When is a good time to pay credit cards?

[guiness56]

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@Anonymous-own-fico wrote:

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@guiness56 wrote:

For optimum FICO scoring, never have all of your cards report a 0 balance.

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Oh, I would never say never .

I think someone recently claimed more than once that TU 800+ scores generaly do not lose points that way.

Of course I'd like to prove her wrong, and we're halfway there; DW still to report.

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I still say never.

[memevertical]

Ok, I seem to understand all this better now, but I have a question still, what's the deal with those credit cards that dont report the limit? Someone said on the previous comments that that doesnt count for utilization.

So, if it doesnt count, should I pay it off completly? How do I know which reports the limit? Can I know just by looking at my report? Cause on my report I did the the balance owed and the credit limit, is that the same limit we're talking about?

Thanks!

[memevertical]

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@guiness56 wrote:

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@memevertical wrote:

Oh, so utilization is important for  your credit?

Also, If I understand the word correctly, utilization means that you are using your credit card every month to pay stuff, correct?

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Utilization is the second highest score buster, so to speak.  It counts toward 30% of your score. 

It is the amount of the available credit that you use. 

For optimum FICO scoring, never have all of your cards report a 0 balance.  Use half of your CC and have the balances report at 9% or below.  Keep the others at 0.

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hey guiness56, quick question regarding this comment:

When you say "have the balances report at 9% or below", you mean on the due date of my credit card I leave 9% on the balance?, or use it for purchases up to 9% of the balance and on the due date Pay in full?

Thanks!

[vanillabean]

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@guiness56 wrote:

I still say never.

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Really? You don't know what your baseline is? For optimum scoring, it may help to know it.

[guiness56]

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@memevertical wrote:

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@guiness56 wrote:

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@memevertical wrote:

Oh, so utilization is important for  your credit?

Also, If I understand the word correctly, utilization means that you are using your credit card every month to pay stuff, correct?

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Utilization is the second highest score buster, so to speak.  It counts toward 30% of your score. 

It is the amount of the available credit that you use. 

For optimum FICO scoring, never have all of your cards report a 0 balance.  Use half of your CC and have the balances report at 9% or below.  Keep the others at 0.

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hey guiness56, quick question regarding this comment:

When you say "have the balances report at 9% or below", you mean on the due date of my credit card I leave 9% on the balance?, or use it for purchases up to 9% of the balance and on the due date Pay in full?

Thanks!

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Use up to 9% and pay in full before the due date.

[memevertical]

ok ok, I think I get it......so u think that if I go into the settings of my credit card, and setup the automatic payment, and select to pay full balance automatically every month, that would work for this purposes? Would it report to the CB and then pay in full? or each credit card is different?

Thanks!!!

[guiness56]

Each CC is different and when it reports to the CRAs is different.

As long as a small balance reports to the CRAs each month is fine.  Just don't let a balance go over to the next month.

You may need to play around with it for a month or so until it is reporting as you would like it.

[memevertical]

Ok perfect, thanks for all your help!!!!

[haulingthescoreup]

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@Anonymous-own-fico wrote:

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@haulingthescoreup wrote:

Most lenders then update

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I lost you right there. Who are the lenders?

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Sorry for the confusion! Lenders = banks = CU's = CCC's. I still can't find a generic word for "entities to which I pay money online before they post a statement."

Anyway, I was trying to point out that there are three steps in seeing new balances hit your credit reports:

1. a $ figure has to be chosen (statement balance vs end-of-the-month balance)
2. the lender/bank/CU/CCC/etc: has to update the info to the CRA's
3. and then the CRA's have to post the new figures.

When waiting to see new figures post, Equifax's and TU's relaxed approach to posting new balances can really wear you out.

[vanillabean]

No problem. My inquiring post sorely lacked entertainment value. Glad you clarified anyway.

The CCC/bank/CRA "pauses" outlined in your original post match my experience. I understand why a CCC like Amex takes so long, but what's the reason behind CRAs such as EQ and TU? It can't be because the process isn't fully automated, I assume.