So my credit score is around 550 and I have $1,550 in credit card debt. Are DMP a good idea for me?

[kevmart96]

So my goal is to improve my credit score from my current one which is 550 at the moment. I closed off two credit cards that are no longer active but I still have between the two cards $1,550 in credit card debt. I was talking to an online financial counselor and I was thinking of joining a DMP will it work for me or should I get a loan instead? I also was thinking of getting a travel credit card but only one credit card and that's it! What should I do?

[GZG]

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@kevmart96 wrote:

So my goal is to improve my credit score from my current one which is 550 at the moment. I closed off two credit cards that are no longer active but I still have between the two cards $1,550 in credit card debt. I was talking to an online financial counselor and I was thinking of joining a DMP will it work for me or should I get a loan instead? I also was thinking of getting a travel credit card but only one credit card and that's it! What should I do?

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you don't need a loan or a DMP for $1,550 in credit card debt.

you need to pay your credit cards off. 

you need to work as many hours as you can, save $1,000 and put that in a savings account. 

After that, take every extra dollar you have and put it towards your debt until it's $0. 

[keekers]

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@GZG wrote:

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@kevmart96 wrote:

So my goal is to improve my credit score from my current one which is 550 at the moment. I closed off two credit cards that are no longer active but I still have between the two cards $1,550 in credit card debt. I was talking to an online financial counselor and I was thinking of joining a DMP will it work for me or should I get a loan instead? I also was thinking of getting a travel credit card but only one credit card and that's it! What should I do?

---

you don't need a loan or a DMP for $1,550 in credit card debt.

you need to pay your credit cards off. 

you need to work as many hours as you can, save $1,000 and put that in a savings account. 

After that, take every extra dollar you have and put it towards your debt until it's $0. 

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Basically this.

[SouthJamaica]

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@kevmart96 wrote:

So my goal is to improve my credit score from my current one which is 550 at the moment. I closed off two credit cards that are no longer active but I still have between the two cards $1,550 in credit card debt. I was talking to an online financial counselor and I was thinking of joining a DMP will it work for me or should I get a loan instead? I also was thinking of getting a travel credit card but only one credit card and that's it! What should I do?

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No you should not get involved with anything exotic like that. You should just work harder at paying off the $1550, cutting expenses and supplementing income.

Applying for a loan or credit card at this juncture would be pointless.  When your scores get closer to 700 then you can start thinking about a credit card.

[FlaDude]

Sorry if the responses here seem a little dismissive, but myself and many of the participants here have had (or still do have) levels of debt where 1550 would be a rounding error. I agree with the other posters that it seems cutting back and trying to earn a bit extra should be enough to retire 1500.

What is your total credit limit? Even maxed out cards wouldn't explain your scores, do you have lates or other negatives? I don't see getting a decent travel card until you've gotten those scores up. Closing cards might have been a mistake if that increased your total utilization percentage.

[CreditPoor]

If your credit score truly is a 550 that would indicate there are derogatories on your report that should be addressed sooner than later.

As far as your debt, I'd suggest sitting down and doing a proper budget. Cut out all of the eating out and unnecessary spending. Try and pick up some extra hours at work and or a side gig for some extra cash to throw towards your debt. This is not a lot of debt, so I'd expect paying it off in a month or two shouldn't be an issue.

Lastly, if you're struggling with paying $1500 of debt it means you have already over extended yourself and a new credit card is not something you should be considering 

[Baha3]

You should focus on healing you credit and balance before applying again as that will further hurt your score, best thing to do is read up on the forums here in the "rebuilding your credit" section found here:

 https://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Rebuilding-Your-Credit/bd-p/rebuildingcredit

In order for others to help you, please provide the types of credit cards you have, their limit and current balance along with any past cards and negatives like late payments or collections, we can then give you a more helpful answer

[FicoMike0]

I agree with the others.

How might a Data Management Platform help?

[kevmart96]

It's a Discover It card and a Merrick Bank Credit Card. The limit is $1,300  and the current balance is $824.30 and Merrick the limit is $1,000 and the current balance is $677.35. The interests are $25 each.

[FicoMike0]

So, you have utilization s over %50. That's hurting your score. Paying high interest is hurting your finances. Paying those down is a no brainer. As was already pointed out, high utilization isn't enough to drive scores of 550. You must have some baddies as well.