If I have a credit card open with zero balance is there harm to my credit keeping it open? I will never use it

Question

I have a victoria secrets credit card. I have paid it in full and have no credit available anymore. I like to keep it open because I receive benefits each month & coupons. Does it harm my credit to keep it open if I'm not using it? What are some concerns I might have?

All suggestions welcome.

Answer 1

Leave it open, you credit score is improved by your debt to available credit. Therefore having the available amount helps your credit.

Answer 2

MOST of the people on here are correct. Firstly, if you PAID off your credit card that means you HAVE ALL credit available and $0 in credit card depth, and that is GOOD for your credit.

Why?

Your Debt to Credit ratio.

If you got $1000 in total credit and $1000 used on the card, that's 100% depth to credit which is BAD and hurts your credit score.
However if you have $1000 in total credit and $100 used on the card you have a 10% ratio. The lower this ratio the better your credit will be.
If you have 2 Credit cards with $1000 each with a total available CREDIT LINE of $2000 and if the total depth of both cards was $100 then the ratio is only 5%.

The Math:
(TOTAL OF ALL DEPTH / TOTAL OF AVAILABLE CREDIT) *100



The MORE credit you have available the better, but that doesn't mean you should go get 5 to 20 credit cards, cause too much is also bad.On average one should have no more than 2 or 3 credit cards.
If the credit card you have is a long time credit card and you've had it for years, then KEEP IT OPEN, because it's a record of your long credit history and this HELPS your credit score. If this is a recently opened credit card and you don't want to use it, then close it off ONLY if you have other credit cards you are using. If not then you are just starting to build your credit and should use the card occasionally but keep paying it off in FULL each month keeping the balance below the 25% available credit limit for that card.

Answer 3

There are two opposing factors:

1) if you have too much available credit or have opened too many accounts recently, then the account will work against you.

2) the longer your overall credit history, the better - so if you've had it a while, it'll probably benefit your credit score.

Generally, if you've had the card a while and you haven't opened up too many other accounts recently, then keeping the card won't hurt you. If you've had it a really long time, then it'll probably help your credit even if you don't use it. But if this is just one of many cards you've opened recently, you probably want to close the account and make sure your credit report reflects that it was closed at your request.

Answer 4

Your credit report has what's called "Trade Lines." Trade Lines are the accounts of credit that you have. By keeping your account open you have a trade line. This actually helps your credit. as far as your credit score, having a zero balance neither helps nor hurts, but keeping a small balance that you pay on time will help your credit score. Theo only downside to your plan is that Victorias Secret could request to close the account do to inactivity, but this is a long shot.

Answer 5

If you close an account, you suddenly have less available credit with the same debt load, which increases the percentage of available credit you're using.
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In years past, credit counselors told consumers to close accounts that they weren't using, especially if they were getting ready to apply for a mortgage or car loan. The reason was that it was believed that lenders were leery of people who could go out at any time and max out their credit, adding a large pile of debt to their obligations.

But the typical FICO score doesn't penalize you if you have large amounts of credit available.

Credit-scoring models will compare how much credit you have available versus how much you're actually using. If your percentage ventures too high, your score will take a hit. And if you close an account, you suddenly have less available credit with the same debt load, which increases the percentage of available credit you're using.

How you use credit and what you buy with it can be a big indicator of your creditworthiness. People with great scores know that credit is for certain purchases, such as for a home or a car. And credit cards are for expenses such as auto repairs or home appliances, which are necessary immediately but are difficult to pay for all at once, or for emergencies. But too many people are using their credit cards to buy things that are insubstantial. And that's just not a smart way to use credit. Before you use credit, decide whether it's good or bad debt that you're taking on.

Answer 6

I would leave the card open. Part of your credit score is the total number of accounts in good standing. (Your balance is paid and you're not planning on charging more, so your account will be good.) Another part of your score is the average length of time the card is open. (The longer you keep this card open, the more your average account age will increase.) Also, since you don't have a balance on the card, the total credit you are using will be lower. (It's better to keep it under 30%. This will help since you are using 0% of what you can charge.)

Answer 7

A lot of good answers, and one bad one.

If it is your only line of credit, then keep it open, and use it every once in a while so it reports.

If you have a lot of credit, such as credit cards, then close it. Even if it is not being used, it counts against your total available debt, and can bring your credit score down.

It is best to get to a point of not using credit, but if you do, do so wisely and control the credit, don't let it control you.

Answer 8

It's good to have a $0 balance, but to keep your credit in good standing, you should use it occassionally and pay it off the next month. This shows you pay on time and do not abuse your good credit. However, if you retain the card and never use it, it will not increase your credit score, but if you close the account, that does not look good on your credit history at all. It is far better to use it occassionally for small purchases which can be paid off within a billing period or two than to just close it or never use it at all. Using it in this manner will definately look good on your credit report and help you maintain a good score.

Answer 9

I had the same thing in a credit card i opened but didn't use. I went for a bank loan to redo my morgage and it counted as a debt up to the potentual of the card even tho i had never used it and had no urge to do so. Also some cards have a yearly fee. If you paid it off why don't you have credit available?

Answer 10

What do you mean you have "no" credit available? If you've paid it off in full, you should have all the available credit available to you?!
Anyway, assuming you just made a mistake in your statement, (and to answer your question), "no", there is no harm in leaving it open, but... on your credit report, you don't get any credit for using it, (and paying your monthly statements on time), if you don't use it. That's all.

Answer 11

It's good to show that you can have a credit card with a substantial amount of credit available to you but at the same time if you have alot of open credit accounts it can start to count against you. I think it's ok but you know your financial standing better than me.