Unsecured Loan vs. Credit Cards on FICO score?

Question

I have $5,000 in credit card debt. Would it be better (FICO score wise) to get a loan and pay them all off, while make the lower payments on the loan or would it not matter?

How does an unsecured loan show up on a credit report as opposed to credit cards?

Answer 1

Yes --get the loan pay the balance of the cards. The company that you get the loan from may report. Make sure you get a loan that has set payment for a set period of time. In other words a fixed loan. Most people don't realize that just a $2,000 balance @ 18% rate on a credit card with a person making minimum monthly payments takes over 33 years to pay off.