I'm seriously thinking of calling and closing all but one of my subprime accounts today. These would include: Capital One MC $1,750 limit, opened in 2-2000 Providian MC $3,800 limit, opened in 6-2000 Household MC $1,900 limit, opened in 2-2000 Orchard MC $1,450 limit, opened in 4-2000. I would keep my Providian Gold Visa $9,849 limit opened in 6-1998. I did get Household to agree to combine their accounts but I never sent the paperwork back to complete the transaction. All of these accounts charge an annual fee which I have managed to get waived for this year. What do you all think I should do? Should I close these? Should I stagger the closings or just do it all at once? None of these companies are ever going to treat me as prime no matter what I do, but Providian has me over a barrel because they are my oldest open account (Visa).
HOUSEHOLD has no fee accounts...can't they combine and trade??? CAPITAL ONE also has no fee cards...no trade??? Can't they combine your 2 PVN accounts either??? Are they doing a "CHASE" on you...they refused to combine my WAL*MART M/C with my VISA...so I closed the CHASE WAL*MART M/C...
Household won't change the status of my accounts from subprime to prime, so they will combine the cards but acording to them I will always have subprime terms (high 15.9% interest, no online credit limit increases or balance transfers, have to call every year to beg them to waive the fee, etc). Providian won't combine MC and Visa. Capital One treats me the best but their low increases every six months ($300 or $400) and the lack of reporting the CL annoy me. I'd love to have one of the prime Capital One accounts but since you have to have at least a $5,000 CL it is going to take me years to get there.
Wow, I can't believe the crazy limit on the Providian gold visa, 9,849--couldn't they just make it an even 10k?
It started out as $300 or so and ended up at an odd figure due to credit line increase fees and the odd $200 increase every now and then.
Two of my scores are in the low 700s and one is in the mid 660's. I have two Citibank platinum MasterCards, State Farm Visa platinum and Umbrella Bank Visa platinum cards. I also have a Target Visa with a decent CL but a lousy 15.9% rate. I've been keeping the subprime accounts open hoping I could change my status with those companies, but I've learned that once you are subprime with them you'll stay that way forever (with the possible exception of Capital One). I no longer need these subprime accounts for my ratios but I am going to keep the oldest Providian account (over four years old) for the history.
I wouldn't close them all at once. It will hurt your ratios, and in turn lower your scores. If you are all set with your mortgage, then maybe try to get a high limit card, then close a couple of the others. Wait a few months and the close what's left. I do agree that you need to keep your oldest open.
Well with the addition of my new B of A Platinum card I decided to go ahead and close my Household and Orchard accounts this morning. The retention agent I called confirmed that you can never move from sub-prime to prime with them without submitting an application for a prime card. After she knew this was the reason I wanted to close she stopped trying to get me to keep the accounts. I am still on the fence about Capital One. I'll make up my mind in the next couple of days I suppose.
