@Anonymous wrote:Hi all, searched the forums for it but wasn't obvious where to find the answer.
I have 2 cards (call them A and B) that I used many years ago to lock in balance transfers at super low 5.9% APR for the life of the balance. Over the years, I've been slowly hammering away at the balance but NEVER using the cards for purchases because any charges will be at regular APR and will be payed off AFTER the low % balances. Thus, the card is active because of payment but inactive with respect to revolving credit.
I have 1 card (card C) with $0.00 balance that I haven't used in over a year.
I'm trying to increase FICO score and my reading indicates that inactive cards (ie. cards not being charged) are not good. So I can easily make a small purchase on card C with no worries and pay it off because the balance is $0.00. The question is: should I also make small charges on cards A and B as well? Even $5 charge a few times a year would be pretty minimal at the higher APR, and it would then put back into circulation a very high amount of inactive credit, which I suspect would help my FICO score.
Does this sound correct? Any tips much appreciated!
After the CARD Act, I thought that was no longer legal. I think they have to apply your payment to the highest APR balance first now. They can no longer balance trap.
Starting Score: ~500 (12/01/2008)
@Anonymous-own-fico wrote:Yes and no. They meant to, but not quite.
The company of my card with the highest limit offered me checks at a very low APR. I used one and bought shares of my favorite stock. The earnings on the first market day alone paid for the period's fee.
I have planned to pay the card off on time and not use it for charges until then. The only downside is the util of the card, but the limit allows plenty of room to play, so I am not worried.
I wasn't aware of that. Still, seems like not that big of a deal if you were planning to PIF. If you did want to use the card, you'd just have to pay the minimum plus the amount you used for that month.