Should I avoid credit card use to improve our debt-to-income ratio?
"For scoring purposes, having a DTI between 1-19% is ideal.  From Credit Karma:  That being said, depending on the loan type you looking at receiving (FHA, VA, Conventional, etc), there are certain max DTIs that you want to stay away from. As a rule, for VA, you want to try to stay away from 41% DTI. Exceptions are made for people with sufficient funds in the bank (3-9 months) to go to higher DTIs. If you keep a 19% utilization overall, that will get you a higher score but it will also show that you have a monthly payment on a particular revolving credit account. While the difference between 729 and 745 seems like a lot of points, there are rules as to how the interest rates are determined. So you will find that many banks have the same or similar rates due to recent legislation in Dodd-Frank. In the days of subprime mortgages, this was not the case. Adjustable rate mortgages did not necessarily go away, the servicer just has to make sure that the buyer can weather the full amount once it reaches maturity, not the lower amount. That is what got a lot of people in trouble. From ""how interest rates are set"": Before quoting you an interest rate, the loan officer will add on how   much he and his branch want to earn. The branch or company sets a   policy on how little that can be (the minimum amount the loan officer   adds on to his cost) but does not want to overcharge borrowers either   (so they set a maximum the loan officer can charge) Between that   minimum and maximum, the loan officer has a great deal of flexibility. For example, say the loan officer decides he and his branch are going   to earn one point. When you call and ask for a rate quote, he will add   one point to the cost of the loan and quote you that rate. According   to the rate sheet above, seven percent will cost you zero points. Six   and three-quarters percent will cost you one point. In our example, at 7.125% the loan officer and branch would earn one   point and have some money left over. This could be used to pay some of   the fees (processing, documents, etc), which is how you get a ""no fees   -no points"" mortgage. You just pay a higher interest rate. Where this scoring helps you is in credit card interest rates and auto loan and personal loan rates, which have different rate structures.  My personal opinion is to avoid the use of the credit cards. Playing games to try to maximize your score in this situation won't help you when you are talking about 20 points potentially. If you were at the bottom level and were trying to meet a minimum score to qualify, then I would recommend you try to game this scoring system. Take the extra money you would put on a credit card and save it for housing expenses. Taking the Dave Ramsey approach, you should have at least $1000 in emergency funds as most problems you encounter will be less than $1000. That advice rings true." The answer depends on how much you spend every month. The DTI is calculated using the minimum payment on the balance owed on your card.  Credit card minimum payments are ridiculous, often being only $50 for balances of a couple thousand dollars. In any case, when you get preapproved, the lender will tell you (based on your DTI) the maximum amount they will approve you for. If your minimum payment is $50, that's another $50 that could go towards your mortgage, which could mean an additional $10,000 financed. It's up to you to decide if $10,000 will make enough of a difference in the houses you look at. If you pay it off before the cycle closes it will look like you have 100% available credit.   So if you credit card statement closes on the 7th pay it off on the 6th in full don't pay it when its due 2/3 weeks later. Then after three months of doing that your credit score will go up based on the fact that your debt ratio is so low.  That ratio is 30% of your credit score.  It will help quite alot.
Depends upon the debt cost. Assuming it is consumer debt or credit card debt, it is better to pay that off first, it is the best investment you can make. Let's say it is credit card debt. If you pay 18% interst and have for example a $1,000 amount. If you pay it off you save $180 in interest ($1,000 times 18%). You would have to earn 18% on 1,000 to generate $180  if it was in aninvestment. Here is a link discussing ways of reducing debt Once you have debt paid off you have the cashflow to begin building wealth. The key is in the cashflow. "First I want to be sure Op understands how ""Credit Utilization"" is scored as this confuses many folks here in the US.  There is no ""reward"" for charging money or carrying balances, only penalty.  If you have one credit card with a $10,000 limit and owe $8,000  you have an 80% utilization which will signal to banks that you are having financial difficulties.  (Anything over 30% on a single card is usually penalized significantly.)  The ideal utilization is something around 0, which is in the ballpark of the 5% Op mentioned.  Again there is never any direct benefit to your credit of spending a penny on any of your credit cards.*   Banks offer the best rates to people that pay off their balances each month or don't use their cards in the first place.  Why? Despite the system being imperfect in many ways, utilization is a good indicator.  