topic Re: Afraid to close accounts!!! in Credit Cards

Afraid to close accounts!!!

Anonymous — Thu, 09 May 2013 05:09:11 GMT

So they say its never good to close old accounts! I have a old account I really want to close, the APR is 24+%, its a Gap Visa & its a set APR (they say) it'll never go down, but that's the only cards problem. I have a $4,000.00 credit limit on it, but afraid to use it. I have other cards with a waaaaaay lower APR, most recently "Chase Sapphire" at 15% APR & a $5,000.00 credit line, a "Discover more" with a $2,500.00 credit line & a 16+% on it, a Chase Freedom with a $1,100.00 & APR of 23+% (which is how they get all their great "Rewards" back). Anyways, I've had the Gap Visa for about 6 years & I think its opened many credit doors for me, but they have way too much competition now & I'm afraid to close it with out this decision hurting y credit score. Should I wait for them to close it for inactivity? I really don't know my options. But I think its stopping other companies from giving me a higher credit line. My goal is to have ONE credit card with a LOW APR & high credit limit, not $10,000.00 scattered around in several cards. Also I'm not interested in NO TYPE OF REWARDS (FYI, we do pay for them) just a nice low APR.

Please Advise...

Re: Afraid to close accounts!!!

Anonymous — Thu, 09 May 2013 05:16:05 GMT

Welcome to the forum! high APR only matters if you intend to carry a balance. Most GECRB CC'S are 22%+ it goes with the territory. Use it for a pair of jeans or something every 3-4 months- even if you forget and don't PIF one months interest will not kill you on a sm balance.

Re: Afraid to close accounts!!!

Anonymous — Thu, 09 May 2013 05:17:55 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
So they say its never good to close old accounts! I have a old account I really want to close, the APR is 24+%, its a Gap Visa & its a set APR (they say) it'll never go down, but that's the only cards problem. I have a $4,000.00 credit limit on it, but afraid to use it. I have other cards with a waaaaaay lower APR, most recently "Chase Sapphire" at 15% APR & a $5,000.00 credit line, a "Discover more" with a $2,500.00 credit line & a 16+% on it, a Chase Freedom with a $1,100.00 & APR of 23+% (which is how they get all their great "Rewards" back). Anyways, I've had the Gap Visa for about 6 years & I think its opened many credit doors for me, but they have way too much competition now & I'm afraid to close it with out this decision hurting y credit score. Should I wait for them to close it for inactivity? I really don't know my options. But I think its stopping other companies from giving me a higher credit line. My goal is to have ONE credit card with a LOW APR & high credit limit, not $10,000.00 scattered around in several cards. Also I'm not interested in NO TYPE OF REWARDS (FYI, we do pay for them) just a nice low APR.

Please Advise...

What do you mean "we do pay for them"?

The $4000 really isn't stopping you from getting higher CLs from other banks. The only time I've seen denials are when you reach a certain CL total with a single bank. Depending on your income, it can be hard to get a $10,000 CL on a single card, especially when your highest reporting CL is only 5k. Judging by the rates you have, most card seem likely to give near the same interest unless your credit is improved(15-16%), however the Barclay Ring might suit you. They probably won't give you the 10k limit but after 6 months you'll probably get an auto-CLI.

http://www.barclaycardring.com/

Re: Afraid to close accounts!!!

Anonymous — Thu, 09 May 2013 06:20:49 GMT

What I mean about the "REWARDS" is if you don't pay your balance in full for that card, they will get you back with the APR, look at the "Chase Freedom" for example, they are charging me 23+% APR, Oh & explain this one.... I also have the "Chase Sapphire" & the APR on that one is 15+% and the rewards are not as generous as the Freedom cards. Ha, got you there!!! Oh, & thank for the referral to the Barclay's Card, I will definitely look into it...

Re: Afraid to close accounts!!!

Lambo23 — Thu, 09 May 2013 06:30:16 GMT

You are definitely right. If you are looking to carry a balance then you want the lowest apr. Rewards cards are good for those who PIF because of the high apr.
To answer your question, if you don't feel comfortable having the card open then close it. It'll be on your reports for 10 more years. The only thing it hurts is your utilization.
As far as a high credit limit and low apr card, you should check out a credit union.

