Credit scoring

Geraldsprawnsandwich

Hi -can anyone kindly assist me with the below quandary?

I currently have 2 credit cards one with a balance of £10k (0% balance transfer card) with a limit of £12k so £2k headroom total the 2nd card balance is zero with a £15k headroom. As I like to keep my finances tidy I was planning on closing the zero balance credit card account.Then I wondered with a remortgage application coming up would I be best to keep this card account open showing a total of 2 credit cards with a total balance of £10k with a limit of £27k and headroom of £17k on my credit file? If anyone can help I would be very grateful 🤔🙏🏻

[Deleted User]

Keep both open. You're heavily utilised as it is - if lenders see that you're having accounts closed, it will appear even worse.

Each lender will credit score you according to their criteria, but unless you're going sub-prime, in general you will want to keep the available credit.

Geraldsprawnsandwich

Thank you for your help 👍🏻

binao

As zx81 says, keep both open.

 With 10k outstanding on the first card, if you closed the second card then it may  well be difficult to get another card if ever you needed it.

It is extremely important that you pay the minimum each month and also do not draw cash or use your card for anything that may be seen as cash, such as gambling etc.

SusieT

It is better to be seen to be paying more than the minimum each month, that way the new lender that you approach for the remortgage will see that you are not just stuck at the minimum payment, which can give a bad impression. If you are staying with your current lender and just logging in to your account and doing an online product switch at current rates to kick in at the end of your fixed rate, then they are unlikely to check your credit history if you have made all payments on time.

binao

As @SusieT says, paying more than the minimum is even better. The more you pay the better it looks.

Good luck