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Close 10 year old card?

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janderson126
Contributor

Close 10 year old card?

Hi ALL, 

I have been debating to close a 10-Year-old card for quite a few months now. 

It has an APR of around 20% and 3.00 AF. I am not too concerned about the AF; however, I don't use the card a lot. I am sure it has one of my bills to keep it open - It is set up on auto-pay. 

I have been keeping it open for AAOC. Of course, I have another card that is 15 years old that may counter-act it or balance it out. 

What would you suggest or do? In my shoes - any help on this would be appreciated. 

 

Thank you for your help in advance. 

AMEX Delta Gold | Travel | 5k | 12/19
AMEX Delta Plat | 7k | 4/21
Navy Rewards | Gas | 18k | 06/20
Capone Savor | Entertainment | 3.5k | 1/20
Cap one | 6.5k | 1/10
Cap one Walmart | 2k| 10/17
PayPal Master Card | 2% Everyday Spend | 15k | 6/20
Venmo | 12K | 01/2024

Message 1 of 30
29 REPLIES 29
FormerCollegeDJ
Frequent Contributor

Re: Close 10 year old card?

I recommend closing the card.  The card will stay on your credit report for a few years, and perhaps more importantly you'll have greater peace of mind if you close the card rather than continually debating whether you should close it or not when your gut is telling you that you should.

Playing the credit card rewards game since early May 2020.

Current credit cards:
American Express: Hilton Honors
Bank of America: Customized Cash Rewards Visa
Capital One: SavorOne MC
Chase: Amazon Visa, Freedom Unlimited Visa, Freedom Flex MC
Citi: Sears/ThankYou Rewards MC, My Best Buy Visa, Custom Cash MC
Comenity: AAA Travel Advantage Visa
Discover: Cash It
Elan: S&T Bank Max Cash Preferred Visa
FNBO: Amtrak Guest Rewards Platinum MC
PSECU: Founder's Visa
U.S. Bank: Cash+ Visa
Wells Fargo: Autograph Visa
Store cards: Kohl's

Next target credit cards: Wells Fargo Bilt Mastercard (probably), Truist Enjoy Travel Visa (maybe)
Message 2 of 30
Ficoproblems247
Valued Contributor

Re: Close 10 year old card?

Which card is it we are talking about? You say a $3.00 AF, is that a typo? Monthly fee perhaps? If the card is a burden to you and you feel it does not fit your spend, I say close it down. It will not affect your AAoA until it drops off of your reports, so no worries in that regard. Closed accounts in good standing typically stay on your reports for roughly 10 years or so, however this can vary. I have a couple closed revolvers that are over 13 years old that are still reporting. I hope they hang around for awhile yet. 





FICO 8 Sep '23 EX 755 EQ 765 TU 739
TCL $199,800
Message 3 of 30
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Close 10 year old card?


@janderson126 wrote:

Hi ALL, 

I have been debating to close a 10-Year-old card for quite a few months now. 

It has an APR of around 20% and 3.00 AF. I am not too concerned about the AF; however, I don't use the card a lot. I am sure it has one of my bills to keep it open - It is set up on auto-pay. 

I have been keeping it open for AAOC. Of course, I have another card that is 15 years old that may counter-act it or balance it out. 

What would you suggest or do? In my shoes - any help on this would be appreciated. 

 

Thank you for your help in advance. 


A few thoughts... if the $3.00 AF truly is accurate and you have a transaction well-established w an Auto Payment set up, how about keeping it. Functionally it's SD'd. 

My other thought is, after the other single 15 yo CC (congratulations 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 It's almost ok'd enough to get its own Prom Date... 😉) , how old are your other handful of cards. I can't tell from your list. 

Having a few 15 yo CC's which are functionally free and you have your Keep It Active process already worked out, I lean towards keeping them. But that's my bias. Age of my accounts is an issue in EQ and TU. I kick myself for not keeping something open for years. So, I lean towards, keep a handful open for creating Thick , Mature/Old as much as possible. 

Because stuff happens. 

Message 4 of 30
pinkandgrey
Senior Contributor

Re: Close 10 year old card?


@FormerCollegeDJ wrote:

I recommend closing the card.  The card will stay on your credit report for a few years, and perhaps more importantly you'll have greater peace of mind if you close the card rather than continually debating whether you should close it or not when your gut is telling you that you should.


This exactly. Close away, I say. 

Discover It: 21.5k
Amex Cash Magnet: 18k
Fidelity Visa: 13k
Apple Card: 4.25k
Message 5 of 30
SecretAzure
Valued Contributor

Re: Close 10 year old card?

