topic Re: Does it matter how much I charge as long as I pay it a bit down before statement? in Credit Cards

Does it matter how much I charge as long as I pay it a bit down before statement?

Anonymous — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 05:20:36 GMT

If utilization is my main concern, I just have to worry aboutu whats posted on the statement correct? If I were to have a card limit of 500 but charged 400, I could pay it down to about $50 and still be in the cool when it comes to fico scooring on utilization if i payed it before the statement.

Re: Does it matter how much I charge as long as I pay it a bit down before statement?

Anonymous — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 05:32:35 GMT

I heard it depends on which card you are using/talking about. In my case, seems to be true. I have charged over 50%-80% of my credit limit on few different cards, and I pay it off before the statement closing dates. My utilization was not hurt through that, then there was one time I tried to leave it until statement closing date, it dropped my score down by more than 30 points.

Re: Does it matter how much I charge as long as I pay it a bit down before statement?

Anonymous — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 11:56:39 GMT

you also have to see if the card reports more than once a month - I have read around the forums that many cards have reported the balance to the CRAs bi-weekly. I do believe that this was probably a once-in-a-million chance...

I have utilized my credit about 96% and PIF end of month and have not been dinged. I did forget to pay the balance before the statement cut once and got dinged...

Re: Does it matter how much I charge as long as I pay it a bit down before statement?

Anonymous — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 13:08:02 GMT

This depends on few circumstances:

1. Is this a change from your normal spending patterns? If so, this may alert your ccc to review your account and may interpret increased spending as a sign of financial problems.

2. Current CL trends of your financial institution. Some banks are cutting back.

3. Some ccc's may report more than 1x monthly, as mentioned by others. And this may not be consistent, almost random.

4. Other balances. If you are showing increased balances on more than 1 account, this may flag you as financially distressed, especially if this is not part of your normal spending patterns.

5. The alignment of the stars, your sign, the weather, nothing at all. Hey, sometimes it just seems that nothing adds up and actions taken by ccc's is a crap shoot.

Re: Does it matter how much I charge as long as I pay it a bit down before statement?

Anonymous — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 15:23:06 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
you also have to see if the card reports more than once a month - I have read around the forums that many cards have reported the balance to the CRAs bi-weekly. I do believe that this was probably a once-in-a-million chance...

I have utilized my credit about 96% and PIF end of month and have not been dinged. I did forget to pay the balance before the statement cut once and got dinged...

Its not just when the statement cuts that you need to know, you also need to know the day they report your balance. I have an HSBC/Orchard card and they do not report when the statement cuts, they report at the end of the month. I made the mistake of PIF'ing the balance before the statement, then a few days after the statement I took my DW out for a nice dinner. That balance from that dinner reported on my CR's. Showed a 30% util that month which hurt my credit score by 21 points from the previous month when it only reported 6%.

You just need to know when your creditor reports.

Re: Does it matter how much I charge as long as I pay it a bit down before statement?

favor4me2 — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 15:48:50 GMT

Hi Pappy, I have 2 Orchard cards, One of them a secured card I paid off and closed last month and the other one I paid down before the end of the month. Does Orchard report to all three of the CRA at the end of the month?

Re: Does it matter how much I charge as long as I pay it a bit down before statement?

Anonymous — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 16:06:29 GMT

Depending on the limit and usage, I would make a payment every other week to avoid raising a red flag to your lender.

Re: Does it matter how much I charge as long as I pay it a bit down before statement?

favor4me2 — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 16:59:15 GMT

Ok Thanks

Re: Does it matter how much I charge as long as I pay it a bit down before statement?

Anonymous — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 17:04:47 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
you also have to see if the card reports more than once a month - I have read around the forums that many cards have reported the balance to the CRAs bi-weekly. I do believe that this was probably a once-in-a-million chance...

I have utilized my credit about 96% and PIF end of month and have not been dinged. I did forget to pay the balance before the statement cut once and got dinged...

Its not just when the statement cuts that you need to know, you also need to know the day they report your balance. I have an HSBC/Orchard card and they do not report when the statement cuts, they report at the end of the month. I made the mistake of PIF'ing the balance before the statement, then a few days after the statement I took my DW out for a nice dinner. That balance from that dinner reported on my CR's. Showed a 30% util that month which hurt my credit score by 21 points from the previous month when it only reported 6%.

You just need to know when your creditor reports.

Pappy, just a follow-up question,

how would I know when they report the balance to the CR's?

I usually pay before the due date (which is one week before the statement cuts)...

Do I call the CCC and find out this information?

