Paying in full? Pay before the statement closing date.

Do you pay your cards in full each month?

You may be able to improve your credit score by paying just before (or on) the statement closing date, instead of waiting for the statement and then paying a few days later.

The reason: Credit card companies tend to report the "statement closing balance" to the credit reporting agencies (Experian, TransUnion, Equifax) each month. These balances are used by the agencies to calculate your FICO and other credit scores.

If you have paid off your balance in full before the statement closes, the total balances reported for your cards will be lower (or zero), thereby helping your credit score.

IMPORTANT! Even with this approach, make sure to check the statement balance each month!

There may still be a balance on it, because of any number of reasons - interest charged, purchases made on the last date or online, cable/phone auto-payments and so on. If there is a balance, make sure to pay it as soon as possible.

Set auto-pay - always a good policy. Keeping auto-pay set for the minimum payment for all your cards is always a safety net, just in case!

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