Example: If you have a card with a  $10,000 limit and pay it off every month that speaks to you being a good risk. If you compared this person to the person above, who do you think would be the most likely to pay back a car loan? Finally, Utilization is a small part of the credit score.  I would call it more of a ""hurdle"" than a factor, at least concerning good rates and approvals.  Most of your credit, is based on length of history, paying on time, and having multiple types of credit. Real life example: I had a relative that had perfect payment history for decades.  They got divorced and started accumulating a balance.  The person got other cards with 0% apr to avoid the interest, but their balance only grew.  -They had to use the card to make ends meet, etc.  (3 kids, single parent)  They ended up filing a sizable bankruptcy a few years later.  This was one of the most responsible people I've ever known.  (Yes that statement will seem far fetched to someone else.  It was almost impossible to get them to file bankruptcy, even though there was no way to ever pay the money back.) The point?  Utilization shows a more 'current' picture than some of the other portions due.  -  Had those banks used the high utilization as a warning sign they would have saved a lot of money.   A 'fun' way of looking at credit: Sometimes I describe credit score as a popularity contest.  If you really 'need' money banks are not going to help you.  However if your credit shows everyone is lining up to loan you money, other banks are going to want in too.  ""Banks only make loans to people that don't need them."" *** Spending a lot on Credit Cards does sometimes have the indirect effect of getting balance increases that could have a slight increase in your score.  This happens  less than it did prior to the financial fiasco.  Also the effect of this is on the score negligible unless carrying a balance.  ( And the person carrying a balance also has a lower score anyways.)  Additionally someone charging less could probably get a similar raise if they asked for it.  (Raises vary greatly by issuer.))" Regardless of how it exactly impacts the credit score, the question is does it help improve your credit situation? If the score does go up, but it goes up slowly that was a lot of effort to retard credit score growth.  Learning to use a credit card wisely will help you become more financially mature. Start to use the card for a class of purchases: groceries, gas, restaurants. Pick one that won't overwhelm your finances if you lose track of the exact amount you have been charging. You can also use it to pay some utilities or other monthly expenses automatically. As you use the card more often, and you don't overuse it, the credit card company will generally raise your credit limit. This will then help you because that will drop your utilization ratio. Just repeat the process by adding another class of charges to you credit card usage. This expanded use of credit will in the long run help your score. The online systems allow you to see every day what your balance is, thus minimizing surprises. "You don't need to have a bunch of credit cards lying around; just a couple is fine. Get a ""rewards"" card (without annual fee) that pays you back for use, and use it regularly to buy groceries, for example. Pay it off promptly each month, using the rewards, if you like, to reduce the amount you have to send in. Or you can use the rewards for other purchases; some merchants offer $25 worth of merchandise for $20 in rewards. It used to be the case that you could negotiate a discount for paying cash rather than use a credit card, but that is a lot harder to do now, in many cases because credit-card company contracts with merchants prohibit this practice. Also, merchants often prefer credit cards rather than cash because money-handling is an issue (pay for an armored car to come pick up the day's receipts, or risk getting mugged on the way to the bank, possible burglaries if you leave the money overnight in the store, daily balancing of cash-register trays, etc.) So, not being in debt and being rich enough to not need to be in debt are laudable goals, and you have my best wishes that you will reach them soon, but getting rid of all your credit cards as a part of not being in debt may be more trouble than it is worth. Keep a couple, pay them off promptly, and if you are concerned about being in debt, you can time your charges so that you are in debt at  most 2 or 3 days each month." Why would a lender for a down payment want proof of income for a house when a credit card issuer gave me more and doesn't care? The risk profile and rate of interest are different.  