@Brian_Earl_Spilner wrote:
@GatorGuy wrote:
I will never understand this idea of voluntarily carrying a balance and paying interest.
As far as lenders are concerned, there is only one reason a borrower would carry a balance and pay interest, it's because you are spending more than you have. This is not a good thing. They will not look favorable on this. You will always look riskier than someone who pays in full.
Luckily for you it sounds like they gave you a generous hard limit. Keep spending how you were but pay in full every single month. For ALL your cards.
Sometimes it can be advantageous to carry a balance from a trended data perspective. Some lenders, like Amex, are very data driven. If you pif for 5 years and then all of a sudden carry a balance it could raise flags. Some lenders, like Amex, will move swiftly with AA believing something is wrong. Some will restrict usage or balance chase. For other lenders, they may simply start removing offers like BT or temp rates. It really depends on the lender. Then you have to worry about AA from other lenders when they see things like balance chasing.
Personally I don't think paying interest, possibly for years because you may need to carry a balance is a great plan. Carrying a CC balance is one of the worst financial moves due to the high cost. Usually people dig themselves in a worst hole.
Also, I don't think someone is any less likely to see adverse action. If they have been carrying small balances and are then forced to carry a balance it will likely be far higher than what they had typically been carrying. Thry would also already be in a higher risk category due to long term carrying balances and would likely trigger AI algorithms quicker.
Personally I have always PIF until last year when I started carrying a long term 0% card with Sync. No one batted an eye. However I always let balances report and I think it can be difficult for lenders to actually know if you are PIF or carrying a balance depending on how lenders report payments.
