Think I've been sending my cc payments in wrong....

[Kennie02]

I always try to watch my util. I have some cards with balances on it  that I'm working on paying down.  Anyhow, I do sometimes make purchases but always PIF for those purchases by the due date. I noticed today because of SW alert that my cards are reporting a balance. Does this mean I'm probably paying interest on these purchases too? Should I be sending payments earlier? I'm sorry! I feel like I should know this...

[WillTeasle]

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@Kennie02 wrote:

I always try to watch my util. I have some cards with balances on it  that I'm working on paying down.  Anyhow, I do sometimes make purchases but always PIF for those purchases by the due date. I noticed today because of SW alert that my cards are reporting a balance. Does this mean I'm probably paying interest on these purchases too? Should I be sending payments earlier? I'm sorry! I feel like I should know this...

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No, if PIF you are not paying interest (interest charges will show up on your statement if they exist).  The card companies report what is on the account when the statement cuts.  If you want to report no balance you need to PIF before the statement cuts.

[creditFiend]

Pay in full before the stmt cut, to avoid a balance on your CR. If you are not paying the stmt balance, more than likely, you are paying interest. Set up your account online to view activity & stmts so you'll know for sure if you're paying interest. Some companies also have mobile apps.
Monitor all accounts daily or weekly.

[hyp0luxa]

If you make a purchase using a card you are already carrying a balance on, interest will begin to accrue on that purchase immediately. If that is the case, you should pay that purchase as soon as it posts to avoid paying more interest on said purchase.

[Kennie02]

Thanks so much for all the info! I do monitor my balances and such online. It is why I asked the question. I didn't realize that if you already carry a balance on the card it affects when you start paying interest. That explains the increase interest charge on my card where I made a large purchase but PIF for that purchase by the due date. I will have to adjust when the payments are made by the statement cut date (the date before my bill is sent out right?) so I no longer pay interest on new purchases or I will use the cards that have a zero balance instead. 

[BrokaToe]

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@Kennie02 wrote:

Thanks so much for all the info! I do monitor my balances and such online. It is why I asked the question. I didn't realize that if you already carry a balance on the card it affects when you start paying interest. That explains the increase interest charge on my card where I made a large purchase but PIF for that purchase by the due date. I will have to adjust when the payments are made by the statement cut date (the date before my bill is sent out right?) so I no longer pay interest on new purchases or I will use the cards that have a zero balance instead. 

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As far as I'm aware, there is no way to simply pay for new purchases unless you're using something like Chase's Blueprint plan or something similar from another creditor.  If you are already carrying a balance on a card and make additional purchases and only pay for those additional purchases (as far as dollar amount) then you will still be charged interest on the remaining balance, if one is carried past the due date.

If you're simply not wanting to receive more interest charges for newer purchases, then just do what you've been doing but pay them off before the statement cuts to avoid that amount being reported.  Otherwise you would want to pay off your complete statement balance by the due date to stop receiving interest charges. But beware that there is usually some residual interest that will appear on your next statement, but once that's paid then the interes will stop. Unless of course you carry a balance after the due date again.