The best thing to do is to bring your utilization down. To get that down, you need to look at each card and see what's being utilized the most.
Example - Card with 1K Credit Line, usage is 900. The usage will be 90% for this TL. The thresholds for CC's are 88.9%, 68.9%, 48.9%, 28.9%, 8.9%. Anything you go up to a threshold and beyond it, you get dinged, every time you go down to another threshold, you'll see your CS go up.
So ideally, make a list of all your cards, limits and what you owe. Also put down what the interest rates are, then start tackling each one or figure out how you can get the utilization down and pay what you can on each. It's up to you on how you wanna tackle it, some prefer the snowball where they attack one card and zero it out and move onto the next or pay all evenly.
Example - Card with 1K Credit Line, usage is 900. The usage will be 90% for this TL. The thresholds for CC's are 88.9%, 68.9%, 48.9%, 28.9%, 8.9%. Anything you go up to a threshold and beyond it, you get dinged, every time you go down to another threshold, you'll see your CS go up.
So ideally, make a list of all your cards, limits and what you owe. Also put down what the interest rates are, then start tackling each one or figure out how you can get the utilization down and pay what you can on each. It's up to you on how you wanna tackle it, some prefer the snowball where they attack one card and zero it out and move onto the next or pay all evenly.
You get dinged both ways.
Example -
2 CL's - both are 1k Each.
1000/1000 CL, 0/1000 CL.
On 1 card, you have 100% utilization while the other is 0%. Your total overall utilization is 50%.
Now lets say - if you take 500 and BT it to the other card, your total utilization stays the same but, both cards are at 50%. That will ding your CS less. Now let's say you put 50 as a payment for each card. You'll be at 450 and 450. Utilization per card is 45%. That brings you under the 48.9% threshold which will report as a positive and (hopefully) increase your score a bit.
Hopefully it wasn't too confusing.
Example -
2 CL's - both are 1k Each.
1000/1000 CL, 0/1000 CL.
On 1 card, you have 100% utilization while the other is 0%. Your total overall utilization is 50%.
Now lets say - if you take 500 and BT it to the other card, your total utilization stays the same but, both cards are at 50%. That will ding your CS less. Now let's say you put 50 as a payment for each card. You'll be at 450 and 450. Utilization per card is 45%. That brings you under the 48.9% threshold which will report as a positive and (hopefully) increase your score a bit.
Hopefully it wasn't too confusing.
