Joined Feb 2009
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Forum Thread
Credit Card Utilization & Canceling Cards
July 14, 2022 at
08:03 AM
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Finance
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I have two 10+ yr old BoA Visa cards that I don't use because the benefits are near nill (BoA bought the original issuer and gutted the perks). These cards represent about 30% of my available credit across all cards I hold so while I never use them they do help keep my credit utilization low.
But I'm at the point I'd like to do some "housekeeping" and ditch these two for one Visa that has decent perks. My question is, should I cancel the BoA cards or just let them rot in the drawer? (I do use them one a year to keep them active).
It seems if I keep them I risk getting a lower credit limit on a new card I'll actually use, but if I get rid of the the BoAs then my credit utilization will increase if a new card doesn't have a limit equal to the combined BoA cards, screwing my credit rating. What is the best option here?
But I'm at the point I'd like to do some "housekeeping" and ditch these two for one Visa that has decent perks. My question is, should I cancel the BoA cards or just let them rot in the drawer? (I do use them one a year to keep them active).
It seems if I keep them I risk getting a lower credit limit on a new card I'll actually use, but if I get rid of the the BoAs then my credit utilization will increase if a new card doesn't have a limit equal to the combined BoA cards, screwing my credit rating. What is the best option here?
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But I'm at the point I'd like to do some "housekeeping" and ditch these two for one Visa that has decent perks. My question is, should I cancel the BoA cards or just let them rot in the drawer? (I do use them one a year to keep them active).
It seems if I keep them I risk getting a lower credit limit on a new card I'll actually use, but if I get rid of the the BoAs then my credit utilization will increase if a new card doesn't have a limit equal to the combined BoA cards, screwing my credit rating. What is the best option here?
In my limited experience, unless you are over doing it with bonus offers and have a large number of cards\credit limit, banks really don't care much if you open an extra card or two. They care if you open too many in too short a period of time.
My primary card just went up to 7K I will be paying it off when it is due, my credit score dropped 8 points
My credit car utilization is 3%, of my $264K total limit if I maxed out all of my cards.
So if you are going to lose 30% of your available credit then you should add the cards and get the utilization the same. I also pay off my credit cards 100% every month!
if you aren't applying for credit anytime soon, your credit score is somewhat irrelevant.
2. Use Mint or similar service to track all of your credit cards at one time time for unauthorized purchase if you have too many cards.
3. If you get a new BofA card with better rewards, see if they can move your credit limit from the old card to the new card.
4. Keep cards active by charging one monthly online service like Netflix, etc... and set to autopay.. I used to buy myself an $100 Amazon gift card each year to keep them active but some banks will cancel your card if you only use it once a year. I had two cards closed on me that I only used once per year. Now I got Six Flags membership on one card, Netflix on another, Spotify on another, etc.... It keeps each account active but on Items I don't care about missing a little bit of rewards on. It also helps that if my daily cards in my wallet are compromised, I rarely have to update online billing as all of those cards are locked away.