Still think a high limit is always better after my $4,200 mistake

Everyone says ask for a higher credit limit to boost your score, but that backfired hard on me. I got approved for a $15,000 limit on a new card back in March, and my score actually dropped 22 points because my average age of accounts took a hit. Then I got careless with a big purchase in July, spent $4,200 on a home repair, and maxed out my utilization overnight. Took me 3 months to pay it down, and my score tanked another 40 points during that time. I called the bank to reduce my limit back to $5,000, and my score finally started climbing again last week. So tell me, has a big limit ever messed up your score worse than a low one?

2 comments

2 Comments

andrew91622d ago

Feel for you man, that $4,200 hit had to sting. I did something similar a couple years back when I got a $12k limit on a store card I didn't even need. Thought I was being smart but then a big vet bill came up and I charged $3,800 on it, same thing happened to me with the utilization spike. Took me about four months of scraping to pay it down and my score dropped like 50 points in that time. Ever since then I keep most of my limits around $5k to $7k just to avoid that trap.

derek_dixon7822d ago

Man, I feel that in my wallet. My dumbest move was getting a $10k limit on a furniture store card for a couch I barely use, and then my dog needed emergency surgery. Took me six months to dig out of that hole, and my score took a similar hit, @andrew916.