@Anonymous wrote:
Okay well I will work on getting my cards paid off. Won't they close the accounts if I don't use them ?
Having a balance and making payments counts as usage.
Keep in mind that once you get a credit card balance to zero, you may be be charged trailing interest the following month. That's "leftover" interest that'll be such a small amount that paying it immediately won't be a hardship. It's important to note that being billed for trailing interest is probable because people forget about that, don't check their statements, and end up with a late being reported.
Once you see a statement with a balance of zero, your grace period will be reset, and you won't be charged interest on new transactions. At that point, you'd want to be concerned about making sure that the card sees at least occasional use. You can make charges to these cards as long as you can pay them off promptly. If you have cards with zero balances right now, you should be making the occasional charge and paying it off soon after it posts.
It should be noted that some people who carry balances for an extended period become subject to adverse action (limit decreases or even card closure) by the bank. I don't think your utilization is high enough for you to have to worry about that. But if it happens, there's nothing you can do about it. Once your balances are paid, simply pick up the pieces. As long as you aim for AZEO, your scores will still be improved vs. where they're at now.
I mentioned the "all cards at zero" ding above. If that happens to occur in the process of finally paying off your cards, don't be concerned. The next time a card reports a small positive balance, that issue will be fixed. Making interest stop is the first priority. After that, you can concentrate on AZEO until your scores improve to the point that it doesn't have to be a priority.
