Made large Payment and they reduce credit

[ChrisLittleGirl]

What is the name of your state? Maine

I owe $4900 on BOA credit card and recently made a payment of $450 (amount due was $99) 3 days after i made it they reduced my credit by $400 and i checked my credit score and it made it drop 8 points. I do owe bills and my credit has become bad due to medical issues and im trying to rebuild it by making payments on time and arrangements and have been doing very well and havent missed any payments in almost a year on ALL accounts. This is the second time BOA has done this to me every time i get $400-500 open credit.

I made these payments so my credit used to credit available would start to look better on my credit score.

Is there anything i can do to have them Reopen this line of credit? They said they cant do anything about it yet as the letter saying why they did it posted to my account and as soon as i get it. No doubt they will say due to "potential credit risk" or something

Is there anything i can do?

 

[Zigner]

Is there anything i can do to have them Reopen this line of credit?

No - You may ask why...here's why:

They said they cant do anything about it yet as the letter saying why they did it posted to my account and as soon as i get it.

 

[xylene]

Bank of America or any credit card can reduce or extend your credit line, pretty much at their discretion.

If you are focusing on rebuilding your finances, worry about reducing your total debt, improving your debt to income and building up a small savings. Your credit score is not that important - because the last thing you should be doing is applying to for new credit lines.

 

[ChrisLittleGirl]

No - You may ask why...here's why:

Well... let me rephrase .... Is there anything i can do AFTER i get the letter from them stating why?? Even if it says its due to credit risk or not, if i haven't missed a payment in over a year and have been making more then the minimum and my credit score has been going up until this point?

I want to get rid of as much debt as possible, i dont want to use credit cards at all, but i was told the more open credit you have the better it looks. I dont want them to extend my credit line, but just not drop it EVER TIME i make a good sized payment. Im concerned as my boyfriend and i will be buying a small house in around 2 years when ill have most of my debt gone. So credit score isnt as important as its made out to be??

 

[xylene]

Well... let me rephrase .... Is there anything i can do AFTER i get the letter from them stating why?? Even if it says its due to credit risk or not, if i haven't missed a payment in over a year and have been making more then the minimum and my credit score has been going up until this point?

The credit card company is allowed to raise and lower the credit limit. The only thing they can't do is lower the limit below your existing balance to shaft you with over-limit fees, although I am sure they would like to be able to.

You have no contract to hold them to a specific credit line.

You are on the right track for reducing debt.

Stop checking your credit every 5 minutes. Check your balances and make sure you are putting some money in the bank.

 

[xylene]

i dont want to use credit cards at all, but i was told the more open credit you have the better it looks.

That's a big simplification.

You should get a good book on personal finance.

If your personal balance sheet is not net positive, in the long run it will not matter if you at some point had a high FICO score. And if you have a net negative balance over any sustained period your credit will get shot to crap.

Im concerned as my boyfriend and i will be buying a small house in around 2 years when ill have most of my debt gone. So credit score isnt as important as its made out to be??

If your finances are healthy your credit will be healthy.

If you put away money and stay on top of things, and maybe do some extra work for extra money, and most importantly live frugally, their is very little standing in you way from home ownership in a two year timeframe.

 

[ChrisLittleGirl]

Thanks for the advice, after paying as much as i can on credit cards i dont have much left over at the end of hte month, maybe 50$ for essentials so theres not much left to put in the bank. I maybe have 450 in savings right now for emergency's.

All my money goes strait to bills, my other half pays the rent, buys food and if theres something i truly need like a new pair of shoes (i haven't bought a new pair in nearly 4 years and only own 1 pair of dress shoes, 1 pair of $2 sandals, 1 pair of rubber barn boot and 1 pair of old tennis shoes). I only buy what i need. Nothing more.

 

[xylene]

Thanks for the advice, after paying as much as i can on credit cards i dont have much left over at the end of hte month, maybe 50$ for essentials so theres not much left to put in the bank. I maybe have 450 in savings right now for emergency's.

All my money goes strait to bills, my other half pays the rent, buys food and if theres something i truly need like a new pair of shoes (i haven't bought a new pair in nearly 4 years and only own 1 pair of dress shoes, 1 pair of $2 sandals, 1 pair of rubber barn boot and 1 pair of old tennis shoes). I only buy what i need. Nothing more.

Good work.

Do try and go your savings a little each month.

For example. The BoA bill had a minimum of 99 and you paid 450. You could have paid 350 and put away 100 in savings, and still be on your way to a 12 month BoA payoff...

The idea behind saving some money each month is quite simple:
You can't live on paid off debt.

Go to the library and look at a book called Kiplinger's Practical Guide to Your Money, or a similar personal finance book. Don't expect any secrets or tricks to 'eliminate debt', just common sense stuff on budgets and how to calculate a financial timeline.

 

[tanja53]

The credit card company is allowed to raise and lower the credit limit. The only thing they can't do is lower the limit below your existing balance to shaft you with over-limit fees, although I am sure they would like to be able to.

You have no contract to hold them to a specific credit line.

You are on the right track for reducing debt.

Stop checking your credit every 5 minutes. Check your balances and make sure you are putting some money in the bank.

Intresting.
That is just what chase did to me.
Lool at my thread that I started.

 

[wichitafalls1]

who told her the more credit card-credit you have the better, is it not better to have 1 revoling credit for a long period of time with balance to limit available at a low balance, the more cards you have open gives you more available credit, but its still considered debt verse income, right?