Keep a Restricted Cap1 acct or close it

[FireMedic1]

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@CramEiko wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

I've been repairing my credit for over a year now ( up roughly 40 points and hovering around 600 depending on the report), and now I need advice on something.

I currently have 2 Cap1 cards with a $0/500 balance and a $989/1300 balance, both have been restricted since I started repairing my credit, and according to calls they will stay like that. The 0 balance has been paid off since 01/2029. I also currently have a Credit One card of $473/700, and a car loan, both current and with no negative hits on them. But I do have defaulted student loans in there that are currently being paid through wage garnishment (those I'm told my union lawyers can help with)

I understand that the one card with the 0 balance is a positive on my reports right now as it brings my credit up and lowers my utilization some, but should I keep it open or close it? It is also the oldest card on my file at around 5 and a half months, but the next oldest is only 2 months behind it.

I was thinking of trying to apply for another card ( even a Cap1 if the terms are better) and was wondering how much closing the account will hurt/ help any chances. Not looking at any major loans or purcheses anytime in the future but want to get things in the works just in case.

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Highlighted above and IMHO - I say keep it. Buy a coffee once every other month and PIF then set it in your SD. You need all the help you can get at the moment. Your over all UTI would look too negative. Any length of time should be helping. You've only had the cards for say 5.5 months. Why are you saying that they are restricted? At 5.5 mo you wouldn't be able to get a CLI due to Cap1 being pretty tight on their 6mo per CLI (YMMV). Cutting them out this early in age with no depth of credit paired with your derogs may do way more harm than good to your overall profile.

Good Luck!

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@CramEiko When things go south with Cap1 they restrict your card or internally they are closed and not open for business. There will be no CLI's or anything else. One is helping as open with 0 balance. The other once paid will do the same thing. Then the OP can then make a plea to have the restriction lifted. Even though they say no for now. Cap1 clould have closed them out. But for now they didnt. So I suggest to read up on Cap1 resticted cards and how they operate before posting info that isnt correct.

[FireMedic1]

Calling @calyx to help the OP on their defaulted SL's.

[calyx]

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@Anonymous wrote:
 But I do have defaulted student loans in there that are currently being paid through wage garnishment (those I'm told my union lawyers can help with)

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Thanks @FireMedic1 

@Anonymous, you don't need lawyers to help with your defaulted student loans.
ASSUMING that these are federal (because of the wage garnishment), call up the servicer on your account (the one/s garnishing your wages), and talk to them about "rehabilitation"
It's a program where you make 9 voluntary, monthly payments and they will remove the default from your student loans - it not only brings you current, but you also get to keep the original opening date (so you get some really nice, long tradelines).   Many servicers will also remove the lates from your account, but others don't, so if the lates aren't removed, you can try a goodwill letter campaign.

The rehab payment is usually a small amount (if the amount they give you is a hardship you can ask them for a smaller payment), and they will stop the wage garnishment.
After these loans are brought out of default, they will be assigned to a servicer (it could be your old one or a new one) and you will resume payments.

After bringing them current, definitey look into IBR - Income Based Repayments - there are several different programs, some of them will even forgive your debt after so many years of ontime monthly payments.   My ICR (slightly different version) is actually 1/3 of what they were garnishing from my wages.  Think of the money you can get freed up!  Plus the long tradelines help your score.

If you have many student loans and you are having a hard time keeping up with them, you can see if the servicer will let you make one payment that they split across your loans, instead of trying to keep track of all of the loans (I think most do this by default, but some servicers still have people pay individual loans which can get confusing).

[Anonymous]

@calyx Can you point me to some resources to check into all that. I guess the main one is figuring out who my actual servicer is and my actual loans details. I'm sure I had it on all the paperwork from when they started almost three years ago, but between moves and trying to get back on my feet, who knows where that ended up. But the $60-80 they take out every week would be nice, not to mention my fed taxes ( glad they don't take my state refund).

Hence why I was willing to let my union lawyers deal with it. Figure they would at least have better resources and from what the rep was telling me, it won't cost me anything to use them.

[calyx]

Happy to help!

It does get pretty onerous - trying to figure out who is servicing the account can get pretty difficult at times.
I would go to the national student loan database and download your information (you may have to set up an account first), here:
https://nslds.ed.gov/nslds/nslds_SA/

You should be able to download your information (in the worst textfile formatting ever) and it will list your loans with their servicers.
Good luck!  And let me know if I can help any futher.

And honestly, if it's free - I don't blame you letting the union do the legwork, I know how tedious financial matters can be.  

[FireMedic1]

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@calyx wrote:

Happy to help!

It does get pretty onerous - trying to figure out who is servicing the account can get pretty difficult at times.
I would go to the national student loan database and download your information (you may have to set up an account first), here:
https://nslds.ed.gov/nslds/nslds_SA/

You should be able to download your information (in the worst textfile formatting ever) and it will list your loans with their servicers.
Good luck!  And let me know if I can help any futher.

And honestly, if it's free - I don't blame you letting the union do the legwork, I know how tedious financial matters can be.  

