Thanks, I might just strategically leave at 10% utilization - LOL

There seems to be two schools of thought regarding whether you should have a $0 balance at reporting time or a minimal one.
I think a small balance is best but anything under 50% helps - I understand under 30% to be better but I am not sure how much.

I had a solid score at 46% utilized with one card and a line of credit. My LOC was at 92% and my score was still 728. I think maybe a LOC is evaluated differently. My overall utilization is now 60% ish.
It is not currently realistic for me to get it under 50% but I will have it there in a couple months.

I think anything under 50% will likely help you but ensure you get it there several days in advance.

Say your statement comes out on the 25th - make sure you pay it on about the 20th as it takes several days to post.
If you were to pay it on say the 24th it may not have gone thru and your balance may still read as high to the bureau. If you are monitoring this you should be able to tell as the balance will be what shows on your report.

I am checking my Credit Report since then

I actually plan to pay the full amount before statement state so its always $0 but if I understand you correctly, I should leave it at 30%-50% utilization? and not pay the whole amount

Coz as per the article it seems I should pay it all so after a year, it will be a consistent $0 balance - is that good or bad? coz $0 might mean I never used it or having a balance shown is healthy?

I am also curious about whether or not you have been monitoring your credit since this has begun...
Any change?

I understand a $300 limit can be more of a challenge to play around with than a larger limit.
I recommend that if you use the full amount you make sure you get it back to atleast the $150 mark by a few days before it gets reported (likely the statement date). Then it will look like 50% utilization.

Just ensure you give yourself a grace period before they send info to the bureau.

Also, if you were able to (not realistic for many) I would try to use very little of that card.
This all depends if you have a need for the card.

For example., if you had a card you used for gas a couple times a month and maybe a couple meals out it would stay well below the $150 mark and would not be a risk.

I read that utilization should be below 50% but ideally 30%. I have also read you should keep it below 15 or even 10%
This may be ideal but not at all realistic for many.
I also can't fathom why you would want so much credit you were not using unless it is just to play the score game which is silly but needed for some.

Again, if you need to use it, I recommend that you make sure it is below $150 within a few days of the statement date. I would almost say a week. I know when I pay my card - even by internet baking it takes several days to show.
For example all of my banking is CIBC. When I pay the CIBC select card thru my CIBC account it takes about 4 days to go thru.

I really appreciate your response as it got me to research a bit more and you are 100% Correct. I found this link which better explains it

http://www.smartmoney.com/spending/deals/top-5ive-secret-ways-to-boost-your-credit-score-0/

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2. Be an early bird
So you pay your credit cards in full each month. That's great, but as far as your credit report is concerned, you're still in debt. Why? Because each month creditors report to the bureaus your latest statement balance — i.e. what you racked up each month before you pay your bill in full, explains Watts. That dollar amount will appear on your credit reports and will be picked up by the FICO formulas. So if, for example, the balance on your latest statement was $2,000 and you sent the credit-card company a $2,000 check, your credit report will show you had a $2,000 balance for that month, not $0.

A smart way around that: Pay your card bills before the next statement date. That's typically mentioned on top of the bill, right alongside your due date. Because of the grace period creditors give — usually 20 to 25 days — your statement date is typically 20 to 25 days before your actual due date. (You can find out when your next statement date is by logging onto your credit-card account online or calling your creditor.) Once you know your statement date, pay off the full balance a day or so in advance. The result: The creditor will report $0 to the bureaus, bringing your credit utilization as low as possible and improving your score.

Read more: Top 5ive Secret Ways to Boost Your Credit Score at SmartMoney.com http://www.smartmoney.com/spending/deals/top-5ive-secret-ways-to-boost-your-credit-score-0/#ixzz0c9WyvkHk

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So if my Capital One Statement Date is Dec 20th and DUE Date is 15th Jan. I should be paying off the balance before Dec 20th ( 2-3 days days in Advance ) to have a $0 Balance

This clears another situation I had recently, I applied ( and got approved ) for a Vancity Secured Credit Card ( 4K Balance 100% Deposit ). I wanted this so I could pay each and every thing by Credit Card and pay off the whole balance. ( So I asked 4K to basically use 2K - aka 50% utilization )

To apply, I had to goto the Branch and I told them about rebuilding my credit history and settled all my account with $0 Balance. They pulled up my report and my beacon score was 670 compared to 530 last year when I decided to settle everything,

I saw my Capital One account with a Balance of $76.12, I was like but I paid this off so I thought maybe the credit reports are updated daily for the banks but now it makes sense that they reported the statement balance not the money I paid off before the due date

Another interesting thing to see is that their credit report showed I still had a collections account unpaid. I had the official credit report from Equifax to contradict that and they took a copy of that report and highlighted that portion of $0 Balance and Paid. I have faxed Equifax with a copy of their credit report and waiting for that

So meanwhile I have

$300 Capital One Credit Card

$4000 Secured Visa Card from Vancity

I wont use more than 2K for the Vancity so it stays at 50% Utilization but as for Capital One I am a bit confused as I haven't got a clear response on this

The Capital one ( $300 ) will be used by my father for buying little groceries etc. Now, I feel $150 ( 50% utilization is very little for that ) so I am thinking of asking him to use the whole $300 OR use $150 and pay it off the same day and in 2 days, its goes back to $300 and then repeat if necessary and then make sure before Statement Date, pay off whatever balance and start repeating the process after that

Any opinion on this

You posted this a bit ago but it connects to what I have just learned.

After lowering my available credit I learned about the 30 - 50% rule.
This will impact me when my credit is updated and I will fall as I will be at 62% utilization.

Some say you should not go over 10% - up to 30% and lastly up to 50%.
I do not think anything under 50 is currently realistic for me.
I often wonder what the point is of having really high limits if you don't use it. Seems like a silly game.

From what I can tell, you need to be aware of when you creditor reports to the bureau. Often this is your statement date but not always.
If you learn that date - you should ensure you do not use more than 50% if possible at that date. If possible 30% is still recommended.
So, on $500 I would try to ensure the balance is under $250 or less on the statement date. Be aware there is always interest added so you will want to keep it at less than that.

I've never heard of the 50% rule either, though it probably ties into the FICO score (credit utilization). At this point, this probably doesn't matter that much for your purposes.

Use as much as the card as you want, but pay it off 100% in full by the end of the grace period.

When I had numerous credit cards; I never knew about the 50% limit rule till I heard it on this site. All I did is made sure the payments were on time every month. When I was thinking of buying a home; I would pay off the credit cards 30 to 60 days prior to applying so the mortgage company would see I had no debts.

Yes, I was surprised too and I hope they increase it after some time

Do you have any opinion to my query