How much is too much ?

Maybe you need to ask Greg Fisher that question ...

http://www.creditscoring.com/pressrel/981005pr.htm#bank revolving

 

One of the positive aspects on my CE is that I have more cards than the average person in my range, that are paid on-time.

I'd keep them all and work them against each other. More options for you... Get rid of the loser cards if you must, but otherwise just idle them..

My score has never gone down due to new credit, because all my credit is new, so i'm looking at it from the other side maybe

 

>How many bank cards do you think
>is too much ? 6,7,8 or more ? I've heard that
>having 4 cards gets you the best FICO.

That sounds about right.

>I'm thinking about cancelling one of my cards to
>bring the total number to 8, but should I get rid of
>more ?

There are many people around with a fat pile of cards who have stellar FICO scores. If I were you, I'd be more concerned about *which* accounts get closed.

In the scoring game, cards with higher limits have more value than cards with lower ones (as long as the limits are being reported). Older cards are worth more than newer ones. Non-secured are worth more than secured. The first ones to go should probably be the newer cards with lower lines.

Not FICO-related, but still important, is the aspect of which cards are "good ones to have" in the sense that some have better customer service, some are known for generous BT offers, etc etc.

Of the ones in your list, my faves are Blue and Citi. The Quantum has a lot of prestige but I don't know what it really has to offer above and beyond a platinum card. Not much I hear. The Optima seems a little redundant, and Discover has never floated my boat. What's the limit on that Household account? I hate that name... Makes me think of Household finance. Are they the same company?

RM

 

I have over 18 credit cards, I am still getting teaser rate offers and lots of credit increases. I make less than 50k and my lines add up to over 150k. There is no such thing as too much, except if you want to apply for more. I had all this accounts when I bought my current townhouse. Less than 6 months ago I got approved for an auto loan at 7.99% for a used car.

www.creditsense.com

 

So the exisiting lines kept getting bigger, but you didn't add any new revolving lines?

With a stated income of $47k, I think I'm already bumping into Amex's limit of credit extension. My LOC was approved for prime+2.9 but with a limit of only 5.5k. My Blue is 15k and I was denied an increase on the basis of income. I think I might have taken Amex as far as I can go.

They *did* send these magical limit-raising BT checks, however...

RM

 

You need to show you can manage what you got, AMEX will give you more, income will not be a factor, but you need to exercise what you have.

www.creditsense.com

 

Isn't the Platinum the "higher and better" card? Maybe the two accounts can be combined (ie close the gold and merge its credit line into the platinum acct).

RM

 

If you cancel Optima, have them combine the credit limits of your Optima with your Blue card.

 

Personally, I wouldn't cancel any of them. They are all prime cards (Household may be an exception) with good customer service and decent rates. Since you're cancelling the Discover Platinum would they allow you to combine that credit limit to your Discover Gold (I don't know if Discover works that way or not). But, seriously since your FICO is in the mid 700s and the cards don't seem to be hurting your score I wouldn't touch anything. Just my two cents.

Dani