or none at all?

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I was just approved a few days ago.

Is it better that a low balance be reported or none at all?

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Its not critical with a new account. UTI has no memory, so it doesn't matter what it was in the past. You do not have to constantly maintain the "perfect UTI", you only need to understand what constitutes "perfect UTI" so you can 'get there' whenever you need to peak your scores. Just keep your balances below 30-50%, don't max out a card, and don't carry balance on more than half of your cards.

[Anonymous]

Just make sure you at least pay the minimum amount due if you can't pay it way down for whatever reason. I sometimes do that just to be certain the payment won't be late because things do happen to throw off a plan. Hubby had no score in September and now is up to 633 and above just by being careful with the cards he has.

[Anonymous]

I am never paying the minimum amount due again. I learned my lesson the hard way. 

[Anonymous]

Have you looked at myfico in regards to mortgages?  You're establishing a sound plan in regards to your credit score, but the debt you walked away from-was it bankruptcy or charge offs?  The only reason why I ask is that although it's not on your credit report, its still there and any future lender could pull a full history and want some kind of resolution to the debt. This only applies to the mortgage; you'd be fine with an auto loan, however.

[amthystwlf]

When you get your reports, you can find the "last reported date". This is the date the acct actually reported to the CRA. In my experience, it is within a day or so of the same date each month but can be different for each card. Use a free monitoring service to watch your reports and you can figure out when it typically reports. Make sure to have your payment in before that date.

For example, I have 2 cards with a due date of the 7th. One updates around the 12th-14th, the other the 14th-16th. Another card with a due date of the 14th, updates between the 15th-17th. I always plan to have my payments in at least 1 week before the earliest date that I have for the account to report.

[Anonymous]

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@amthystwlf wrote:

When you get your reports, you can find the "last reported date". This is the date the acct actually reported to the CRA. In my experience, it is within a day or so of the same date each month but can be different for each card. Use a free monitoring service to watch your reports and you can figure out when it typically reports. Make sure to have your payment in before that date.

For example, I have 2 cards with a due date of the 7th. One updates around the 12th-14th, the other the 14th-16th. Another card with a due date of the 14th, updates between the 15th-17th. I always plan to have my payments in at least 1 week before the earliest date that I have for the account to report.

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The day that it actually reports simply is not relevant. What is important is the statement closing date. The balance on the statement is what gets reported, not the balance on whatever day it gets reported. Most statements close 3-5 days after the payment due date, and the reports generally go to the CRA's within a few days. There are some banks that do their reporting at the end of the month, but its is still the statement balance that is reported, not the balance at the end of the month (unless thats the day it actually closes).