Will closing my most recent credit card hurt my score

[yaslysmen]

Hello, this is my first post and I am trying to boost my credit ASAP. I know it takes time but I need to see if this will work. I have 5 credit cards :

Bank of America- $0 balance - $3500 credit limit

Citi Amex- $287 balance - Credit limit is not reported because of the type of card (Premier Amex)

Target Visa- $0 balance- $4500 credit limit

Citi Studend Card- $0 balance- $500 credit limit

Amazon Chase card- $24.99 balance- $400 credit limit

I want to cancel my Chase card. I just got my statement and the interest is 29% ; last month it was 11.7%. I was not late or anything ...I called them and their customer service rep didnt really have an explanation for why they increased my APR. But anyway, I want to cancel ,mostly out of anger, but I also read that it was a quick way to gain some points. Considering my balance on all cards in ratio to my available credit ..would that be an ok thing to do? I have only had the card for about 6 months so theirs not that much history. I also have a secured loan that will be paid off in mid May, do you think that will help my credit score? My short term goal is to his 680 on either experian or equifax .

Thanks everyone,

Transunion- 704 Experian - 653, Equifax- 660

[Anonymous]

Generally lenders want to see credit that has been in existence for a long period of time.  Although you have not had the Chase account for that long (6 months), it is history nonetheless.  Why not consider paying off the $24.99 that you owe and letting the card stay open? After all, 29% of 0 is 0, right? I mean, you know the formulas for calculating credit scores is a "partial" mystery, so consider whether you want to run the risk of potentially lowering your score in the short term?  You indicated that you have a short-term goal of increasing the score and if I were you, I would simply pay off the low balance and let it stay open.  Perhaps if you had a longer term goal of increasing your score, closing the account now for a planned increase by next year this time, wouldn't hurt your score (maybe).

Also, I know you said that you weren't late on anything but in case you were not aware, if you are late on one account, the credit card companies may increase the APR on your other accounts.  This is called a "universal default" (which I believe is an issue before Congress now to prevent the companies from such action).

[yaslysmen]

I just saw that on the news the other day...thats actually what prompted me to check my apr. I havent been late in years though. My last late payment was 4 years ago (30 days late). Its a dirogatory on my equifax and experian but not reported on Transunion. I am thinking of writing them a goodwill letter asking them to remove it. I will go by your adive and leave the account open. The $24.99 should drop from my credit card soon since its an item I returned. I also have a negative from my school financial aid. I wasnt even aware of it until it went into collection for a  mere $83. I dropped a class and they wanted a refund for the amount of school I didnt complete. I paid that off as soon as I was notified but it was too late , it dinged me. Has anyone had any luck writing a good will letter to the dept of education? This is also four years old. I'm 23 years old and it seems as if getting my credit score up is going to be impossible. Does anyone have any advice on helping me raise my scores? I know I should pay all my bills on time and I always do ...late fees helped me learn quickly. Is there anything else I can do to help expediate the process. Also I dont know if this matters but I have a habit of charging up my cards one day and paying them off a few days later. You see , i have the cash but Target gives me 10% off for every thousand dollars I spend and my Amex gives me points which I turn in for gift certificates so I take full advantage . When my statements come through they are usually very minimal...under $100 if not at $0 so I never see the hundreds of dollars i spend reported on my credit reports. Do you think I should  wait on paying them until I get my bill or continue to do what I have been doing?