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@calyxto the rescue. Congrats on Senior and where's your avatar?

[calyx]

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@FireMedic1 wrote:

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@calyxto the rescue. Congrats on Senior and where's your avatar?

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Hah!  I asked too much of Lithium, or the photo, whichever!

[CramEiko]

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@FireMedic1 wrote:

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@CramEiko wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

I've been repairing my credit for over a year now ( up roughly 40 points and hovering around 600 depending on the report), and now I need advice on something.

I currently have 2 Cap1 cards with a $0/500 balance and a $989/1300 balance, both have been restricted since I started repairing my credit, and according to calls they will stay like that. The 0 balance has been paid off since 01/2029. I also currently have a Credit One card of $473/700, and a car loan, both current and with no negative hits on them. But I do have defaulted student loans in there that are currently being paid through wage garnishment (those I'm told my union lawyers can help with)

I understand that the one card with the 0 balance is a positive on my reports right now as it brings my credit up and lowers my utilization some, but should I keep it open or close it? It is also the oldest card on my file at around 5 and a half months, but the next oldest is only 2 months behind it.

I was thinking of trying to apply for another card ( even a Cap1 if the terms are better) and was wondering how much closing the account will hurt/ help any chances. Not looking at any major loans or purcheses anytime in the future but want to get things in the works just in case.

---

Highlighted above and IMHO - I say keep it. Buy a coffee once every other month and PIF then set it in your SD. You need all the help you can get at the moment. Your over all UTI would look too negative. Any length of time should be helping. You've only had the cards for say 5.5 months. Why are you saying that they are restricted? At 5.5 mo you wouldn't be able to get a CLI due to Cap1 being pretty tight on their 6mo per CLI (YMMV). Cutting them out this early in age with no depth of credit paired with your derogs may do way more harm than good to your overall profile.

Good Luck!

---

@CramEiko When things go south with Cap1 they restrict your card or internally they are closed and not open for business. There will be no CLI's or anything else. One is helping as open with 0 balance. The other once paid will do the same thing. Then the OP can then make a plea to have the restriction lifted. Even though they say no for now. Cap1 clould have closed them out. But for now they didnt. So I suggest to read up on Cap1 resticted cards and how they operate before posting info that isnt correct.

---

@FireMedic1 - Never hearing of a restricted card myself, I did ask' "why are you saying that they are restricted?". Coming from someone (myself) that is also trying to learn. I was thinking, what if the OP just tried to request a CLI too early on cards where the oldest card on his file was stated at 5.5mo. Thank you for the "correction".

[FireMedic1]

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@CramEiko wrote:

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@FireMedic1 wrote:

---

@CramEiko wrote:

---

@Anonymous wrote:

I've been repairing my credit for over a year now ( up roughly 40 points and hovering around 600 depending on the report), and now I need advice on something.

I currently have 2 Cap1 cards with a $0/500 balance and a $989/1300 balance, both have been restricted since I started repairing my credit, and according to calls they will stay like that. The 0 balance has been paid off since 01/2029. I also currently have a Credit One card of $473/700, and a car loan, both current and with no negative hits on them. But I do have defaulted student loans in there that are currently being paid through wage garnishment (those I'm told my union lawyers can help with)

I understand that the one card with the 0 balance is a positive on my reports right now as it brings my credit up and lowers my utilization some, but should I keep it open or close it? It is also the oldest card on my file at around 5 and a half months, but the next oldest is only 2 months behind it.

I was thinking of trying to apply for another card ( even a Cap1 if the terms are better) and was wondering how much closing the account will hurt/ help any chances. Not looking at any major loans or purcheses anytime in the future but want to get things in the works just in case.

---

Highlighted above and IMHO - I say keep it. Buy a coffee once every other month and PIF then set it in your SD. You need all the help you can get at the moment. Your over all UTI would look too negative. Any length of time should be helping. You've only had the cards for say 5.5 months. Why are you saying that they are restricted? At 5.5 mo you wouldn't be able to get a CLI due to Cap1 being pretty tight on their 6mo per CLI (YMMV). Cutting them out this early in age with no depth of credit paired with your derogs may do way more harm than good to your overall profile.

Good Luck!

---

@CramEiko When things go south with Cap1 they restrict your card or internally they are closed and not open for business. There will be no CLI's or anything else. One is helping as open with 0 balance. The other once paid will do the same thing. Then the OP can then make a plea to have the restriction lifted. Even though they say no for now. Cap1 clould have closed them out. But for now they didnt. So I suggest to read up on Cap1 resticted cards and how they operate before posting info that isnt correct.

---

@FireMedic1 - Never hearing of a restricted card myself, I did ask' "why are you saying that they are restricted?". Coming from someone (myself) that is also trying to learn. I was thinking, what if the OP just tried to request a CLI too early on cards where the oldest card on his file was stated at 5.5mo. Thank you for the "correction".

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No problem @CramEiko . Its Cap1's version of time out go to your room. You've been bad. We'll let you know when you can go out and play again. Ha!