topic Re: What qualifies as PIF? in Credit Cards

What qualifies as PIF?

Anonymous — Fri, 17 Jun 2016 14:53:02 GMT

I've been out of the credit card game for a while now. After being declined for a couple of cards due to insufficient credit history, I decided to get one so I could get that sorted out. I was approved for, and received, the Amazon Visa.

Anyway, now to the question. I just received and paid my first statement. The balance on the statement was about $80, but I have made a couple of charges since then, so the total credit card balance is greater than the statement balence. Now, as long as I pay that $80, does that count as PIF for that statement beriod, or do I need to have an acual 0 balance on the due date to avoid interest?

Re: What qualifies as PIF?

DoroLucky — Fri, 17 Jun 2016 14:57:39 GMT

PIF = Statement balance.

Re: What qualifies as PIF?

Anonymous — Fri, 17 Jun 2016 15:16:40 GMT

Excellent! Thanks.

So, as long as I pay at least the statement balance by the due date, I don't need to worry about subsequent charges and balances. That's good to know. My dues date is not for another 3 weeks. I've already paid off the statement balance plus some, and will probably have the remainder off by then too. With the way that charges and payments can take several days to apply, I wasn't sure if I should lay off using the card around the due date or not.

Re: What qualifies as PIF?

Anonymous — Fri, 17 Jun 2016 15:21:08 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
Excellent! Thanks.

So, as long as I pay at least the statement balance by the due date, I don't need to worry about subsequent charges and balances. That's good to know. My dues date is not for another 3 weeks. I've already paid off the statement balance plus some, and will probably have the remainder off by then too. With the way that charges and payments can take several days to apply, I wasn't sure if I should lay off using the card around the due date or not.

Right, paying statement balance by the due date will avoid interest and late charges. Charges incurred after statement close (including those before due date) will appear on the following statement.

Many people here also try to pay before statement close (so the statement reports as $0) but that is really only needed if you are apping for something and need to maximize socre

Re: What qualifies as PIF?

Anonymous — Fri, 17 Jun 2016 15:54:41 GMT

Exactly paying in full is the statement balance however a side note is that some creditors will update another time in same month if you knock down to zero. Chase for example.

Re: What qualifies as PIF?

Anonymous — Fri, 17 Jun 2016 16:16:27 GMT

Thanks guys! Sorry for all the dumb questions. I just want to make sure I understand everything correctly from the start, so I can avoid any issues.

I'm keeping my utilization pretty low. Current statement balance is only 2%, I really don't see going over 10%, so would paying down to 0 each month make a noticeable difference?

My goal is to use the card, and pay that use off weekly. In the overlap between posting payment and it beeing applied, there can be another purchase (gas, groceries, etc), so there will probably always be a rotating balance on there just waiting for the appropriate payment to hit.

Which brings up another question. Given my weekly payment habits, it may happen that the statement balance would get paid in two installments. Is this acceptable, or should I alter my routine for that week to pay the statement balance in one shot?

Re: What qualifies as PIF?

takeshi74 — Fri, 17 Jun 2016 16:35:34 GMT

TheBrad wrote:
I'm keeping my utilization pretty low. Current statement balance is only 2%, I really don't see going over 10%, so would paying down to 0 each month make a noticeable difference?

Probably not but you'd have to test to verify. If this is your only card do not let it report a 0 balance. Generally speaking, bigger impact is from bigger changes to revolving utilization. However, it's not just about revolving utilization. All the factors matter.

@Anonymous wrote:
With the way that charges and payments can take several days to apply, I wasn't sure if I should lay off using the card around the due date or not.

The due date doesn't matter aside from being when the payment for a given cycle is due. You can use your card as you like as the cycle that is due has already closed out and you're in the following cycle.

@Anonymous wrote:
Now, as long as I pay that $80, does that count as PIF for that statement beriod, or do I need to have an acual 0 balance on the due date to avoid interest?

Answered above but don't overlook the terms for your card as they also explain this and contain a lot of other information that you should be aware of.

@Anonymous wrote:
Which brings up another question. Given my weekly payment habits, it may happen that the statement balance would get paid in two installments. Is this acceptable, or should I alter my routine for that week to pay the statement balance in one shot?

Doesn't matter as long as you pay the statement balance in full by the due date. Your payments are not going to impact the reported balance as it already reported. A scoring model uses the data in a report. It cannot access current account balances, activiity, etc.

Re: What qualifies as PIF?

Anonymous — Fri, 17 Jun 2016 17:10:37 GMT

Sort of a related question here guys. If you pay your statement balance (PIF) by the due date, whatever it is say the 14th every month and typically your creditor reports to the bureaus a few days later on the 17th for example... if any charges post to your account on the 15th or 16th would a balance be reported to the bureaus or would it not since it would be part of the next statement? I've often worried about using a card following the few days after I PIF when I want the card to report a zero balance for this reason.

Re: What qualifies as PIF?

Anonymous — Fri, 17 Jun 2016 17:22:56 GMT

What gets reported is whatever the new statement cut balances so don't use your card up to a week after your due date to be safe. If your timing is off that is like digging a hole at the beach that continues to fill with water

Re: What qualifies as PIF?

jawbrkr — Fri, 17 Jun 2016 17:29:19 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
Sort of a related question here guys. If you pay your statement balance (PIF) by the due date, whatever it is say the 14th every month and typically your creditor reports to the bureaus a few days later on the 17th for example... if any charges post to your account on the 15th or 16th would a balance be reported to the bureaus or would it not since it would be part of the next statement? I've often worried about using a card following the few days after I PIF when I want the card to report a zero balance for this reason.

No. What gets reported is the balance that is shown the day you get your statement. But if you have multiple cards, you dont want them all to report zero. Thats is not good. You want one, maybe two cards to report some kind of balance. That shows you are using credit given to you. If you report zero, your score takes a dip but recovers the next month if you show a balance on a card. Matter of fact, last month I reported $8.99. Funny thing is I didnt expect that $8.99 from netflix to post but it saved me.

Re: What qualifies as PIF?

RonM21 — Fri, 17 Jun 2016 21:02:12 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
Thanks guys! Sorry for all the dumb questions. I just want to make sure I understand everything correctly from the start, so I can avoid any issues.

It's okay! It's not a dumb question when you are learning. This question about PIF is part of the whole process

Re: What qualifies as PIF?

Kevin86475391 — Fri, 17 Jun 2016 21:26:37 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:

My goal is to use the card, and pay that use off weekly. In the overlap between posting payment and it beeing applied, there can be another purchase (gas, groceries, etc), so there will probably always be a rotating balance on there just waiting for the appropriate payment to hit.

Which brings up another question. Given my weekly payment habits, it may happen that the statement balance would get paid in two installments. Is this acceptable, or should I alter my routine for that week to pay the statement balance in one shot?

This is how I like to handle my finances too. I also pay any utility/service bills that have come in weekly. And also review my investment and deposit accounts weekly. Handling all my finances on a weekly basis instead of monthly really helps me feel more on top of it and also allows me to know right away if I'm going over budget or anything. Plus it makes due dates essentially irrelevant since I'm usually a good bit early and with credit cards have usually PIF-d 3 or 4 times over in a given month. Anyway, all I'm saying is I think your plan to PIF weekly is excellent and I've personally used this approach to great success for years.

As long as your statement balance is paid in full by the due date it doesn't matter how many payments you've made to accomplish that. Some lenders take longer to process payments if you pay more than once a week (though paying exactly once a week has never caused me any delays or problems with any lenders), but it still works itself out eventually.

I don't worry about what reports personally. I just keep my cards PIF'd and let whatever happens to report report.