How To Safely Sock Drawer (SD) A Credit Card

[takeshi74]

---

@credit_is_crack wrote:

I've heard of some banks that either close your account (worst case), or decrease the credit limit for low/no usage. has anybody experienced this recently - like in the last 2 years, although i'm still interested in any of these horror stories lol 

---

---

@credit_is_crack wrote:

how long do you let your card go without any use?  

---

Polling isn't how you answer your question.

If you want to avoid account closure due to inactivity then you need to verify with each of your creditors what their polciies are on the matter.  Then ensure that you meet at least the minimum activity requirements.

The creditor's specifics on CLD's due to inactivity isn't likely to be disclosed but you can reference existing threads.  You can also ask regarding your creditors to see if anyone can provide feedback.

Safely SD'ing isn't just about avoiding account closure and CLD's.  It's also about ensuring that you actively monitor all of your accounts for fraud.  If you cannot or will not monitor an SD'd card then consider closing it.

---

@credit_is_crack wrote:

how often should i charge something on my card so the bank doesnt get weird? do some of you think thats based on how much (or low) the average spend is in a certain time frame, or are people actually putting their cards in the sock drawers for 6+ months at a time?

---

Creditors vary. Don't assume that they're all identical in regard to these matters. I do have cards that have not been used for 6+ months but I know those creditors won't close them due to that.  The cards that require more activity to avoid closure see more activity.

[_NERD]

When we sock drawer a card that's already PIF, and don't use it for a couple months, does our credit reports still report green OK for payment history on those unused months? Or will Unknown or No Payment Data be reported for those unused months?

[Anonymous]

An easy thing to do is put small payments on certain cards.  For instance I have Netflix on a card that is essentially SD.  My other cards that don't recieve much use I just buy something small every once in a while.  I have rarely used my quicksilver and amex blue cash for instance.  I'll just buy something on them every once in a while. 

[Anonymous]

In my experience I get the green ok from each of my creditors

[Anonymous]

Technology our friend. you can load cards up in phone wallets. if you are a consistant Amazon Customer you can split up the whole subscribe and Save Shipment between 5 credit cards (one per item) if you want.

[credit_is_crack]

They should still report 'ok'. Very few banks only report when they have activity, but that's more sketchy banks and I think most of that has stopped. Regardless of balance, if the account is open, it should report to the CRA's

[Anonymous]

---

@Anonymous wrote:

For me-

I think it is very important to make sure that my cards stay over on the left side of the drawer with my socks-

On the right side of the drawer are my wifes socks and as we all know they cannot be trusted- sure they seem like a decent lot of socks... but no!

YMMV

---

Hilarious! Thanks for the laugh!

[Anonymous]

I have had cards closed due to inactivity, but that was a long time ago. I think if you use the cards for a purchase every 3-6 months you should be good.

SN: If you are finding that a card is no longer useful to you, then you may need to close it or let the creditor close it due to inactivity. I know you stated in your post that you have spent the last year rebuilding but if a card no longer fits your needs then... Best of luck!

[nycplayboy78]

---

@Anonymous wrote:

For me-

I think it is very important to make sure that my cards stay over on the left side of the drawer with my socks-

On the right side of the drawer are my wifes socks and as we all know they cannot be trusted- sure they seem like a decent lot of socks... but no!

YMMV

---

SCREAMS-n-FAINTS!!! I see no lies in your post....LOL!!!!

[Anonymous]

---

@Anonymous wrote:
Technology our friend. you can load cards up in phone wallets. if you are a consistant Amazon Customer you can split up the whole subscribe and Save Shipment between 5 credit cards (one per item) if you want.

---

This is a genius idea! I don't have many bills so I've been looking for a recurring charge for a few of my other cards to PIF each statement. Coffee and TP it is!