First a little backstory -
About 5 years ago, I started helping my mom out financially. I didn't actually have any money (I'm 31 and was 25 at the time), but I had established good credit and had high limits on a couple of cards ($13000 on one, $6000 on another). So, I helped a couple times with cash advances and then when she started living in a motel for a while, I used my credit card to pay her bill there. The card was on file with the motel and continued to be charged (as they were not getting paid any other way). Because I was naive and kept believing that I was going to be paid back soon, I let this happen. I also believed, naively, that Chase (the card being used with the $13000 limit) would at some point deny the charges as I went over the limit, but instead, my balance got up to over $15000. Needless to say, they eventually closed the account, and my interest rate was jacked up to 30%.
I have accepted that there isee very little chance of actually being paid back, but I have resolved to not get myself into that situation again, and have been slowly paying down that card as well as a couple others. I have been able to do a couple of balance transfers over the past couple years and get that card down to $6000 (the interest still kills, but I don't have any other cards that can support that kind of balance). I've paid off close to $10000 in the past year, but still have a total of $15000 to go.
From reading another forum post, I think the Chase account is being factored into my % utilization even though it is closed, but when I pay it off (which will probably be nearly a year, unless something changes), this card will no longer be factored into that, right?. Given that this was my highest limit by far, am I right that this will have a fairly significant negative impact on my FICO? Do I have a leg to stand on with getting that account reopened? Or getting the interest rate lowered? I've been paying on time, there are no late payments on this account.
I've been working really hard to get my financials back in a good place. I am generally very responsible, but a feeling of family obligation and guilt have gotten me into a hole that I've been digging out of for years now. Will this story have make any difference in trying to do anything with the credit companies besides just paying off my balances?
Thanks for any insights!