Re: Does it matter how much I charge as long as I pay it a bit down before statement?

Anonymous — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 17:23:56 GMT

my card is from cap one. Anyone know how they report then?

Re: Does it matter how much I charge as long as I pay it a bit down before statement?

Anonymous — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 17:50:04 GMT

@favor4me2 wrote:
Hi Pappy, I have 2 Orchard cards, One of them a secured card I paid off and closed last month and the other one I paid down before the end of the month. Does Orchard report to all three of the CRA at the end of the month?

They do for my secured card. Now I make sure I have a zero balance when the statement cuts and a zero balance by the end of the month. That way no fees, and no balance reports.

Re: Does it matter how much I charge as long as I pay it a bit down before statement?

Anonymous — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 18:02:55 GMT

Pappy, just a follow-up question,

how would I know when they report the balance to the CR's?

I usually pay before the due date (which is one week before the statement cuts)...

Do I call the CCC and find out this information?

I asked here on the forums, and also I tested by PIF'ing before my statement so it showed a zero balance and then a week later charged like 5 bucks at McDonalds. I watched my reports and sure enough $5 reported the next month.

I always though it would be helpful to have a thread (at the top like we have for back door numbers) on what days certain companies report. It would be helpful to know since some report the statement balance and some report the end of month balance.

Re: Does it matter how much I charge as long as I pay it a bit down before statement?

Anonymous — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 18:42:32 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
@favor4me2 wrote:
Hi Pappy, I have 2 Orchard cards, One of them a secured card I paid off and closed last month and the other one I paid down before the end of the month. Does Orchard report to all three of the CRA at the end of the month?

They do for my secured card. Now I make sure I have a zero balance when the statement cuts and a zero balance by the end of the month. That way no fees, and no balance reports.

Why would you wanna do that, Pappy? Isnt it not showing any balance report = not using the card (to them and CRAs) = not showing that you can manage your debt?

Re: Does it matter how much I charge as long as I pay it a bit down before statement?

Anonymous — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 18:52:41 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
@favor4me2 wrote:
Hi Pappy, I have 2 Orchard cards, One of them a secured card I paid off and closed last month and the other one I paid down before the end of the month. Does Orchard report to all three of the CRA at the end of the month?

They do for my secured card. Now I make sure I have a zero balance when the statement cuts and a zero balance by the end of the month. That way no fees, and no balance reports.

Why would you wanna do that, Pappy? Isnt it not showing any balance report = not using the card (to them and CRAs) = not showing that you can manage your debt?

Eiso,

I think for a secured card, the total CL doesnt show when it reports, only shows the balance on the card as the CL.... therefore, shows the Util of that card to be at 100% (maxed out)

I hope what I state is correct.

Re: Does it matter how much I charge as long as I pay it a bit down before statement?

favor4me2 — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 19:25:38 GMT

Actually mine did report the limit.

Re: Does it matter how much I charge as long as I pay it a bit down before statement?

Anonymous — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 21:16:31 GMT

Eiso, no, you are mistaken. The CCC's and even FICO know you used the card. It is only if you have no CC's/ Auto Loans/ Mortgages reporting that it hurts. My auto loan reports every month, so I try to only let one of my CC's report a tiny balance.

For example, if you have 5 open trade lines, you only want 2 of them to report a balance. If you have a car loan and 4 CC's, the car loan reports and you should only let 1 CC report. Say however, your TL's are all CC's, you should still only let two show a balance, and that total balance should (for maximum scoring) be under 10 percent of your total available credit.

By the way, if you look closely at your credit reports, it shows the last time you made a payment on that account, so even with a 0 balance reporting a lender can still see that card is active and being used.

Oh and both of my secured cards show the available limit. I think only charge cards (like AMEX green-gold and platinum) and some Signature cards do not show a limit.

Re: Does it matter how much I charge as long as I pay it a bit down before statement?

Anonymous — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 22:17:30 GMT

Ah...I see now. Sooner or later, I'm gonna need a "button" to bookmark a certain post, not the whole thread, to review and remind myself about these infos. So much to earn and learn here. It's overwhelming.

Re: Does it matter how much I charge as long as I pay it a bit down before statement?

MattH — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 23:16:35 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
Ah...I see now. Sooner or later, I'm gonna need a "button" to bookmark a certain post, not the whole thread, to review and remind myself about these infos. So much to earn and learn here. It's overwhelming.

There is a way to bookmark a particular post. Click on the word "Options" near the top right of a post, and one of the choices in the menu that appears is "highlight this post." Click that and then bookmark it.