I have had a credit card with Citibank since 2000. The credit limit is around $15,000 and it is also my oldest credit line. Due to inactivity, Citibank now wants to close the account by the end of June, unless I contact them and request to keep it open. I haven't really used the card at all for the last 5 years or so and I do not need it for daily use. I guess that I have a couple of options to consider. 1. Let them close the account. 2. Close the account myself. 3. Request that they keep it open. What would be best for my credit report? I do not plan to do any major purchases any time soon, my FICO is 790, and I have enough money in the bank. I only use this credit card as a backup just in case my regular reward card fail me for whatever reason. Thanks in advance for your assistance.
Will you have to pay an annual fee now to keep it open, or will you have to reach a certain spending threshold each year? Since it's your oldest card and a sizable amount of credit, I would want to keep it open and use it to make a few purchases here and there. That is, unless the annual fee were too high to warrant keeping it in your wallet. If you close it, both your credit utilization and length of credit will likely take a hit.
I agree. Keep it open. Use it every few months to buy something, maybe a tank of gas. That will keep it active. It should be helping your score a lot.
