when to make a credit card payment

[IBroke]

As someone who worked at a mortgage company, we always told people to wait for the statement, then pay in full. This was taught to us by a gentleman who has been teaching finance and proper credit usage for 30 years. Showing that you can pay OFF your bills every month shows stability and reliability to the creditors. The only person I saw with an 800 score charged like $100 every month, then paid it off in full every month. They had 2 credit cards and quite a few thousand in available credit.

They don't like to see someone who pays the minimum. You might as well get in this habit instead of starting one habit and then changing it.

The point is that NOBODY can tell that I previously only paid the minimum. Balances are reported - but how much you paid isn't. And paying off the entire balance doesn't guarantee the highest score because in the majority of cases, it's the STATEMENT-balance that is going to be reported to the bureaus. Once the statement is generated, paying it all off is already "too late". It certainly saves you some interest, but it won't help your score.

I like keeping it simple and being concerned about my CC-balance 24/7 is something I certainly don't like. There is enough to worry about and thinking about every transaction and payment would drive you nuts in the long run.

[dumpinmydebt]

The point is that NOBODY can tell that I previously only paid the minimum. Balances are reported - but how much you paid isn't. And paying off the entire balance doesn't guarantee the highest score because in the majority of cases, it's the STATEMENT-balance that is going to be reported to the bureaus. Once the statement is generated, paying it all off is already "too late". It certainly saves you some interest, but it won't help your score.

I like keeping it simple and being concerned about my CC-balance 24/7 is something I certainly don't like. There is enough to worry about and thinking about every transaction and payment would drive you nuts in the long run.

It may be true that other companies cannot see if you pay in full, but your current lender will know and that will increase your chances of getting higher credit limits, which does raise your score by increasing your available credit.

How is paying the balance in full every month have anything to do with worrying about every transaction and worrying about the balance 24/7? That makes absolutely no sense at all.

Just as you get a bill and pay the minimum, I get a bill and pay the full amount. The difference is that I don't have the lingering thought in my mind that I have an outstanding balance. I can rest assured that my bills are paid. To me, that is LESS WORRY. Paying the minimum gives you something to worry about.

As long as you don't have 20 credit cards, it's quite simple to pay off your bills in full every month. It's JUST as easy as paying the minimum. And if you can't afford to pay them in full, then I think you are getting yourself into a more serious issue. That means you have begun to live beyond your means again (obviously certain emergencies are exceptions to this.)

I think it's more logical and more simple to pay off the balance in full every month. How is paying the minimum and accumulating interest more simple than that?

Just saying, setting good habits in the beginning will help you in the long run. Keeping cards maxed out and paying the minimum is not a good habit for anyone, so I will not encourage anyone to start that. Always have to think about that "what if."

I don't want any bill balance to roll over the next month (with the exception of loans.) I lived too many nights wondering if I could pay a bill. As long as I am able to, I will make sure this does not happen to me again.

[Logan]

It may be true that other companies cannot see if you pay in full, but your current lender will know and that will increase your chances of getting higher credit limits, which does raise your score by increasing your available credit.

How is paying the balance in full every month have anything to do with worrying about every transaction and worrying about the balance 24/7? That makes absolutely no sense at all.

Just as you get a bill and pay the minimum, I get a bill and pay the full amount. The difference is that I don't have the lingering thought in my mind that I have an outstanding balance. I can rest assured that my bills are paid. To me, that is LESS WORRY. Paying the minimum gives you something to worry about.

As long as you don't have 20 credit cards, it's quite simple to pay off your bills in full every month. It's JUST as easy as paying the minimum. And if you can't afford to pay them in full, then I think you are getting yourself into a more serious issue. That means you have begun to live beyond your means again (obviously certain emergencies are exceptions to this.)

I think it's more logical and more simple to pay off the balance in full every month. How is paying the minimum and accumulating interest more simple than that?

Just saying, setting good habits in the beginning will help you in the long run. Keeping cards maxed out and paying the minimum is not a good habit for anyone, so I will not encourage anyone to start that. Always have to think about that "what if."

I don't want any bill balance to roll over the next month (with the exception of loans.) I lived too many nights wondering if I could pay a bill. As long as I am able to, I will make sure this does not happen to me again.

