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A guy at my credit union in Boise talked me out of closing my oldest card, and my score jumped 42 points
Three years ago I got my first credit card at 19, a basic one with a $500 limit. Last year I paid it off and stopped using it, and I figured why keep it open, it's just sitting there. So two months ago I called to close it. The rep put me on hold and came back with this older guy named Dave who asked me one question: how long have you had other accounts? I said maybe 8 months. He goes, that card is basically your whole credit history, close it and your average age drops to nothing. I didn't really believe him at first, but he showed me the math on his end and said just buy a coffee once a month and pay it off. I did that for two billing cycles, and when I checked my score last week it went from 648 to 690. I honestly thought keeping a card open you don't use was pointless, and I was so wrong. Did anyone else get talked out of something like this by a teller or rep who actually took the time to explain it?
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vera_robinson361mo ago
That Dave guy saved you. I closed a 6 year old card back in 2019 because I never used it and my score tanked like 50 points within a month or two. Worst part was the card had no annual fee so I was paying nothing to keep it, I just didn't know any better. Now I put my Netflix on the oldest card and set it to autopay, costs me nothing and it just sits there building age every month. The age of your accounts is like 15 percent of your score so a card that old is worth way more open than closed, even if you barely touch it.
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