Credit card balances can have a dramatic effect on your credit scores. Any utilization over 30% starts to reduce your scores and credit worthiness. Closed accounts should never carry a balance at all. High utlization is not negative, but does have a real time effect on your scores that can be detrimental.

The older your accounts on your credit profile, the stronger and more positively they impact your scores. That's why any revolving accounts are always good to keep active so your don't loose that valuable credit history. Once an account is closed, you loose the history and your scores can be lowered.

Your payment "due date" is the date you have to make payment by so you do not incur a late fee. The "reporting date" is the date that the new balance is reported to the credit bureaus. These are different dates. Make sure you verify your balances on your credit report to confirm the most up to date balances.

The main reason people get declined for any kind of funding is because of the lack of planning. If you plan ahead and use the available resources for you to verify your credit scores and detailed history, you can be ready and position your credit to be as attractive as possible  before applying.

Having a good mixture of credit helps to increase your scores and makes you more attractive to lenders. A good would be at least 3 credit cards and 2 other loans. This would be a minimum profile. The more diverse accounts, the better.

Your DTI = Debt To Income ratio. Depending on the type of funding you are applying for the DTI requirement can vary. To figure out your DTI, you simply calculate your total monthly debt minimum payments and divide that by your annual income. This will give you your DTI percentage. Know this before applying.