Pay some cards down or pay a couple off

[disneysteve]

What I mean is: the money I'm thinking about using for the credit cards is not included in the money that is put away for a house...

Understood. So you have the house money set aside and have other monies available that you will use to pay down the cards.

I'd work on getting the ratios down, though if your lender has already pulled your credit, it may not make a whole lot of difference unless enough time passes between now and when you actually apply for the loan for your score to have changed significantly.

What is your credit score currently?

[Betterthanyesterday]

Thanks for the help.

[disneysteve]

Then you are probably in the wrong place for advice.

People here don't really offer opinions without a good understanding of the overall picture.

It can be very difficult to answer questions without any context. It's often hard to say what the best course of action is without knowing all of the variables.

[StormRichards]

Then you are probably in the wrong place for advice.

People here don't really offer opinions without a good understanding of the overall picture. Your name is anonymous so not sure what your hang up is on posting your finances.

I apologize if this came off harsh. Just trying to be helpful and it is difficult when you withhold information.

[Betterthanyesterday]

I apologize if this came off harsh. Just trying to be helpful and it is difficult when you withhold information.

Ah the good old internet that isn't helpful with body language and things being perceived huh haha
But I understand your point! You guys ARE helpful!! I needed to know about the ratio or off in full and I got my answer

[Betterthanyesterday]

Understood. So you have the house money set aside and have other monies available that you will use to pay down the cards.

I'd work on getting the ratios down, though if your lender has already pulled your credit, it may not make a whole lot of difference unless enough time passes between now and when you actually apply for the loan for your score to have changed significantly.

What is your credit score currently?

Exactly! And yes, they pulled it, I'm right around 600 (boo), my spouses is much much better, but I know that doesn't mean anything.
And yes, by paying down now, it WILL make a difference when we do find a house and put an offer on it (not really in a rush here...). It will at least be another month...

[GoodSteward]

if you are using her as well they will use the median credit score after comparing all 3 from each of you. They take the middle score for each, and use the higher one of those two.

Also, the only score that really matters is your Fico, so if you are really wanting to know what they will pull I would sign up with MyFico dot com and look over the mortgage score(they have scores for mortgages, auto, etc)

To the point of the others, seeking a lot more debt can be a bad sign if you already have a fair amount. In the case of a house, though, it can actually help if the payment(insurance, taxes, loan, HOA) is less than rent. It all just depends on your situation. From your tone and wording I take it you have new home tunnel vision, so there is no need for anybody to try to change your plans. Feel free to come back and ask questions later if you still need anything.

[Fishindude77]

Hey!

Sorry if this has already been asked, but I'm trying to pay on my credit cards. I have some that are as good as maxed. Now my question is: what will boost my score more - having a few more with 0 balance or pay all down to a certain utilization ratio? Utilization ratio is the only thing that's making my credit look really sad. I have 100% on time payments, 1 inquire within last year (over 6 months). My age of accounts isn't the most awesome, but it's been less than 10 years since my first account. It seems like the only thing that keeps me from a decent score is the UR.

Thank you!!

Forget credit score, you need to get out of this silly debt. I would just start knocking them off one at a time, then when paid off cut up the card and be done with it. In the end, you should be able to get by with only one Visa or Mastercard credit card, but you need to be disciplined enough to pay the bill in full each and every month. If you can't do that, you probably shouldn't have a credit card.

I would forget about purchasing any property for a while also. It's a big responsibility and your behavior with credit cards would indicate you aren't ready to take on the added responsibility of real estate.

[disneysteve]

To the point of the others, seeking a lot more debt can be a bad sign if you already have a fair amount. In the case of a house, though, it can actually help if the payment(insurance, taxes, loan, HOA) is less than rent.

That can be a dangerous way of thinking. Many people buy homes thinking they can afford it since the payment is the same or less than the rent. But they fail to account for all of the costs involved in being a homeowner. When you rent, you aren't responsible for anything beyond your rent payment. When you own, different story. Everything from a burnt out light bulb to a new furnace falls on you. I've heard financial gurus recommend 30-40% above the mortgage payment as what you should be prepared to spend each year on maintenance and repairs. So if you have a $1,000 mortgage payment, that's $12,000/year and you might have $3,000-5,000/year in other expenses. That's what buries a lot of people.