Question about credit score

[Eeezee]

I have 2 credit cards in my name, one of which I use frequently and pay off instantly (or sometimes I let a small balance accumulate and pay the minimum amount for a few months because I was told that this would improve my score).

There's this thread in hot deals (Text)

How badly would that hurt my credit score? Essentially it's $100 for signing up for a credit card, which sounds pretty great, but we all know how perilous a credit report can be.

Also, does cancelling a credit card hurt my credit score at all? I was thinking of signing up for the card, spending the $100 and paying off the rest of the balance, and then cancelling the account.

 

[EKKC]

always pay in full. whoever tells you that paying the minimum and let interest acculmulate is BSing you

 

[jlbenedict]

um.. if it is a $100 credit card.. and you charge $100.. the credit reporting bureaus calculators are going to factor in 100% utilization..whether you pay it off the next billing cycle or not.. its all in cycles.... low limit cards can be more harmful, if not used properly..

 

[dullard]

To answer your question exactly, we'd need to know your exact situation AND the formula used for the credit score. We know neither. So we can only talk in generalizations. Generally, you'll get a small hit for applying, a small hit for a short credit history on that card, and possibly a hit or a gain depending on how you use the card.

Originally posted by: EKKC
always pay in full. whoever tells you that paying the minimum and let interest acculmulate is BSing you

Ditto.

And isn't that thread a year old with a now expired promotion?

 

[Eeezee]

Originally posted by: dullard
To answer your question exactly, we'd need to know your exact situation AND the formula used for the credit score. We know neither. So we can only talk in generalizations. Generally, you'll get a small hit for applying, a small hit for a short credit history on that card, and possibly a hit or a gain depending on how you use the card.

Originally posted by: EKKC
always pay in full. whoever tells you that paying the minimum and let interest acculmulate is BSing you

Ditto.

And isn't that thread a year old with a now expired promotion?

Yes, after I made this thread it turns out that the thread IS a year old with an expired promotion. I'm disappointed, usually the fine men and women at Hot Deals at least update the title with (DEAD) or something indicating that the deal is long gone.

 

[Eeezee]

No, nevermind, the deal is still going on but that link in the thread is broken.

http://www.sonystyle.com/is-bin/INTERSH...pg-sonycard-SonyCard_%24100_cardcredit

 

[EKKC]

Originally posted by: jlbenedict
um.. if it is a $100 credit card.. and you charge $100.. the credit reporting bureaus calculators are going to factor in 100% utilization..whether you pay it off the next billing cycle or not.. its all in cycles.... low limit cards can be more harmful, if not used properly..

is this really true? i may ask one of my cards to increase my limit then

i have 2AMEX credit cards each with 15k limit, and i average 2k-3k a month paying in full, mind you. but i signed up a new card the CITI dividend (5% back on gas, everyday purchases) but their limit was 1000. now i dont really give a crap about it since i only use it for gas which average to 500 a month, but there will be a point in time before i pay my bill while still using that limit, that i would hit close to the 1000 limmit, would that be detrimental to my score?