Credit Card Utilization

[homeinfuture]

I have 3 Cap One Credit Cards, A secured card with a $200 limit, an unsecured Platium with a $300 limit and a Quicksilver one with a $1000 limit. I have had the secured card since july and have always kept the utilization down below 9%, I got the other 2 cards around the same time the begining of Sept. The statement just cut on the 5th of Oct on the two cards however my balance was $49 on the Platinum card and $700 on the Quicksilver (Needed new tires) I am sure that this will bring my score down with the utilization being over 50% My question is if I pay both of them down to under 9% before Nov 5th when the next statement cuts will I get a score increase? So basically what I am asking is if utilization only hurts or helps your score on that month? 

[onepointatatime]

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@homeinfuture wrote:

My question is if I pay both of them down to under 9% before Nov 5th when the next statement cuts will I get a score increase? So basically what I am asking is if utilization only hurts or helps your score on that month? 

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The short answer is yes.  If Capital One reported those high balances already - let's assume they did on the 5th of October - then your score would suffer because of that.  Similiarly, as long as your balance is low on the day Capital One reports to the CRAs - let's say November 5th - then your FICO score will reflect a lower UTL, so the difference should be noticeable as your utilization makes up 30% of the weight of your FICO score.