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lightblue
LIF Adult
Member since 1/17 2249 total posts
Name:
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Canceling a credit card?
Does it look bad for your credit if you cancel a credit card? I have credit cards for certain stores that I never use (used it maybe once to buy something), so I was just wondering.
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Posted 7/16/19 10:18 AM  |
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lmcmcl
LIF Toddler
Member since 2/15 484 total posts
Name:
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Canceling a credit card?
Yes- do not cancel them- Just lock them up. Your credit score is based on a percentage of how much debt you have on your cards compared to your overall available credit. Those cards add to your overall available credit- hence making your debt to credit ratio better. I hope I explained it.
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| Posted 7/16/19 10:23 AM |
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tray831
Dee-licious!
Member since 3/06 5355 total posts
Name:
His Baby
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Re: Canceling a credit card?
Posted by lmcmcl
Yes- do not cancel them- Just lock them up. Your credit score is based on a percentage of how much debt you have on your cards compared to your overall available credit. Those cards add to your overall available credit- hence making your debt to credit ratio better. I hope I explained it.
Thank you! I always knew it was bad to cancel; but never knew why exactly!
Perfect explanation!
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| Posted 7/16/19 10:29 AM |
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lightblue
LIF Adult
Member since 1/17 2249 total posts
Name:
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Re: Canceling a credit card?
Posted by lmcmcl
Yes- do not cancel them- Just lock them up. Your credit score is based on a percentage of how much debt you have on your cards compared to your overall available credit. Those cards add to your overall available credit- hence making your debt to credit ratio better. I hope I explained it.
Ok great thanks! I didn't know if it looked too bad having multiple accounts open. I was looking to apply for another credit card soon (one that has an interest free purchase option for x amount of months, for a big trip we have coming up), so I was just curious.
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| Posted 7/16/19 10:51 AM |
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hmm
Sweet
Member since 1/14 7994 total posts
Name:
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Canceling a credit card?
you can cancel, it only effects your credit a short while and only in a small way, Especially if you have a history of borrowing or have a loan and pay it back on time, that is how you build a good credit score
Message edited 7/16/2019 9:13:23 PM.
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| Posted 7/16/19 9:12 PM |
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Kathy042806
LIF Adult
Member since 5/06 1416 total posts
Name:
Kathy
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Re: Canceling a credit card?
Don't cancel it. Just don't use it if you don't want to, but after a while of inactivity they will close it for you.
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| Posted 7/17/19 7:54 AM |
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Hofstra26
Love to Bake!
Member since 7/06 27915 total posts
Name:
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Re: Canceling a credit card?
Posted by lmcmcl
Yes- do not cancel them- Just lock them up. Your credit score is based on a percentage of how much debt you have on your cards compared to your overall available credit. Those cards add to your overall available credit- hence making your debt to credit ratio better. I hope I explained it.
But if you don't carry any debt load OR the debt load is small in comparison to your overall available credit, cancelling a card won't really affect anything.
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| Posted 7/17/19 7:55 AM |
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NYCGirl80
I love my kiddies!
Member since 5/11 10413 total posts
Name:
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Re: Canceling a credit card?
Don't cancel them, just don't use them. Once they are dormant for a certain amount of time, the card issuer typically closes it on their own. The length of time varies, but they will typically send you a notice before it's closed in case you want to keep it open.
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| Posted 7/17/19 9:14 AM |
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Mrs213
????????
Member since 2/09 18986 total posts
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Re: Canceling a credit card?
Posted by hmm
you can cancel, it only effects your credit a short while and only in a small way, Especially if you have a history of borrowing or have a loan and pay it back on time, that is how you build a good credit score
This is true. Also leaving it open leaves the account number open for fraud if someone gets the cc number
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| Posted 7/17/19 2:40 PM |
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MarathonKnitter
HAPPY
Member since 2/07 17374 total posts
Name:
EMBRACING CHANGE
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Re: Canceling a credit card?
also...
leaving that line of credit open and with a $0 balance, you leave yourself open to a lender seeing that as a "risk" of you having too much credit at your disposal. this creates the picture of... if you find yourself in a pinch, running EVERYTHING up to the max and then not being able to make ends meet because you have too many bills to pay.
my $0.02... decide what makes more sense in your personal picture. if you're looking to open another card very soon, maybe you don't want to close it immediately because you don't want the short-term ding. if you're looking to buy a house or another large item, maybe you want to close it asap, take the short-term ding, and then look like a better risk for borrowing a large amount of money.
finally, i agree about an open account leaves you open to fraud that you might not see quickly because it's not an account you look at frequently.
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| Posted 7/17/19 4:08 PM |
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Christine2
LIF Adult
Member since 2/09 1217 total posts
Name:
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Re: Canceling a credit card?
Another thing to consider is how old the credit card is. The older the credit, the better. So, if it's an unused card but you've had it for awhile, keep it open.
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| Posted 7/17/19 10:43 PM |
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RainyDay
LIF Adult
Member since 6/15 3990 total posts
Name:
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Re: Canceling a credit card?
Posted by Christine2
Another thing to consider is how old the credit card is. The older the credit, the better. So, if it's an unused card but you've had it for awhile, keep it open.
What if its a card you had for a few year. Rarely ever use it but it's not the card you have had open the longest?
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| Posted 7/18/19 6:52 AM |
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NYCGirl80
I love my kiddies!
Member since 5/11 10413 total posts
Name:
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Re: Canceling a credit card?
Posted by RainyDay
Posted by Christine2
Another thing to consider is how old the credit card is. The older the credit, the better. So, if it's an unused card but you've had it for awhile, keep it open.
What if its a card you had for a few year. Rarely ever use it but it's not the card you have had open the longest?
I'd still keep it open.
The amount of credit you have on there also matters. If you have a really high credit limit and close the card it will be a hit to your credit score more than if it had a very low limit.
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| Posted 7/18/19 11:52 AM |
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