2006-11-28 01:17:45 · 11 answers · asked by qodesh4 1 in Business & Finance ➔ Credit
If you're not using the card, you should keep it open. What hurts your credit is not exactly "closing the account" it's the fact that you're minimizing the amount of available credit that you have.
The way part of your credit score works is that they see how much money you have available through credit (all your credit limits added together) and the amount that you are currently using. The percent you are using shouldn't be so high, so when you close an account, you are lowing the amount of credit you have available, which makes the percentage that you are current using HIGHER, therefore negatively impacting your score.
2006-11-28 07:10:40 · answer #1 · answered by jennytkd13 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
With years in the credit business:
If you have about 4-6 cards, it is helping your credit and not hurting it. Oddly enough, the longer the credit card is opened, the better its affects on your credit. The length of credit history is VERY important in credit scoring.
I would just recommend using it to buy gas or something every 6 months so it stays active and you get all the benefits of it. By only keeping open those cards with balances it appears you are utilizing a high credit balance to limit, which will decrease your score. Having a lot of available credit will not hurt your score, but might affect your ability to get new credit cards, etc if it is excessive.
2006-11-30 09:46:40 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
No, but if you have too much open credit and try to buy a home, it will flag the lending companies and they may recommend that you should close a couple of non-used accounts to qualify for the loan.
Nothing scares a lending company more than a ton of open and available credit like unused CC's, especially if you are trying to buy a home at the maximum amount allowed. The reason is if you have $50,000 in available credit, and you get a loan through them, what is going to prevent you from using all of your open CC's to completely furnish the new place and default on the mortgage? You can't move a house to hide it in the event you go into default, but all of the furniture can be put in a storage facility or sold easily. The house cannot and it is a drain on them financially and their resources to process defaults. It may not be how you operate, but it's based on what people have done in the past.
2006-11-28 01:33:30 · answer #3 · answered by Joe S 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It all depends on how long the account has been open. If you have had a card for 5 years, but not used it in 2 years, then it is best to close the account. I was informed by Equifax credit bureau that closing an account that has been "dormant" for 2 or more years, it actually can improve your credit score by as much as 20 points. It all depends on the length the account has been open.
I closed 4 of my card accounts including all of my gas accounts (Citgo, Shell, Chevron, Texaco, Exxon), and I closed 2 Mastercards plus 2 Visa cards, and it actually improved my score by 30 points. I was told it shows the creditors that you are smart about when and when not to use your cards and when it's time to close them.
Best of luck to you!
2006-11-28 02:07:58 · answer #4 · answered by Renee W 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Part of your credit score is the limit of your credit. More is better. Closing a credit account does not necessarily increase your score, as you may increase your ratio of debt carried to credit limit, and thereby lower your score. Keep it open, buy gas once a month or as needed, and pay it off promptly.
2006-11-28 01:28:37 · answer #5 · answered by RolloverResistance 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
once you shut a card - you shut the historic previous - detrimental effect. once you shut a card - you develop the credit ratio of available credit to used credit - detrimental effect. you may want to not close your playing cards - purely decrease them up (until eventually they have an annual fee).
2016-10-07 21:58:53 · answer #6 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
YES it does. what ever you do DO NOT close the account. having a larger line of credit that you are not using actually looks good because it shows creditors that you can manage your debt. leave it open, use it sparingly and pay it off. it will raise your FICO score to leave it open.
2006-11-28 01:32:05 · answer #7 · answered by yumyum69 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
it does if you have too many closed. thats what happens when people use debt consolidation. they have to agree to close all their accounts to get the low payments. i would keep it open. if you close it make sure on your credit report it says "closed by account holder" or something like that. frankly, i think this whole FICO score is a bunch of nonesense but we have to deal with it.
2006-11-28 01:28:05 · answer #8 · answered by morequestions 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
closing an unused acct can push your credit score up
2006-11-28 01:32:36 · answer #9 · answered by Anarchy99 7 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Even if you are not using it, it is building your credit, keep it open and paid.
2006-11-28 01:19:50 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