Util % Question - Bigger Score Boost?

[MBOhio2]

I have 6 credit cards that are all maxed out (100% util) and about to have a large chunk of $ to pay toward them. In the short term, which of the below 2 options will get the bigger score boost?

Option 1: 1 or 2 cards paid to $0 while other cards have high util % OR...

Option 2: 3 or 4 cards paid to below 50 % util

Anyone know?

[MarineVietVet]

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@MBOhio2 wrote:

I have 6 credit cards that are all maxed out (100% util) and about to have a large chunk of $ to pay toward them. In the short term, which of the below 2 options will get the bigger score boost?

Option 1: 1 or 2 cards paid to $0 while other cards have high util % OR...

Option 2: 3 or 4 cards paid to below 50 % util

Anyone know?

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That's a tough one to decide. Not only does scoring look at overall and individual account utilization it also looks at the number of accounts with balances.

Could you break it down further? List each card and how much is owed, it's credit limit and it's APR? Also how much money you have available for pay down?

From a BK years ago to:
EX - 9/09 pulled by lender 802, EQ - 10/10-813, TU - 10/10-774

"Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they've made a difference. The Marines don't have that problem".

[veracious]

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@MBOhio2 wrote:

I have 6 credit cards that are all maxed out (100% util) and about to have a large chunk of $ to pay toward them. In the short term, which of the below 2 options will get the bigger score boost?

Option 1: 1 or 2 cards paid to $0 while other cards have high util % OR...

Option 2: 3 or 4 cards paid to below 50 % util

Anyone know?

---

As  Marine stated, thats a tough call.

Why not try the Equifax Debt Wise solution.  Maybe you can do an online chat or call them

to find out  if you can watch your score rise while using their payment plan.

Just so you know, I've never used the product,   but I recently posted about it and asked for info

from the members. No one here seems to have ever used it.

[MBOhio2]

Following are the cards, balances, limits and APRs. I actually only have 5 cards (I was factoring on one of my husband's cards before). I have about $2K at this moment. The Harlem cardI plan to close after it's paid off because it's useless and annoying

Credit Card	Balance	Limit	APR
Southwest Chase	$2,484.31	$2,500.00	27.24%
Best Buy (closed)	$231.00	$0.00	24.24%
Harlem Furniture	$1,648.39	$100.00	23.40%
Capital One	$747.64	$750.00	17.30%
Bank of America	$1,412.79	$1,500.00	15.99%

[MarineVietVet]

Is those Harlem Furniture figures correct?

A balance of $1,648.39 and a limit of $100?

From a BK years ago to:
EX - 9/09 pulled by lender 802, EQ - 10/10-813, TU - 10/10-774

"Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they've made a difference. The Marines don't have that problem".

[MBOhio2]

Ugh, yes.... it originally had a limit of $2500, but after a few years of making only minimum payments, they dropped the limit to $100. That is definitely my first card to pay off as my total utilization is like 126% right now!! But beyong the Harlem card, not sure how I should allocate my $ for optimal short ter results. And in addition to the $2K I have this moment, I will have another $2K in a few weeks so I want to know how to allocate that too (since the Harlem pretty much eats up the first $2K).

[Anonymous]

You are in danger of going over limit on Chase and

Cap One which will cost you more money.

See if you can set  up  payment plan with Harlem

pay off best buy.  Use the rest for  big payment on

Chase and Cap One and BOA (your best card).

When you get your next money  do same thing.

How come you are so maxed out? 

EQ  802

EX 782

[MarineVietVet]

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@MBOhio2 wrote:

Following are the cards, balances, limits and APRs. I actually only have 5 cards (I was factoring on one of my husband's cards before). I have about $2K at this moment. The Harlem cardI plan to close after it's paid off because it's useless and annoying

Credit Card	Balance	Limit	APR
Southwest Chase	$2,484.31	$2,500.00	27.24%
Best Buy (closed)	$231.00	$0.00	24.24%
Harlem Furniture	$1,648.39	$100.00	23.40%
Capital One	$747.64	$750.00	17.30%
Bank of America	$1,412.79	$1,500.00	15.99%

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You'll get different opinions and you'll have to decide in the end what will work best for you. I'm certainly not the best one to ask but I'll give you my honest advice. What I would do is not what will save you the most interest but I think might help your score the fastest.

For the first $2,000:

Pay off Harlem and put $350 towards Cap 1. But be very careful not to go overlimit with Chase or BoA. Since the CL on the BB acount is not reporting it's not included in utilization and you could leave it for now.

For the next $2,000:

Pay off Cap 1 ($350) and divide the remaining $1,650 between Chase and BoA. That would leave a balance and utilization for Chase at $1,625 and 67% and BoA at $588 and 40%.

After the $4,000 is paid your overall utilization will be about 47% if I calculated correctly but math is not my strong suit.

After that put every extra dollar you can find to paying down Chase and BoA and do not use the cards (any of them) while this debt pay down is going on. Self-discipline is he key.

From a BK years ago to:
EX - 9/09 pulled by lender 802, EQ - 10/10-813, TU - 10/10-774

"Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they've made a difference. The Marines don't have that problem".

[MBOhio2]

I never allow my cards to go over the limit (except for Harlem, but that was only because they lowered the limit). I check the accounts online nearly every day and make sure that if there's a risk for it, I make a small payment to prevent it.

I don't need a special payment plan with Harlem. I'm financially capable of paying all of these off over the next few months. However, I'm trying to understand where to put the immediate $ surplus to get the highest boost the quickest. This is really a psychological thing for me... it will all be paid off soon, but I need a little immediate gratification.

I'm so maxed out because I was grossly under-employed for 2 years with a husband that was a FT student. Paying my student loans on time was more important than paying down CCs, so I've just been coasting along making minimum payments. My husband has now graduated, has a job and I make a significantly higher salary, so we're able to pay down and get back in shape financially.

[MBOhio2]

marine - thanks for your advice.

I honestly don't care much about saving a little on interest because it will be a relatively small savings given the fact that all of these balances will be paid off within 3-4 months total. My goal right now is to see a score improvement because I've been working on credit improvement  for a long time (baddies) and have been sitting at about the same point for awhile. Psychologically, I just need to see a boost!!