Which/How to cancel Credit Cards

[CorySoccer]

Hey all,

I have recently been approved for 2 new credit cards with very good SL's and no AF's.  Up until now I have virtually all beginner cards. All, except 2 with AF's.

I know closing credit cards affects things like the average age of your accounts, total credit available (the 2 SL of the new cards I've been approved for is much more than the CL of the cards I would be closing) etc...

However, I don't want/need/use these cards.  They all have zero balances.

How do I go about cancelling these to avoid or limit the possible hits to my credit score.

The 4 cards I want to remove (and let me know if I'm wrong in thinking this) are:

Indigo:  CL:  $300    AF:  $99

Credit One (1):  CL:  $1050   AF:  $99

Credit One (2):  CL:  $800     AF:  $39

Legacy First:  CL:  $750    AF:  $75

Thanks!

[coldfusion]

First thing to keep in mind is that a closed card will contribute toward your AAoA for another 10 years.

Credit Karma does not use closed accounts when they calculate their AAoA numbers, but nobody that matters cares.

First thing you want to do is doublecheck to make sure that the balances of all these cards is at $0.

Call Customer Service for each of these cards and tell the CSR that you want to close the card.   They will likely try to talk you out of it but be firm.

Follow up with a letter to confirm that you called on <date> and <approx. time> and spoke to <whomever> and closed the account.

Be sure to follow up in 30 days to make sure that you still have a $0 balance and that there is no trailing interest .

[Kforce]

1)  Closing a credit card will not impact real Fico scores because of age until they are removed in about 10 years.

2)  Utilization can but with such small limits they are not helping much.

3) Finances over Fico.   (MHO)

4)  I would close them all before they cost you more money.

Many will say to close each right before they renew and want the AF, add age and utilization  buffer with what you have already paid for.   I would say you have just gotten the benefit of what you have paid for by your new approvals and just close them ALL.

[CorySoccer]

@coldfusion Ahh, yeah I forgot that closed accounts stay on your account for 10 years. Thanks for the reminder.

And even though my balances are at zero (as well as any interest), I will definitely take your advice about double checking and the follow up letters.

Ty

[coldfusion]

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@CorySoccer wrote:

@coldfusion Ahh, yeah I forgot that closed accounts stay on your account for 10 years. Thanks for the reminder.

And even though my balances are at zero (as well as any interest), I will definitely take your advice about double checking and the follow up letters.

Ty

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You're welcome.

People sometimes forget about trailing interest and end up getting burned with a derog reporting over what only amounts for a few dollars so it's always prudent to doublecheck.

Expect pushback and potentially having incentives thrown at you to try to keep you from closing the card but they will cave if you are firm.  The letter validates your intent that the card be closed, be sure to keep a copy of each letter.

[CorySoccer]

@Kforce Thanks for the advice and good points.

They renew shortly anyways so I think I'm going to just get rid of them and be done with it.

[KLEXH25]

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@CorySoccer wrote:

@Kforce Thanks for the advice and good points.

They renew shortly anyways so I think I'm going to just get rid of them and be done with it.

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It's better to close and be done with it. They have served their purpose. On to newer and better things!

Congrats on the new approvals.

[Adkins]

What @coldfusion said plus I always ask them to send me a letter verifying the account is closed and the balance is zero. File this information with this year's taxes so it doesn't get lost. Sometimes lenders can be shady, so you'll have your proof of closure easily at hand in case you need it. CYA. 

[805orbust]

Agree wholeheartedly with @coldfusion and @Kforce ... close them the second you have an extra 5 minutes. Mission accomplished. And continue to check that online account for 6-8 weeks to make sure they don't sneak anything up on you. 

I used to say that if they made you an offer to waive the fee for a year to maybe leave it open but I'm off of that. Get rid of them. So proud of you. Congrats!

[pinkandgrey]

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@coldfusion wrote:

First thing to keep in mind is that a closed card will contribute toward your AAoA for another 10 years.

Credit Karma does not use closed accounts when they calculate their AAoA numbers, but nobody that matters cares.

First thing you want to do is doublecheck to make sure that the balances of all these cards is at $0.

Call Customer Service for each of these cards and tell the CSR that you want to close the card.   They will likely try to talk you out of it but be firm.

Follow up with a letter to confirm that you called on <date> and <approx. time> and spoke to <whomever> and closed the account.

Be sure to follow up in 30 days to make sure that you still have a $0 balance and that there is no trailing interest .

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From the grammar to the actual answer, this is a perfect reply lol. I will say that I have never had a CSR tried to dissuade me from closing a card. Maybe I'm just not a fun enough customer?