High Utilization and Bad FICO Scores

[Geordi]

---

@Anonymous wrote:

As the other folks have indicated, there's no reason you can't make many payments to keep a card that is being used a lot at a low balance.  Given that this is something you do want to do, you really should also have a backup payment approach, one that involves using Billpay from one of your checking accounts. 

That "reason code" is not refering to CC balances at all.  It is refering to your friend's installment loans.

Indeed, the TransUnion score could not take into account a high CC balance until it gets reported to them.  That's impossible.  But certainly that reason statement is not referring to CC balances.

---

Great attention to detail.

I didn't even pick that up. 

[909]

^^^ Ahhh. That makes sense because I was nearly certain they didn't allow me to pay off pending charges in the past. There must be some sort of criteria to allow/disallow payment which the OP may be experiencing.

As a side note, 30 minutes or so after making payment the app reflects the payment in the stated available credit, although it still show an $80 balance. Not tha this matters, it's just interesting how AMEX chooses to display information to the user.

[909]

"Great attention to detail.

I didn't even pick that up."

It's true that CGID often covers all the key points, not just some of them. Well done, CGID. 

[NRB525]

---

@BronzeTrader wrote:

---

@noobody wrote:
Will they reject payment if you PUSH from your Bank?

---

From AmEx side, we were able to make one payment. Not able to make the 2nd payment. It says no payment is required.

It is fine to pay from the bank side. But it takes longer to take from the bank and we do not want to over-load with the payment. 

But it is certain that 90% is high utilization and CB takes notice of it. It is going to be a couple of statement cycles to bring the utilization down. 

---

I could be wrong, but with AMEX, I think the indications are that during the first billing cycle, you get to make one payment.

Multiple payments per month become available after they become comfortable with your links to checking accounts to actually pay.

So all those who are contributing that you pay multiple times per month (as I sometimes do) are all well past that first billing cycle.

[Anonymous]

---

@NRB525 wrote:

---

@BronzeTrader wrote:

---

@noobody wrote:
Will they reject payment if you PUSH from your Bank?

---

From AmEx side, we were able to make one payment. Not able to make the 2nd payment. It says no payment is required.

It is fine to pay from the bank side. But it takes longer to take from the bank and we do not want to over-load with the payment. 

But it is certain that 90% is high utilization and CB takes notice of it. It is going to be a couple of statement cycles to bring the utilization down. 

---

I could be wrong, but with AMEX, I think the indications are that during the first billing cycle, you get to make one payment.

Multiple payments per month become available after they become comfortable with your links to checking accounts to actually pay.

So all those who are contributing that you pay multiple times per month (as I sometimes do) are all well past that first billing cycle.

---

Thanks NRB.  Good point. 

Curiously our OP does confirm that he can make multiple push payments from his checking account.  He's a little resistant to do that and I haven't figured out exactly why.  It seems like simply pushing $50 daily using his checking account's billpay (which might be able to be automated as a recurring transaction) would solve the problem.  Or he could make weekly payments of $400 -- whatever.  Most issuers will in fact permit you to push so much that the balance becomes negative -- I have done that a number of times.  (A large negative balance when the statement cuts can sometimes trigger a check to be mailed to you, but it's not hard to make sure the balance becomes positive by statement time.)

Certainly he's correct that an ultrahigh reported individual utilization is something to avoid when possible.  And there are ways it sounds like for him to do that -- he just needs to adopt any one of those many strategies that are at his disposal.

[909]

It's not unusual that I'll have negative balances. As of this morning my CapOne balance is -2.13 and my USB balance is -248. CapOne is the only CC that has cut a check when my balance was negative. My USB balance has been negative for several months. Just as CGID says, sometimes a CC will send you a check for your negative balance.

As for making multiple payments, just a few minutes ago I made three payments on the BoA app: one for $213 (the current balance); a second pmt at $213 was denied; a second pmt of $100 was accepted; a second attempt at $100 was denied; a third payment of $50 was accepted. Just for fun, I just went back and they accepted a fourth payment of $63.18 (random amt). The BofA app seems to accept multiple payments in different amounts in close succession. My guess is that if I go back in a few hours and don't have a balance it won't accept additional payments.

My point is that these apps were coded by different humans with different rules that allow/disallow different activities. For example, I've found Barclays to be the most stubborn app in accepting payments. For any amount in excess of the current balance. I use it for iTunes purchases and would love to run a negative balance so a $5 purchase doesn't show up and post a day before statement cut while I'm trying to experiment with AZEO.

[Anonymous]

I've had a negative balance due to a CC refund in the past.  Since I always tend to not have a balance, if I get a refund to my CC for a returned purchase for example it will result in a negative balance.  Capital One last year mailed me a check for a negative balance of $200 or so.

[Geordi]

---

@BronzeTrader wrote:

I'm helping a minor to manage his account. This is an AmEx BCE card with a $500 CL.  It is a hack of work to get to the $2,000 spending  So far, about 20 days, spending is about $800. Of course 90 day is very reachable. The bonus is looking great.

Due to the low CL, we had to make some intra-month payments. Also due to the aggressive management, the utilization rate is very high. Sometimes, the utilization is 90%! We are still waiting for the first billing statement to close.

---

Great comments from everyone.

OP was attempting to help someone reach a $2k spending in 90 days to achieve a bonus.

The concern was AMEX would not permit additional payments within the very first billing period.

There seems to be a consensus to wait until after the first billing period has been completed, then multiple payments within the billing period should be allowed by AMEX.

[Anonymous]

Hi Geordi!  Thanks for trying to pull back and give everybody the big picture.  Always useful to do every now and then.

The trouble is that I think that the OP confirms a few times that he's having no trouble making multiple payments during this initial period:

"Due to the low CL, we had to make some intra-month payments..."

"It is fine to pay from the bank side...." (refering to payments pushed from his checking account into the Amex card)

There's just some general resistance from the OP to doing this and its not fully clear why.