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Cards must be used to remain active and help your utilization.
Use them all, pay them off every month even if it is for a case of pop or something, use it and pay it off.
33% of your score is based on open credit from credit cards.
Get high limit cards and keep the balance at 0 or as close as you can get to 0. The more open credit you have the score will shoot.
I know someone who had a 350 FICO score two years ago and is now at 700!
A ton of work but they did it, from repairing and adding lines as they did.
Has 20 credit cards with 0 balances and now has several 10k+ cards.
Yeah, we had a bunch of CC's too at one point, when we were still being stupid with our money. We went to the bank for a mortgage with good income, 20% down and overall great credit, with just one little exception. Too many CC's. We closed all but a few of them because having so much available credit showed us as being a high risk although they ALL had $0 balances. You don't need a bunch of CC's to have great credit, in fact too many can count against you.
Yeah, we had a bunch of CC's too at one point, when we were still being stupid with our money. We went to the bank for a mortgage with good income, 20% down and overall great credit, with just one little exception. Too many CC's. We closed all but a few of them because having so much available credit showed us as being a high risk although they ALL had $0 balances. You don't need a bunch of CC's to have great credit, in fact too many can count against you.
Thanks for your post. I was thinking the same. I have cards with very very high credit limits but I have 0 balances on most of them and small balances on the rest just to keep some activity going on my credit report, and even though my scores are in the low 700s, I strongly believe that if I close the ones that are newer I could raise my score too.
I have just THREE credit cards (2 in my name, 1 joint), and my score is over 800.
No need to have lots of CCs!
Read it again, many people cannot get high limit cards and need many small ones to help with utilization.
To get scores over 800 you need tons of things to go right for you.
Not to long ago my in laws had 500 FICO scores because they have paid cash for everything for 30 years. Never late, never owed anyone except for a home and one car.
Paid cash for everything.
I got them to open 2 10k cc's and use them for gas and other things that give them ( rewards! ) per month and pay in full each time and now their scores are over 700.
There is almost nothing a person who has 700 scores cannot get that people with 800 scores can.
800 is great and you have done well, but I can get the same thing you have ( depending on income etc ) with a 700 score.
So, yes, people need large open credit lines and be financially smart about having them.
A new world open up to you when you do this, scores shoot like a rocket!
I know many who had 500 or less scores who are now in the mid 700's in a short time mostly because of added open credit lines.
Yeah, we had a bunch of CC's too at one point, when we were still being stupid with our money. We went to the bank for a mortgage with good income, 20% down and overall great credit, with just one little exception. Too many CC's. We closed all but a few of them because having so much available credit showed us as being a high risk although they ALL had $0 balances. You don't need a bunch of CC's to have great credit, in fact too many can count against you.
Again, I am not saying opening a massive amounts of CC.
If you are a responsible person and can handle either many cards with low limits or a few with high limits it will benefit you totally.
Now, if the bank told you that you were a risk it was because you open a ton of them in a short period of time which is not good.
Closing them will hurt you big time as it dumps your score because of utilization.
If you have 50 credit cards, all over a 1 or more years old. ( not new cards!! ) Have used them wisely and kept the balances low and or have paid in full every time and a bank tells you that you are a risk, tell them to shove it and walk out as you are NOT a risk.
You must have a bunch of new cards with balances, now that is a risk situation. Or if you are trying to get a mortgage and those cards can put your income to debt ratio to high and you cannot pay them if you max them out, then yes you can be a risk.
Every situation is different.
I bought my house with 30 credit cards and over 100k in open credit lines and they never told me I was a risk, in fact they wanted me to open more credit with them by PLC's or CC's.
So, if your score in low and you want it to rise there are many ways to do so, but you will have to add open credit lines ( cc's ) to get the boost. ( only financially responsible people should do this )
If you are not a responsible person then do not apply for cards, it would hurt you more then help.
To make it clear for some people here, it is NOT the amount of cards you have, it is the open limits that give you the boost!
For the person with the 800 score, I am not talking about you, you have history behind you or you would not be at 800. This thread is about improving your score, which you do not need to.
How many people do you want me to share with 400 FICO scores that have been able to get to 700 in a year or less? I know several who were able to get to 800 in 2 years easily after starting in the 400's.
If you have the income and are financially responsible and need your scores to rise quickly, find some reward cards with large limits use them a couple times a month and pay in full. Can be done with the right cards and or credit unions such as NFCU/Patelco etc.
Your score will rocket with large limits added.
It all comes down to being financially responsible. This thread I believe was made to help those who have scores they want to improve and my answers will get you scores you need in time.
Those who have no need to raise them have no reason to even respond unless they have been there and done it and have advise for those who need help.
Thanks for your post. I was thinking the same. I have cards with very very high credit limits but I have 0 balances on most of them and small balances on the rest just to keep some activity going on my credit report, and even though my scores are in the low 700s, I strongly believe that if I close the ones that are newer I could raise my score too.
No, let them age. Use them and pay in full.
Closing any card will lower your score because of utilization.
It is a mistake to do what you are thinking.
It will take you more time for your scores to rise after you close accounts then it would if you let them sit and pay them in full.
Closing any card will lower your score because of utilization.
It is a mistake to do what you are thinking.
It will take you more time for your scores to rise after you close accounts then it would if you let them sit and pay them in full.
No, the cards we had were all 3+ years old and our credit score improved greatly when we closed them.
You know what we have found over the last 10 years or so? There's nothing that we can get with a 700 or 800 credit score that we can't get with cash. We just don't play the FICO game anymore, saved up and paid cash for our last car as we will the next. Now, we aren't quite done paying for our house yet but when we are I don't anticipate needing credit ever again, even if we move or purchase another house it will be with cash. Most people would be better off paying attention to eliminating debt, living within their means, getting to a point where they don't NEED credit than they are continually chasing the perfect FICO score.
Your advice may be spot on for those who intend to rely on debt but there are other options. In these economic times, it seems much more prudent to learn to live without debt/credit than to try to see how you can get more.
joint VISA since 1970-something
my Discover over a decade
my Macy's about 5 years
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We just don't play the FICO game anymore, saved up and paid cash for our last car as we will the next. Now, we aren't quite done paying for our house yet but when we are I don't anticipate needing credit ever again, even if we move or purchase another house it will be with cash. Most people would be better off paying attention to eliminating debt, living within their means, getting to a point where they don't NEED credit than they are continually chasing the perfect FICO score. 