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"When the missionaries came to Africa they had the Bible and we had the land. They said "Let us pray." We closed our eyes. When we opened them we had the Bible and they had the land."

Desmond Tutu








 




 
Featured Credit Cards Articles

"Bad Credit" Credit Cards: How You Can Avoid High Fees
Individuals with problematic credit histories often suffer unfairly from high mortgage, insurance, and car loan rates. On top of that, they have difficulty getting approved for credit cards. The whole situation can get extremely frustrating. Frequently, I ...

Credit Cards For People With Bad Credit - How To Avoid Getting Ripped Off
If you've had credit problems, then you've probably received offers for credit cards aimed at people with bad credit. These offers range from legitimate, to questionable, to outright scams. How can you tell the difference? The answer is to read the fine ...

Transferring balances Between Credit Cards
Understanding transferring balances from one credit card to another can be very confusing and may not help your situation at all. You can transfer your credit card balance from the card you now have to another credit card that offers a low introductory ...




Credit Score Lowered When You Cancel Credit Cards
 
Most people are aware that anytime they seek a loan, the lender will check their credit report to see if their credit history warrants such a loan. Along with the credit report, the lender will almost certainly check the borrower's credit score. Also known as a FICO score, this score is a three-digit number, ranging from 300 to 850, that represents the borrower's overall credit worthiness.

There are several factors that come into play in compiling a credit score. The score takes into account available credit, any past due payments, and the length of the borrower's history, among other things. Also coming into play is the amount of available credit that the borrower has, along with the percentage of the available credit that is currently outstanding.

Borrowers often check their credit reports themselves prior to applying for a loan in order to look for possible errors. Often, they will see old accounts listed that they didn't even know were active anymore, such as a department store credit card from a city in which they no longer live. The first response in this situation is usually to cancel the account, since it isn't being used anymore. This could be a mistake, and could actually lower your credit score!

It is true that it may be a potential problem to have too much available credit. Lenders could have concerns that the borrower with ten credit cards might run out and max them all out. On the other hand, a very important component of the credit score is the length of the borrower's credit history. The longer the better and those people with top credit scores usually have histories of thirty years or more. By canceling an old account, you could be reducing the length of your credit history, which will then consist only of newer accounts.

There are times when canceling unused accounts is a good idea. This is particularly true if the accounts are relatively new ones. But closing an old account, even if it isn't being used, could do more harm than good for someone seeking a loan.







Credit Cards News


Credit Card Balances down 28% with New Credit on the Rise
MarketWatch (press release)
ATLANTA, May 24, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- According to Equifax's May National Consumer Credit Trends Report, existing bank credit card balances as of April 2012 were 28% below their peak. Balances were $531 billion in April 2012 compared to ...
Credit Card Balances Decrease 28 PercentACA International
Lenders Writing Off Fewer Consumer LoansBank Technology News

all 11 news articles »

Card debt still choking low, middle incomes
Chicago Tribune
Forty percent have turned to their credit cards to cover basic living expenses such as rent, mortgage bills, groceries and utilities, according to a national survey by think tank Demos. Those surveyed were low- and middle-income people who carried a ...


TIME

What's a Good First Credit Card to Build My Credit Score?
U.S. News & World Report
By Daniel Bortz Getting your first credit card is a critical first step into adulthood. With a line of credit comes a new level of maturity, and the decision about what card to start out with should not be made lightly. But before you venture out for ...
Best Credit Cards for High School, College GraduatesFox Business
Stay-at-home moms fight credit card biasMSN Money
The Top 5 Flexible Travel Rewards Credit CardsTIME
Debtmerica Relief -New York Times (blog) -CNNMoney
all 22 news articles »

Credit Today

FICO Reports UK Credit Card Delinquencies Have Fallen to Two-Year Low
MarketWatch (press release)
For so-called "classic" (non-premium) credit cards, less than 5 percent of the balances on all cards were 30 days delinquent in March, which represents a two-year low. In February and March, the percentages of accounts that were 30 days delinquent also ...
Credit card delinquencies hit two-year lowCredit Today

all 8 news articles »

Glacier Credit Card Trust Raises C$200M From Debt Issue
Wall Street Journal
TORONTO (Dow Jones)--Glacier Credit Card Trust raised C$200 millon (US$195.3 million) from an issue of asset-backed securities, according to people familiar with the matter. The offering was priced at 138 basis points over the relevant Government of ...

and more »