I have 2 maxed out credit cards, $1100 and $1000, how can i pay them down in order to better my credit score?

Question

Will paying them heighten my credit score and since they both havent been open long can that also heighten my score when they have been paid down some and been around longer?? Someone give me a real in depth answer please

Answer 1

You need to pay down the balances ASAP, preferable in full but if you can't definetly bring those balances down especially if it accounts for more than 25% of the total limit.

Utilizing more than 25% of your credit limit has a serious impact on your debt to income ratio. Don't make it a habit to max out even if you pay on time. It makes it look as though you're living on credit.

Answer 2

i do not know how much your score can be rasied but this will defeinitely help you out. i went to http://offur.com/fixcredit , a totally free service that helps you raise your credit and create a plan to keep it up. its pretty helpful.

Answer 3

What helps your score is also your pattern of paying back your debt. As long as you make your minimum payments on time, that is a plus. But you need to know that maxing out your cards is not good for your score. You should never use or have a balance over 40% of your credit limit. Here is more information. http://www.badcreditfixup.com/improving-...

Answer 4

its best that you pay it out as soon as possible.  it will make your credit score go up. it doesn't matter how long they have been open, and you should definitely not wait to pay it out. honestly the best thing to do is to pay as much as possible on both credit cards so it doesn't hurt your credit more.

Answer 5

30% of your scores depend on your debt to credit ratio i.e. how much of your available credit (all cards combined) are you using for purchases and charges and carrying a balance. Knowing what you told me, your credit utilization in 100%. Your scores will suffer greatly as long as your utilization is so high. Bring it down to under 30%. Under 10% is when you get the most points. It doesn't ruin your credit since balance on the card can vary month to month. If you bring it down to under 10% next month, your scores will jump immediately. Remember even if you pay in full, your balance reported to the credit bureau is what you owe the CC companies. So keep your utilization under 10% if you can and your scores will jump. Credit gets ruined when there are late payments and charge offs because that stays for 7 years. Your credit is young. As long as you are never late and pay off the balances in full each month and keep your utilization low, your scores will improve as your credit age goes up.

Answer 6

Your loan amount to credit limit/opening high loan balance ratio determines about a third of your credit score. Pay your loans and credit card debts down.

Contrary to what this other poster said, the longer your credit history, the better.  In other words, if you've had your credit cards for a long time (number of years), your credit score will be higher.

Never pay more than 30 days late because it will show up in your credit report.

If you've maxed out your credit cards, you have no choice except to pay them down below the credit limit ASAP.  Each billing cycle you are above the credit limit, you will be charged an overlimit fee on top of your interest.  If you do not have money to pay it, the balance will just keep growing REALLY fast as the credit card company jacks up your interest rate.

If you can, call them to lower the APR.  Studies have shown that simply calling them and asking for it will help in your favor.

I called them on a balance transfer that went from 1.99% to 7.99% (my purchase rate) and they lowered my purchase rate to 0% for a year so I can pay it off because I've never been late.