My wife was paying the minimum balance on her credit card and had a score of 805. That particular credit card had over 50% utilization but her overall utilization was much lower. Bottom line is pay your bills on time and don't run up your credit cards to the point they're not affordable and your credit score will climb.

ogan

[IBroke]

It may be true that other companies cannot see if you pay in full, but your current lender will know and that will increase your chances of getting higher credit limits, which does raise your score by increasing your available credit.

How is paying the balance in full every month have anything to do with worrying about every transaction and worrying about the balance 24/7? That makes absolutely no sense at all.

Just as you get a bill and pay the minimum, I get a bill and pay the full amount. The difference is that I don't have the lingering thought in my mind that I have an outstanding balance. I can rest assured that my bills are paid. To me, that is LESS WORRY. Paying the minimum gives you something to worry about.

As long as you don't have 20 credit cards, it's quite simple to pay off your bills in full every month. It's JUST as easy as paying the minimum. And if you can't afford to pay them in full, then I think you are getting yourself into a more serious issue. That means you have begun to live beyond your means again (obviously certain emergencies are exceptions to this.)

I think it's more logical and more simple to pay off the balance in full every month. How is paying the minimum and accumulating interest more simple than that?

Just saying, setting good habits in the beginning will help you in the long run. Keeping cards maxed out and paying the minimum is not a good habit for anyone, so I will not encourage anyone to start that. Always have to think about that "what if."

I don't want any bill balance to roll over the next month (with the exception of loans.) I lived too many nights wondering if I could pay a bill. As long as I am able to, I will make sure this does not happen to me again.

I don't have an issue with paying a credit-card in full every month. I'm just telling you that your credit won't be any better just by doing that due to the reasons I previously mentioned. My 24/7 comment was aimed at those people making false claims that you should "never, ever" carry a balance higher than 20 or 30% of your CL in order to get the best credit. We are not talking about habits here - read what the OP of this thread was asking.

And I'm not sure that credit card companies "prefer" clients who always pay off their CCs in full every month - I guess you can imagine why. And if you are in a position to pay off your balance completely every month, you don't need a higher credit-line to get the best score either...YOU can select your credit-usage that is reported to the bureaus - not the CC-companies. And since myfico determines credit-usage by % and not by the amount of available credit...well, you get my point.

And BTW, I only stated that my cards are maxed out - NOT that I - personally - only pay the minimum. That was an example to show you that nobody who's checking my credit can actually tell what I'm paying each month. That's a difference and actually proves my point. My monthly minimum-payment on these two cards are $20 and $25. That wouldn't even cover my Vonage-Bill I'm paying over one of these cards every month...

[IBroke]

It may be true that other companies cannot see if you pay in full, but your current lender will know and that will increase your chances of getting higher credit limits, which does raise your score by increasing your available credit.
(...)
I lived too many nights wondering if I could pay a bill. As long as I am able to, I will make sure this does not happen to me again.

So you are saying "better safe than sorry" but are promoting a higher credit line? Interesting..

[SunshineGal]

You should wait for the statement otherwise your balance on your credit report will always say 0. Make sure you pay on time.

Logan

But isnt that a good thing??? or is unused credit not helpful? and 0 is that impression that gives?

Logan is right, you want to show the balance, no more than 35% of the credit limit, and a history of on-time payments. A low credit score without any late payments almost always means the borrower is maxed out on available credit.

To rebuild credit, you also want at least one major trade line, either an auto loan or a major credit card with a $5,000 limit.

SG

[dumpinmydebt]

So you are saying "better safe than sorry" but are promoting a higher credit line? Interesting..

What does that have anything to do with each other? How does saying it is risky to leave a balance on a card have anything to do with the credit limit? Are you saying that it's risky to have a high credit limit? Sure, for some people it is. But those people shouldn't even have a credit card if they have no self control. That's a whole different issue.

Anyways, this is beginning to go off topic. You have your opinion and I have mine. I'm sticking with mine, and no matter how many times you repeat your opinion, I'm still not changing mine, just as you won't with yours (nothing wrong with that, just saying this conversation is going nowhere fast.)

[IBroke]

You have your opinion and I have mine. I'm sticking with mine, and no matter how many times you repeat your opinion, I'm still not changing mine, just as you won't with yours (nothing wrong with that, just saying this conversation is going nowhere fast.)

Hey, that is something we certainly can agree on! No hard feelings!