% Balance carry over from one stoozing card to the next

SlowGrower

Hi all,

I took out a 20 month 0% purchase credit card with a limit of around £9k that I expect to max out before the term ends.

Ideally, I would then (if deals still exist and acceptance allows) transfer this to the longest 0% card with no fees, to continue stoozing.

While my credit history has no faults, is good, and I do have a few other CCs with a limit of just under £5k (that have no balance), if I max out my stoozing CC, I would have utilised around 65% of my credit availability.

So I'd love to get people's thoughts on:

1. With balance transfers, how big a factor do people think utilisation is? (Is it that they won't mind it as much as the utilisation is just being transferred from one place to another?)
   
   
2. If it is still a factor, what are people's opinions of what utilisation % has the best risk vs reward ratio, comparing the likelihood of getting accepted on to a new card (if they exist) to the reward of having a higher stoozing balance (the full 9k 65%, or reduce it so it is 60%, 50%, 40%, etc. but also feel free to answer more generally if it will help more people)
   
   
3. Based on 2 - how long before I apply for the new CC should I keep this utilisation?
   
   
4. How long before my current stoozing CC ends should I apply for a new stoozing CC?

I should also note that I'd be able to pay off this balance at any time. Just looking to make the most of my money.

Thanks for reading and any thoughts on this will be appreciated.

daivid

I've had the best results when my utilisation has been under 25% of total credit but this may be totally random as the credit card market has been rather turbulent over the last 5 years.

grumbler

It's not only utilisation. It's also (available credit)/income ratio.  The more cards you have, the more difficult it gets to get a new one with a  big enough limit. And while the only way to reduce utilisation is to pay balance(s) off, the available credit can be reduced by closing unused cards or reducing their credit limits.