I see cards like that as a drain on my mindshare. I know you really could let auto-pay handle it and leave it there forever but why give them any money at all if they're not a benefit for your life? I debated for several years about keeping my Cap1 Secured. I ultimately decided to toss it because of the larger AF and...somewhat on principal that they had upgraded some that got the card way after me but never offered to offer me an unsecure line. So I saved my $29 and got my deposit back. One less card and company to worry about. It was a weight off my shoulders even if that weight was caused mostly by my neurosis I think it was worth it. It helped me out early on, it did it's job...and it still is on my report for another 6 years or so. I don't see me really needing that for padding that far into the future. Do what makes your mind happiest. This isn't a crisis situation so it really depends on you and where you think you'll be in 10 years. Smiley Happy

"Show your thanks with action! Hit the "Kudos" button (the stripe with the star) for every post you find helpful to show your appreciation to the community of great individuals who help you on these forums" -Me

Active Cards: Chevron Texaco, Amex BCE, Barclays Ring, Chase Freedom, Chase Freedom Unlimited, Best Buy Visa, Marvel MCMust garden until 2/1/2022 to hit my goal AAOA. Smiley Indifferent
Message 6 of 30
janderson126
Contributor

Re: Close 10 year old card?

Hi, @Ficoproblems247  SORRY about that. Yes, it's a monthly fee. It's a cap one card that I got over a decade pulse ago. I mean, the 3.00 is not really a big deal; however, If it's helping my current AAoA, then I will keep it or PC. 

However, reading that you have closed cards and still reporting after 10 years is something to keep in mind. 

This was very helpful, thank you. 

 

When yours drop off, do you think that it will change your AAoA or not so much? 

AMEX Delta Gold | Travel | 5k | 12/19
AMEX Delta Plat | 7k | 4/21
Navy Rewards | Gas | 18k | 06/20
Capone Savor | Entertainment | 3.5k | 1/20
Cap one | 6.5k | 1/10
Cap one Walmart | 2k| 10/17
PayPal Master Card | 2% Everyday Spend | 15k | 6/20
Venmo | 12K | 01/2024

Message 7 of 30
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Close 10 year old card?

@janderson126 I definitely say KEEP it! That's such a well seasoned card... It's a Cap1, so I'm sure you can PC it to another card... Have you requested a CLI within the last 6 months? Cap1 offers SP CLI's... I recommend PCing it to a card you better enjoy, and growing it. Turn it into a card you like more.

Message 8 of 30
janderson126
Contributor

Re: Close 10 year old card?

@Anonymous  

Thanks for stopping in and sharing your thoughts and your kind words. 

It made me laugh with your comment on the prom date, lol. 

My other cards vary from 1 to 5 years or so. I updated my list. I hope that is a little more clear; if not, please ask direct questions. I am more than happy to answer them as I can. 

I can understand about the closing of accounts having it affect the TU and EXP reports. That is why I am trying to be careful with this decision because I don't want it to haunt me. 

 

I am sorry that happened to you. I hope you have been able to recover from it over the years. It looks like you got a nice haul of cards. I am curious what ones are your top 3, and what categories do you use them for usually? 

 

 

AMEX Delta Gold | Travel | 5k | 12/19
AMEX Delta Plat | 7k | 4/21
Navy Rewards | Gas | 18k | 06/20
Capone Savor | Entertainment | 3.5k | 1/20
Cap one | 6.5k | 1/10
Cap one Walmart | 2k| 10/17
PayPal Master Card | 2% Everyday Spend | 15k | 6/20
Venmo | 12K | 01/2024

Message 9 of 30
janderson126
Contributor

Re: Close 10 year old card?

@Anonymous 

Thank you for your kind words and for stopping by. 

I have not asked for a CLI in the last 6 months. It's something I can look into. 

As far as the PC, I had asked before however got disconnected after a long hold time did not bother to call back, yet I think I may reach out again and see If that is an option. 

I do agree that it's a well-seasoned card. That is why it's so hard to make the decision. If it were a year or so, I would be like to the curb it goes. 

AMEX Delta Gold | Travel | 5k | 12/19
AMEX Delta Plat | 7k | 4/21
Navy Rewards | Gas | 18k | 06/20
Capone Savor | Entertainment | 3.5k | 1/20
Cap one | 6.5k | 1/10
Cap one Walmart | 2k| 10/17
PayPal Master Card | 2% Everyday Spend | 15k | 6/20
Venmo | 12K | 01/2024

Message 10 of 30
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