Is it bad to max cards with BT's

[NextUp2bat]

FIrst let me thank you all for sharing such a wealth of knowledge whether it is answering question or posting your experience. I would not be where I am today creditwise without you. Now to my question/scenario. I have balances on about 4 out of 11 cards. I am looking to do BT's so I can take advantage of 0% APR, focus on those and pay them off quicker. Will it impact my score terribly if I max out a couple of cards with BT's and pretty much leave the other accounts at $0 for PIF every month? I don't if it matters but with new account and CLI's, my overall CU will be just under 30%. I guess part of my question is how impact does individual card vs overall CU matters.

[tcbofade]

Yes.

Maxxing out a brand new account is begging for adverse action, AND it will hit your Fico scores.  Hard.

Instead of opening one new account and maxxing it out, you'd be much, MUCH better off opening TWO new accounts and keeping the individual utilization under 48.9%.

If that's not enough, open three.

If that's STILL not enough, you can increase individual usage to 68.9%, but you're risking adverse action from the more sensitive lenders.  (Chase, Citi, Barclays...)

If you have the option, I'd suggest open two or three new accounts and keep each of them under 48.9% utilization.

Good luck!

[FinStar]

There will be some impacts depending on the utilization thresholds, which would be factored by the individual cards and your overall utilization. It also depends on your overall profile.

If you don't mind sharing your strategy, balances, credit limits on the proposed BTs, etc., perhaps the community can provide some tips to lessen some of the impacts, if anything.

If you're not looking to apply for anything major on the near horizon, then it's one of those things that is commonly known throughout the forums -- Finances > FICOs.

[SouthJamaica]

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@NextUp2bat wrote:

FIrst let me thank you all for sharing such a wealth of knowledge whether it is answering question or posting your experience. I would not be where I am today creditwise without you. Now to my question/scenario. I have balances on about 4 out of 11 cards. I am looking to do BT's so I can take advantage of 0% APR, focus on those and pay them off quicker. Will it impact my score terribly if I max out a couple of cards with BT's and pretty much leave the other accounts at $0 for PIF every month? I don't if it matters but with new account and CLI's, my overall CU will be just under 30%. I guess part of my question is how impact does individual card vs overall CU matters.

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Yes it will impact your score terribly.

It might even cause a problem with the lender.

Don't.

[NextUp2bat]

Thanks for asking. I have it in my head but have never put it in writing so this is a great time to do so. I'm open to suggestions.

My current debt:

Chase   - $12k out of $18.2k

Discover - $8k out of $11.6k

Paypal  - $2k out of 4k (Balance is at 0% Interest ending in various months with the final one due in December)

Best Buy - Citi $2.6k out of $6.7k   ($800 at 0% until Sept and $1800 at 0% until 4/22)

BOA of $0 out of $9.2k (Account is about 8 y.o)

Ultimate goal is take make large payments and have cards paid off by the end of the 0% APR offers.

Walmart Visa $0 Out of $10k

Capital One Venture $0 of $8k

Macy Amex $0 out of $9k

Credit One $0 out of $1500

Credit One $0 out of $1500

FNBO - NEW $5.7k out of $6.3k (Applied $5.7k BT to Chase)

My original plan:

Disco Balance to BOA 0% APR until 10/22

Apply for new Disco or CITI for Chase $12k now - Now that FNBO did $5k, I plan to use the new card once approved for $7k balance

[NextUp2bat]

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@tcbofade wrote:

Yes.

Maxxing out a brand new account is begging for adverse action, AND it will hit your Fico scores.  Hard.

Instead of opening one new account and maxxing it out, you'd be much, MUCH better off opening TWO new accounts and keeping the individual utilization under 48.9%.

If that's not enough, open three.

If that's STILL not enough, you can increase individual usage to 68.9%, but you're risking adverse action from the more sensitive lenders.  (Chase, Citi, Barclays...)

If you have the option, I'd suggest open two or three new accounts and keep each of them under 48.9% utilization.

Good luck!

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Thanks for your input. Unfortunately, FNBO already applied my entire new CL to a BT for Chase. I submitted the amount of BT on application because my preapproval amount was $5k more than I was actually received. I guess I will use the extra money each month towards them until I'm under 48% and then pay the majority on the card the shortest 0% APR first.

[NextUp2bat]

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@SouthJamaica wrote:

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@NextUp2bat wrote:

FIrst let me thank you all for sharing such a wealth of knowledge whether it is answering question or posting your experience. I would not be where I am today creditwise without you. Now to my question/scenario. I have balances on about 4 out of 11 cards. I am looking to do BT's so I can take advantage of 0% APR, focus on those and pay them off quicker. Will it impact my score terribly if I max out a couple of cards with BT's and pretty much leave the other accounts at $0 for PIF every month? I don't if it matters but with new account and CLI's, my overall CU will be just under 30%. I guess part of my question is how impact does individual card vs overall CU matters.

---

Yes it will impact your score terribly.

It might even cause a problem with the lender.

Don't.

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Thanks. I will make the necessary adjustments to make sure I arrange things in a way to avoid it.

[KatSoDak]

When you said you planned to transfer the Disco balance to BofA was that to your existing card or to a new BofA card?  

I agree you should not transfer an amount that will take your utilization above 50% on a new card, but since you have an 8 year relationship with BofA they may not freak, especially if the Bank is sending you BT offers. It also might be worthwhile to apply for a BofA Platinum card which could handle a few thousand more from one of your other high utilization cards. 

[dragontears]

I just wanted to give you an example of what can happen when only one card is maxed.

The dip that occurred in November was due to having a single card report >85% utilization with overall utilization <10%.

[NextUp2bat]

Yes. I'm planning to use the existing card. They have an offer on my account for the Cash Rewards card. Tell me more about the platinum card. Should I apply before or after I do the BT?