Is it best to delete all creditors on your credreport whom U dont have a balance with

[vishenda]

It affects your credit in a positive way if you paid them off on time as agreed. Do not cancel them if they are no-fee credit cards etc. If they show you as a bad account holder then you can't remove that info anyway. It will fall off automatically after 7-10 years.

Let me know what you think?

[poundwise]

IF your report is showing an account that SHOULD NOT be on the report any longer (due to time) AND the account has negative information THEN you should have it removed.

Otherwise, positive information that remains should just be left alone in virtually every situation. One thing that might need correction is if an old, closed account was being reported still as an open line.

[Ima saver]

I have left all of mine alone.

[PRICEPLUS]

Poundwise is quite correct and wise!

[HalMd]

I wasn't aware that you could delete creditors. I have closed some accounts, but they remain on the report as "closed by consumer".

[Frugal Father (tm)]

I did so..I could'nt believe the amount of credit that was listed at opened even though I closed the accounts...stores brands/cards seemed to be notorious in this regard. If they remain as open ( even if they are not ) on your report it can be a negative when applying for credit (mortgage/loan/cc) So yes I would say so...I did on all 3 reporting agencies and also rec'd confirmation from them.

[Ima saver]

I wonder if that will affect your credit score?

[vishenda]

Originally Posted by Frugal Father (tm)

I did so..I could'nt believe the amount of credit that was listed at opened even though I closed the accounts...stores brands/cards seemed to be notorious in this regard. If they remain as open ( even if they are not ) on your report it can be a negative when applying for credit (mortgage/loan/cc) So yes I would say so...I did on all 3 reporting agencies and also rec'd confirmation from them.

Thanks, I appreciate this one.

[kimiko]

Originally Posted by Frugal Father (tm)

I did so..I could'nt believe the amount of credit that was listed at opened even though I closed the accounts...stores brands/cards seemed to be notorious in this regard.

I actually had the opposite happened. One of my oldest card, Target credit, with a $7,000 credit limit was closed several months ago. They told me that it was closed due to inactivity; I haven't used it for about 2 or 3 years. I'm not looking forward to getting my score next year.

[TBH]

I have 2 cards that I've had for a long time that I don't use any more because the rewards on my other cards are better.

I keep the old, unused cards open, and I also try to charge something small (a few dollars, no more) on each card every month so the accounts will stay active. When my newer cards have a longer track record, I'll probably get rid of the older ones, but I've opened a couple new accounts in the past year and don't want to lose out on the longevity of the other accounts.

[vishenda]

Originally Posted by claire

I have 2 cards that I've had for a long time that I don't use any more because the rewards on my other cards are better.

I keep the old, unused cards open, and I also try to charge something small (a few dollars, no more) on each card every month so the accounts will stay active. When my newer cards have a longer track record, I'll probably get rid of the older ones, but I've opened a couple new accounts in the past year and don't want to lose out on the longevity of the other accounts.

you do rightly

[asmom]

I currently have about 8 or 9 cards that are open with $0 balances. I have to be honest, it makes me nervous to have that many cards. If I were to go against best advice and close some if them anyway, how long does it take my credit score to recover? I'm not planning to make any major purchases in the near future(3 or 4 years).

[TBH]

asmom,
I would close the newer ones first, since the older ones are of more value to your score. I'm sure your score would recover within a few years. If you're worried about a big negative impact, you could close one every few months til you have your cards down to just the oldest ones, and hopefully just ones with no annual fee.

[kristinecfp]

Originally Posted by kimiko

I actually had the opposite happened. One of my oldest card, Target credit, with a $7,000 credit limit was closed several months ago. They told me that it was closed due to inactivity; I haven't used it for about 2 or 3 years. I'm not looking forward to getting my score next year.

You should use your cards every 2-3 months or so to keep them on your credit report. This is a good strategy to keep old, good-standing accounts on your report.

I also agree with Claire - if you're wanting to close old credit cards or other accounts, close the newest ones first to reduce the impact on your credit score - again assuming that the older accounts are in good standing.

[MonkeyMama]

How do you delete creditors? I have all sorts of crap on my report that is long closed and inaccessible to me. Says it is still open. Just curious how you go about it. Call the credit bureaus?

[kristinecfp]

Originally Posted by MonkeyMama

How do you delete creditors? I have all sorts of crap on my report that is long closed and inaccessible to me. Says it is still open. Just curious how you go about it. Call the credit bureaus?

Assuming the information is correct, all you can really do is call the creditor to make sure they show your account was actually closed (many of us quit using credit cards and assume they are closed, when they may in fact still be open). You can also request that they stop reporting on the account if it is closed, but they are not required to stop reporting before the 7 year statute expires.

If the information reported is incorrect, then you should file a dispute with the credit reporting agencies. Disputes should be done in writing, and it's a good idea to send via certified mail.

I found a good article on disputing credit report errors here.

[kristinecfp]

Originally Posted by Frugal Father (tm)

I did so..I could'nt believe the amount of credit that was listed at opened even though I closed the accounts...stores brands/cards seemed to be notorious in this regard. If they remain as open ( even if they are not ) on your report it can be a negative when applying for credit (mortgage/loan/cc) So yes I would say so...I did on all 3 reporting agencies and also rec'd confirmation from them.

Frugal Father - were the accounts you closed older than 7 years? Also, how did you go about removing them from your credit report? Did you contact the credit reporting agencies, or the creditors?

[vsjhoc]

Originally Posted by kristinecfp

Assuming the information is correct, all you can really do is call the creditor to make sure they show your account was actually closed (many of us quit using credit cards and assume they are closed, when they may in fact still be open). You can also request that they stop reporting on the account if it is closed, but they are not required to stop reporting before the 7 year statute expires.

I think the 7 year-period doesn't have anything to do with the creditors. Creditors don't have any obligation to report to credit bureaus, although they do have an obligation to correct wrong info they previously reported, to report if a person voluntarily closes their acccount, and they have to notify the date of delinquency on collection/charge offs.

The law is that the credit bureau can't include in a credit report certain information that is adverse (e.g., collections) if the item is more than 7 years (technically, it's 7.5 years) old.

[vishenda]

wow, you guys are very helpful, I learned more from your own experiences!!
thanks

[BCHGRL]

I have a ton of open credit cards with $0 balances. When I went to get a loan for my car on Friday, my credit score was 766, so obviously open credit does not hurt your score tremendously.

This article explains:
http://www.bankrate.com/dls/news/cc/...dit_scorea.asp