I opened my first credit card right before senior year of college.
I used the card mostly for groceries because I earned extra points.
Elsewhere, the rewards were weak.
Plus I was really, really paranoid about remembering topay the monthly bill.
Fast forward a few years, and now I have a Chase Sapphire Preferred card.
Our team has compiled alist of creative waysyou can fatten your bank account this week.
This is a long list, so dont get overwhelmed.
Well keep it updated as offers changes or expire.
So is it bad to close a credit card?
Does Closing a Credit Card Affect Your Credit Score?
I found out that, yes, closing a credit cardwillimpact your credit score.
However, its not necessarily anything drastic.
The technical term for that percentage is utilization rate.
But only a little.
And what about your credit history?
This is a common myth, Griffin says.
[They] have new history and so it offsets that being deleted.
So When Should I Close a Credit Card?
Ganotis rule of thumb is to keep an unused card open unless youre paying an annual fee.
Because theres no activity, scores may not be able to use that account for the calculation anyway.
However, Griffin reminds consumers to always step back and take a look attheir financial situation.
Continue to pay off the bills.
The score isnt what you should be concerned about, Griffin says.
Its usually not as bad as you think, Griffin says.
Poke around in there, and see whats happening.
Think about what your next few months will look like financially.
Carson Kohler (@CarsonKohler) is a junior writer at The Penny Hoarder.
She doesnt like keeping tabs on too many accounts.
It sounds appealing right?
Check it out here!