Re: Afraid to close accounts!!!

Anonymous — Thu, 09 May 2013 06:30:52 GMT

What I mean about the "REWARDS" is if you don't pay your balance in full for that card, they will get you back with the APR, look at the "Chase Freedom" for example, they are charging me 23+% APR, Oh & explain this one.... I also have the "Chase Sapphire" & the APR on that one is 15+% and the rewards are not as generous as the Freedom cards. Oh, & thanks for the referral to the Barclay's Card, I will definitely look into it...

Re: Afraid to close accounts!!!

Anonymous — Thu, 09 May 2013 06:32:16 GMT

Did you intend to post the same response twice?

Re: Afraid to close accounts!!!

Anonymous — Thu, 09 May 2013 06:35:44 GMT

No sorry.

Re: Afraid to close accounts!!!

Anonymous — Thu, 09 May 2013 06:37:41 GMT

It's ok...it's late and I thought I was seeing double. Lol

Re: Afraid to close accounts!!!

Anonymous — Thu, 09 May 2013 07:12:50 GMT

Re: Afraid to close accounts!!!

LS2982 — Thu, 09 May 2013 10:48:12 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
So they say its never good to close old accounts! I have a old account I really want to close, the APR is 24+%, its a Gap Visa & its a set APR (they say) it'll never go down, but that's the only cards problem. I have a $4,000.00 credit limit on it, but afraid to use it. I have other cards with a waaaaaay lower APR, most recently "Chase Sapphire" at 15% APR & a $5,000.00 credit line, a "Discover more" with a $2,500.00 credit line & a 16+% on it, a Chase Freedom with a $1,100.00 & APR of 23+% (which is how they get all their great "Rewards" back). Anyways, I've had the Gap Visa for about 6 years & I think its opened many credit doors for me, but they have way too much competition now & I'm afraid to close it with out this decision hurting y credit score. Should I wait for them to close it for inactivity? I really don't know my options. But I think its stopping other companies from giving me a higher credit line. My goal is to have ONE credit card with a LOW APR & high credit limit, not $10,000.00 scattered around in several cards. Also I'm not interested in NO TYPE OF REWARDS (FYI, we do pay for them) just a nice low APR.

Please Advise...

Why would you want to close it?!?!? No AF, 4K extra on overall util. 6 year history.

Buy a pack of gum on it every other month and PIF. Would make no sense to close it!!

Re: Afraid to close accounts!!!

BrokaToe — Thu, 09 May 2013 11:54:34 GMT

@LS2982 wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
So they say its never good to close old accounts! I have a old account I really want to close, the APR is 24+%, its a Gap Visa & its a set APR (they say) it'll never go down, but that's the only cards problem. I have a $4,000.00 credit limit on it, but afraid to use it. I have other cards with a waaaaaay lower APR, most recently "Chase Sapphire" at 15% APR & a $5,000.00 credit line, a "Discover more" with a $2,500.00 credit line & a 16+% on it, a Chase Freedom with a $1,100.00 & APR of 23+% (which is how they get all their great "Rewards" back). Anyways, I've had the Gap Visa for about 6 years & I think its opened many credit doors for me, but they have way too much competition now & I'm afraid to close it with out this decision hurting y credit score. Should I wait for them to close it for inactivity? I really don't know my options. But I think its stopping other companies from giving me a higher credit line. My goal is to have ONE credit card with a LOW APR & high credit limit, not $10,000.00 scattered around in several cards. Also I'm not interested in NO TYPE OF REWARDS (FYI, we do pay for them) just a nice low APR.

Please Advise...
Why would you want to close it?!?!? No AF, 4K extra on overall util. 6 year history.

Buy a pack of gum on it every other month and PIF. Would make no sense to close it!!

+1,000 I don't see anything with that card that would be reason to close it. Just buy something small like LS said.

But in the event you eventually start getting denials due to too much available credit, then you could consider it in the lineup of "cards to close".