Could I use this argument as a basis that they have no reasoning to request proof of income, if another lender (credit card company) would give me more without proof of repayment? You could argue anything, but it does not mean the other company will agree with your argument. Should I borrow a home loan from a credit card company then? Or what's the catch here? You can. Check the rate of interest and penal fees; you would realize how much you will end up paying. Depending on the country, the difference could be in the region of 10-15%. There are non-financial costs to having a debt: you need to remember to make monthly payments, perhaps keep track of changing interest rates, be aware of conditions of the debt, archive the related paperwork. Life is simpler with fewer debts, and that has value. Of course, if the difference in interest rate is large, then that is more important and the higher interest should be paid off first. But if the difference is only half a percentage point or so, you may decide that having fewer debts is in itself worth the bit of extra interest you pay. "There are two issues here: arithmetic and psychology. Scenario 1: You are presently paying an extra $500 per month on your student loan, above the minimum payments. Your credit card company offers a $4000 cash advance at 0% for 8 months. So you take the cash advance, pay it toward the student loan, and then instead of paying the extra $500 per month toward the student loan you use that $500 for 8 months to repay the cash advance. Net result: You pay 0% interest on the loan, and save roughly 8 months times $4000 times the interest on the student loan divided by two. (I say ""divided by two"" because it's not the difference between $4000 and zero, but between $4000 and the $500 you would have been paying off each month.) Clearly you are better off. If you are NOT presently paying an extra $500 on the student loan -- or even if you are but it is a struggle to come up with the money -- then the question becomes, can you reasonably expect to be able to pay off the credit card before the grace period runs out? Interest rates on credit cards are normally much higher than interest rates on student loans. If you get the cash advance and then can't repay it, after 8 months you are paying a very steep interest rate, and anything you saved on the student loan will quickly be lost. What I mean by ""psychological"" is that you have to have the discipline to really repay the credit card within the grace period. If you're not very confidant that you can do that, this plan could go bad very quickly. Personally, I've thought about doing things like this many times -- cash advances against credit cards, home equity loans, etc, all give low-interest money that could be used to pay off a higher-interest debt. But it's easy to get into trouble doing things like this. It's easy to say to yourself, Well, I don't need to put ALL the money toward that other debt, I could keep a thousand or so to buy that big screen TV I really need. Or to fail to pay back the low-interest loan on schedule because other things keep coming up that you spend your money on instead, whether frivolous luxuries or true emergencies. And there's always the possibility that something will happen to mess up your finances, from a big car repair bill to losing your job. You don't want to paint yourself into a corner. Finally, maxing out your credit cards hurts your credit rating. The formulas are secret, but I understand that if you use more than half your available credit, that's a minus. How much it hurts you depends on lots of factors." "Pay cash.  You have the cash to pay for it now, but God forbid something happen to you or your wife that requires you to dip into that cash in the future. In such an event, you could end up paying a lot more for your home theater than you planned. The best way to keep your consumer credit card debt at zero (and protect your already-excellent credit) is to not add to the number of credit cards you already have.   At least in the U.S., interest rates on saving accounts of any sort are so low, I don't think it's worthwhile to include as a deciding factor in whether not you ""borrow"" at 0% instead of buying in cash." This is a good idea, but it will barely affect your credit score at all.  Credit cards, while a good tool to use for giving a minor boost to your credit score and for purchasing things while also building up rewards with those purchases, aren't very good for building credit.   This is because when banks calculate your credit report, they look at your long-term credit history, and weigh larger, longer-term debt much higher than short-term debt that you pay off right away.  While having your credit card is better than nothing, it's a relatively small drop in the pond when it comes to credit.   I would still recommend getting a credit card though - it will, if you haven't already started paying off a debt like a student or car loan, give you a credit identity and rewards depending on the credit card you choose.  But if you do, do not ever let yourself fall into delinquency.  Failing to pay off loans will damage your credit score.  So if you do plan to get a credit card, it is much better to do as you've said and pay it all off as soon as possible.   Edit:  In addition to the above, using a credit card has the added benefit of having greater security over Debit cards, and ensures that your own money won't be stolen (though you will still have to report a fraudulent charge). You should check out Dave Ramsey's Baby Steps.  He has an great and well organized plan for getting out of debt and building wealth.  My wife and I have followed the plan and will be paying off our home this year :)  His advice on debt payments is to pay off the smallest balance first.  This helps motivate you and your husband to push harder on your debts.   Once the first pay is paid the money that would have gone to that debt is applied to the next smallest debt and so on.  