How long will my oldest credit account appear and influence my credit report?
Date: Mon, 08/08/2016 - 22:45
I have a credit card, probably the first one, which I took out 10 years back. But, I want to close that account since the interest rate is relatively high. But, I know that closing an old credit account can affect my credit score. But if this true, will I not be able to close my oldest credit card account ever? Will it continue to appear in my credit report for 10, 20, 30 years - as long as I use the card?
A positive account will
A positive account will continue to appear for 10 years after the tradeline is closed. Closing will drop your score a bit since you are decreasing your available credit ratio. If there is no fee, I would just leave it open, making a small charge quarterly.
If you have to close your
If you have to close your oldest credit account, try to pay off the outstanding balances on all your cards. This way, your credit utilization ratio won't get affected much. However, it also depends on how much credit limit you have on this card which you want to close. Even if it continues to appear in your credit report for 10 years, it's effect reduces with time.
