 TITLE: Don’t Kill Your Credit Score: 5 Strategies to Help It Thrive CONTENT: 1\\. Do Not Close Old Credit Cards\n---------------------------------\nMaybe you've finally paid off the balance on an old credit card and are ready to celebrate the demise of your debt. Or perhaps you've found a new rewards card you like better than the one you'd been using. Before you call up the issuer to cancel the card, think twice.\nThat's because when you shut down an old credit line, you're also triggering a reduction in your overall credit limit. That could increase your credit utilization ratio—the amount of credit you use each month compared with the amount of credit available to you. The lower your ratio, the better your credit score.\nAnother way it could hurt your score? By decreasing the average age of your credit history. Most scoring models consider the length of your credit history, or how long the accounts in your file have been open. If you close an account, you lose all those years of credit history for that card. Length of credit history is not a huge factor in your credit score, but it does play a role. The more accounts you have that are open and active for a long time, the better.\nSo even if you stop using a card, it's probably beneficial to keep the credit line open. Of course, if you're worried it will tempt you to spend more, stick it in a drawer so it's out of sight. Just be sure to pull it out once a year or so and use it on a small purchase to keep it active—that way, your issuer won't close it down because of a lack of activity.\nThe exception? If you're paying an annual fee on a card you don't want anymore, you'll probably want to cancel that one. But before you do, call your issuer and ask if they can convert it to a no-fee card. Most major issuers will be able to do that—allowing you to keep the credit line open without having to pay the annual fee. END