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CREDIT, COLLEGE, TAXES AND REAL ESTATE

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FEATURED SLIDE SHOW
Financial Advice from the
Founding Fathers
Their suggestions and ours might just help you forge your financial independence.
KIPLINGER'S MONEY POLL
Would you buy a GM car now that the company is going through bankruptcy?
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ASK KIM
Closing Credit Card Accounts

I know that I shouldn't close old credit accounts that are in good standing because they can help my credit history. But what happens if I close an account that wasn't in good standing? Will that information still appear on my credit record?

You can't erase the black mark just by closing the account. Closed accounts stay on your credit report for ten years, and any negative information will remain for seven years before it's purged.

And you're right to keep old accounts open if they're in good standing. A closed account "isn't quite as meaningful as an open account in predicting risk," says Maxine Sweet, of the credit bureau Experian, but it's still a positive. Even better, says Sweet, is to manage your current accounts well by not missing payments and keeping your balances well under your credit limit.

For more information, see Demystifying Your Credit Score.


ASK KIM:
Send Kim your questions. She can't answer every one, but she'll answer as many as she can. If your question isn't published within a few weeks, scan the archives to see if Kim has covered the issue before, or start a discussion in the Kiplinger.com Community.
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