Re: Afraid to close accounts!!!

Anonymous — Thu, 09 May 2013 13:11:49 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
So they say its never good to close old accounts! I have a old account I really want to close, the APR is 24+%, its a Gap Visa & its a set APR (they say) it'll never go down, but that's the only cards problem. I have a $4,000.00 credit limit on it, but afraid to use it. I have other cards with a waaaaaay lower APR, most recently "Chase Sapphire" at 15% APR & a $5,000.00 credit line, a "Discover more" with a $2,500.00 credit line & a 16+% on it, a Chase Freedom with a $1,100.00 & APR of 23+% (which is how they get all their great "Rewards" back). Anyways, I've had the Gap Visa for about 6 years & I think its opened many credit doors for me, but they have way too much competition now & I'm afraid to close it with out this decision hurting y credit score. Should I wait for them to close it for inactivity? I really don't know my options. But I think its stopping other companies from giving me a higher credit line. My goal is to have ONE credit card with a LOW APR & high credit limit, not $10,000.00 scattered around in several cards. Also I'm not interested in NO TYPE OF REWARDS (FYI, we do pay for them) just a nice low APR.

Please Advise...

Maybe I'm missing the point, but why are you afraid to use the card? it has no AF, it's a Visa that can be used anywhere and while the APR is high, if you PIF it really doesn't matter what the APR is.

Re: Afraid to close accounts!!!

culture — Thu, 09 May 2013 13:53:59 GMT

OP:

remember this is all part of a big matemathical equation. Closing this account will hurt your score a bit depending your util %. As some member stated you no need to carry a balance on this card. Buy a $5 shirt once here and there. and back to get dust.

It would hurt more closing it than having it in a a sock ....

Re: Afraid to close accounts!!!

Anonymous — Thu, 09 May 2013 14:08:42 GMT

I'll echo what others have already mentioned. If you regulate your spending properly and only charge on your card what you can afford to pay off in the same month, you don't need to worry about paying any interest. If you want to harvest rewards, this is the way to go.

If you want to carry balances from month to month, a rewards card is not what you need. You'd be better off looking for something like the Slate for BT, or a credit union card with a low APR.

Re: Afraid to close accounts!!!

boomhower — Thu, 09 May 2013 14:20:22 GMT

First, just buy a packing gum every couple of months to keep the card open. It will help your utility if you ever carry a balance on other cards and age over the long term.

Second, PIF and you don't have to worry about the interest rate. Rewards cards are for rewards, not carrying balances. They have always had higher interest rates to offset the rewards, this isn't new or unique to chase. Just don't spend more on these cards than you can afford to pay for the month.

Third, for your desired card you need to get into a good credit union. Low interest + large limit = credit union. DCU is a very good one anyone can join. Looking at the interest rates your getting your credit report looks like it needs a little work before you get the lowest rates from anyone. Even on Chase rewards cards they do around 12% with good credit.

Re: Afraid to close accounts!!!

youngandcreditwrthy — Thu, 09 May 2013 16:04:01 GMT

I would NOT close it.
If it becomes an issue in the future with too much available credit as deemed by a creditor for denial, then i'd consider lowering the cl. Until then, it will help your util.
Hell, if I were you, I'd get started working on a $10k line by calling up GE Credit Solutions and asking for a cli to $10k on it :-)

Am I right, lexie? And LS?

Re: Afraid to close accounts!!!

Anonymous — Thu, 09 May 2013 19:54:47 GMT

@youngandcreditwrthy

Yes, you are correct. Helps with util, I don't see a problem at all with keeping it open.

Re: Afraid to close accounts!!!

Anonymous — Fri, 10 May 2013 05:49:40 GMT

What I'm trying to point out is, if you have a C/C with $5,000.00 & a 15% APR (New Acct), why keep a C/C with a $4,000.00 & a 25+% APR? It makes NO SENSE. Department store C/C's have high APR with NO perks & HIGH APR's. I will not make any large purchases with this card. Why keep it? Another concern of mine is, this card maybe holding other banks back from giving me a higher credit line, I have 3 Visa cards already.