This is called a 'debt snowball' since by the end you will have plenty of money to pay that last few debts.  While working on the smallest debt, making minimum payments on the others. Stop using the credit cards entirely! Don't use gimmicks to avoid facing the reality of the debt.  Close your accounts and commit to never borrowing money again. This is a huge physiological shift.  I used credit cards all the time for decades, that is a thing of the past for us, we pay cash or don't buy it.  In your case, paying the 80% interest loan off is likely to be priority.  I didn't even realize that was legal.  Hopefully that is also the smallest balance.   Start making a monthly budget and sticking to it.  Check out Dave's 'irregular income' budget form, it is meant for couples in your situation.  The first steps will be to pay food, rent, utilities and transportation.  After that, list your debts in priority order and pay them as your husbands income comes in during the month.  Don't despair, you two can get your financial life cleaned up! You just need a good plan and a lot of focus. 40% of income going to debt payments being their line is reasonable I guess, BUT maybe it should be higher for educated high earners.  For example, currently I'm technically using about 50% of my monthly income because I'm a new graduate with some student debt and I'm trying to pay it off aggressively, in under a year.  Despite this, my income is high enough that the remaining 50% is enough to support a decent lifestyle.    In a couple of months when I'm paid off I can probably start saving several thousand dollars a month.  Do I really have a debt problem? "It can be difficult when all your disposable income is spoken for.  Your options depend on how good your credit is and how flexible your expenses are.  I don't have all the answers without more details (possibly not then).  However, couple of points of advice: Paying off that credit card debt (and not adding any more to it) is your #1 priority.  You should make minimum payments to every other debt until you have done that because the interest on it will kill you in the mean time.  It is always optimal to pay the maximum to your highest interest debt and minimum to all other debts. 11% doesn't sound very good on your house loan.  You may want to consider refinancing.  That is, if you can get a lower rate.  You may also want to get a longer term loan (if you have enough discipline to use the extra income to actually pay off your credit card and then the put it toward the house when the cards are paid off). Look at options to increase your income, at least temporarily.  Second jobs and such.  When your finances are more in order, you can back off. The debt ""trap"" is behavioral.  We humans tend to increase our spending until we can't any more.  But the reason we can't spend any more is that we have increased our debt until we have no flexible income.  Then we are stuck for a long time and have few options. The only way out (long term) is to change our habits so that we don't increase spending each time we pay down a debt or get an increase to our income.  Financial discipline is the only way to have financial security.  Almost always the first step is to pay off credit cards and stop maintaining a balance (always pay off every card at the end of each month).  Then start paying off other debts from highest interest rate to lowest. This is a hard challenge and one most of us face at some point in our lives.  Good luck!" Eventually you are going to need some sort of real credit history.  It is possible that you will be able to evade this if you never buy a house, or if you pay cash for any house/condo/car/boat/etc that you buy.  Even employers check credit history these days.  I wouldn't be surprised if some medical professionals such as surgeons check it also.  Obviously if you have a mortgage and car loan this doesn't apply, but I'd be curious how you acquired those unless you have substantial income and/or assets. Combine this with the fact that certain things like renting a car essentially require a credit card (because they need to put a hold on more money than they are actually going to take out of your card, so they can take that money if you don't bring the car back), and I think you should have a credit card unless you and your wife are individuals with zero impulse control, which sounds highly improbable. If your concern is the financial liability of the credit line, just keep the credit line low. With a credit card debt at 17%, you should basically not eat in order to pay the balance off.  This should be gone within the month.   That being said, I would have a hard time reducing my contributions below the 4%, but would certainly do it to the 4%.  However, I would also deliver pizzas on nights and weekends and work all available overtime.  Coincidentally the pizza place by my home is hiring delivery drivers however, they did not disclose how much they typically make.  Only that they make min wage plus tips. Make sure you stop borrowing first, then try to have this knocked out in 4 weeks or less. By reducing your debt you will increase your borrowing capability which will only increase your credit score. But before you start worrying about your credit score as JoeTaxpayer says I would first stop paying 18+% to the bank.