topic Re: How to stagger closing dates on cards? in General Credit Topics

How to stagger cycling dates on cards?

Anonymous — Fri, 17 Jul 2020 15:41:51 GMT

I realized both my Disco and brand-new BOA Cash Rewards close and cycle on the same dates :/

I'd like change the BOA to a different date (they allow 1 change per year).

Should I assume I stagger it exactly 2 weeks after the Disco closes, so I can always have one to spend on while the other is dormant for a bit? I'm trying to do AZEO (although I know that's better with 3 cards, I'm sticking to 2 for now ).

Or is there a better way to do it?

I know, I know 'it's only 2 cards,'

but having a 2nd card is COMPLETELY new for me, so want to make sure I'm thinking this through slowly, and correctly.

Re: How to stagger closing dates on cards?

Anonymous — Fri, 17 Jul 2020 15:19:55 GMT

I guess what I'm asking is, is there some sort of formula when you start to juggle more cards.

In a different topic I explained how at age 40, I've only had 1 CC (opened 2 yrs ago). I was raised to only spend if you NEEDED the item and had the cash to pay for it. So I've taken that and now treat my CC as a debit card (and hope to always do that).

Since I just opened my 2nd card to build more credit (720 TU currently, and 835 Exp. Though that 835 number seems too good to be true, but I was sent it in the mail when I got my new BOA card) thanks to the awesome people here on the forums, I was curious about how people stagger their dates.

Re: How to stagger closing dates on cards?

Anonymous — Fri, 17 Jul 2020 16:18:36 GMT

I think it would be easy for you to do AZEO. Out of your two cards, pay whatever one you want to report a zero balance before the statement closing date and then pay the other one after your statement is generated. You really only have to remember 1 date which is nice.

Re: How to stagger closing dates on cards?

Anonymous — Fri, 17 Jul 2020 16:36:33 GMT

True about remembering dates, but I pay balances every few days.

That being said, there a few days where I stop using my first CC (3-4 days before it closes, so I'm not hit with a large balance that may skew my utilization ratio).

Was wondering if I should stagger the other card's closing date so I'd be able to use it when my first card isn't being used before it's closing date.

Re: How to stagger closing dates on cards?

ccquest — Fri, 17 Jul 2020 17:23:37 GMT

2-3 weeks apart should be good, maybe call both and ask for them to be 1st and 15th so they are easy to remember dates that are also two weeks apart?

I was starting to think about the opposite and calling in to get mine all the same instead!

Re: How to stagger closing dates on cards?

Anonymous — Fri, 17 Jul 2020 21:38:41 GMT

I would just change one to about 1-2 weeks later as suggested, so if they're both due on the 11th change one to the 25th etc.

Between all my cards they have various due dates ranging from 1st, 4th, 9th, 13th, 20th and several outliers within those. I usually just pick a day to pay a lump amount to each rather than logging in daily to pay on each one. lol

I've thought about changing a few of them so that more of them share the same due date, then they wouldn't be spread out so much. Technically I could split them 50/50 for around the 1st and 16th to align with pay days that way I could log in even less to each one. I have noticed that it's getting increasingly harder to keep track of so many. If it were me i probably wouldn't bother just on 2 cards though, and wait to see if I needed to as I added new ones.

It is interesting that on a couple cards that were apped the same day, they both have different cut dates. While i understand they're different FI's i would have thought the due dates would have been closer together.

Re: How to stagger cycling dates on cards?

Trudy — Fri, 17 Jul 2020 22:18:44 GMT

I personally chose to change all my cards near the same date (also around pay dates) so that when I pull a credit report I can have everything up to date. But I do have 4 cards that are due by the 20th and report on the 23rd which allows me to start using again on the 24. Whereas all but 1 other has a due date between the 24th and 28th and all report balance "as of" date or statement date by the end of the month.

Re: How to stagger cycling dates on cards?

Anonymous — Sun, 19 Jul 2020 01:37:55 GMT

Thanks. I rarely pull credit reports (I should probably do it every 6 months since I don't have a lot to track of), but that's a good tip to have in mind.

Ps- Is there a word or some sort of terminology to describe that 'do not use card' time between it closing and then being able to use it again?

Re: How to stagger cycling dates on cards?

Trudy — Sun, 19 Jul 2020 01:50:35 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
Thanks. I rarely pull credit reports (I should probably do it every 6 months since I don't have a lot to track of), but that's a good tip to have in mind.

Ps- Is there a word or some sort of terminology to describe that 'do not use card' time between it closing and then being able to use it again?

To avoid closure I use/rotate cards to ensure each card is used at least every 6 months because that has been mentioned here numerous times. I actually don't spend a lot on CC's regularly since I got out of major CC debt (lesson learned for me) so this is my defense mechanism to keep them open. But there are some lenders that others have noted and may chime in of how long you can go without using your card with no concern of closing. I personally think some retail or store cards may have a shorter time but not sure.

Re: How to stagger cycling dates on cards?

Anonymous — Mon, 20 Jul 2020 04:16:16 GMT

It’s actually the period between the due date and the closing or statement cut, and as far as I know, we don’t have terminology for it but I guess we need some.

The interstitial time between due date and closing, what should we call it? The freeze period? The no spend period? The unknown zone? 😉😊

Yes general rule of thumb is to use a card once every 12 months minimum, Citibank you can supposedly go 24 months and Wells Fargo has been known to close as soon as 4 months... and there may be one or two others that people have mentioned were better to use every six months.

Re: How to stagger cycling dates on cards?

Iusedtolurk — Mon, 20 Jul 2020 04:49:15 GMT

@Trudy wrote:
I personally chose to change all my cards near the same date (also around pay dates) so that when I pull a credit report I can have everything up to date. But I do have 4 cards that are due by the 20th and report on the 23rd which allows me to start using again on the 24. Whereas all but 1 other has a due date between the 24th and 28th and all report balance "as of" date or statement date by the end of the month.

I arranged the bulk of my cards to be paid the first week of the month then I have the rest around the middle. I pay whatever I need to pay on the bulk of them and then pay the minimum on the ones due later.

That way all are paid but the ones due later I can apply extra paymentss if needed. Works great so far.

Re: How to stagger cycling dates on cards?

FishingGuy — Mon, 20 Jul 2020 12:11:07 GMT

I like my cards staggerd throughout the month..... and rotate which one I use depending on time of the month, size of the purchase etc.
I typically make several payments per month, so my "minimum" is always covered way, way in advance.... and usually make substantial additional payments prior to the statement cutting to keep the balance as low as possible or zero whenever possible.

If your second card is a few months old, I would apply for one more so that they age together, better to have three or more. If it wasn't in the middle of the covid 19 crisis where banks are "tightening up" I probably would say to apply for two on the same day ( I did )... and it worked out well... but others here may know better,