Too many credit cards

[question everything]

Some 10-15 years ago, I would play the games of getting a new card to shift balances from another and get a zero interest rate for several months. One way or the other we have many credit cards. There is the checking debit/credit - used for groceries and doctors visits; the idea that such expenses have to be covered, not deferred. There are the VISAs that we each use exclusively; There is once strictly for mail order drugs - too many. Some years ago, when we traveled overseas, we used Capital One that does not charge foreign exchange fees..

Also the Delta American Express which, when we traveled, we used the miles for upgrade or for part payment. Also save on luggage fees.

Generally we pay statements in full, certainly these days. If there is a major purchase when I know will take me several months to pay, I choose the one with the lowest interest rate.

And then there is Discover. We had it for many years, when we would shop at SAM where Discover was the only one accepted.

I use it from time to time just to... use it.

But as I got the statement yesterday I was thinking that, really, time to start lessening the load. Yes, each statement provides the FICO score which has not changed much this year but otherwise..

Curious about others' experience.

[Squinch]

1. Do you have any major purchases coming up any time soon where you need your credit

rating to be high? Like will you be applying for a mortgage or a car loan? If so, leave it as it is.

But if you have none of these coming up, get rid of them!

I keep an Amex that is paid in full every month, a debit card attached to my checking account in lieu of checks, and one card that I can use while traveling without paying a currency conversion fee.

Pay off your balances and get rid of most of the cards. You'll feel like you lost 30 pounds.

[Laffy Kat]

3. I just refinanced and paid mine all off.

It feels great and now with those payments out of the way I can FINALLY get another car. One thing, I'm never late on a payment and my credit score is excellent. That comes in handy.

[question everything]

5. Thanks. We are considering a new car... have been since last April

but funny things happened with the dealers and with us shopping only for necessary stuff.

But we are now looking again. Looking at a new way where a car is brought home for test drive, I think.

So... I will hang on to it for several more months.

[safeinOhio]

15. In 1982, after a divorce I had a couple of payments left on my car.

Dad told me to not buy a new one yet, just keep making that same payment to myself for a while. I did for the next few years and ended up with enough to pay cash for the next one. I have never had a car payment after that. Did the same thing with my house and have not had a house payment in over 40 years. In the mean time I have bought new cars and new houses over that time period until now.
I have two CCs and pay them off every month. I've cure my urge to buy stuff in my retirement by making buying and reselling my hobby. Have a couple of spots in an Antique mall and sell on eBay, craigslist and a few other places.
Life is good now.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

24. I have been telling people for many years that the only car

they should have have payments on is their first one. And even that could be bought in cash.

But you did exactly the right thing.

I had a car payment for my very first car purchase, which was back in 1967. After that, every car was paid for in cash.

Too many people get bamboozled by the payment, rather than the total cost of the car.

Oh, and while I get that you might be in a place where you can't pay cash and need to finance, there is NEVER an excuse for driving a car off the lot that is now worth less than you owe.

[Squinch]

18. Yes, I would. Get the car and then start to pare down the cards.

[SWBTATTReg]

2. I was very happy to pay mine all off, and have been that way for almost 5 years at least or so.

It's a good feeling and remember this point, that when you are not paying anyone else any low rate credit cards, you are in truth, paying yourself. The same for if you don't have mortgage on your house, etc., that you are paying yourself that money, and set that money aside every month...before you know it, you have a balance built up, and as time goes on, you depend less and less on this juggling act.

Believe me, I played the switch-a-roo game w/ the balances I had to a lower rate card, but I got tired of it, and finally paid them all off. A good feeling that you won't believe.

Good luck to you.

[Shermann]

4. FICO scores on credit card statements?

I've never seen that, unless I am misunderstanding.

[question everything]

6. Only Discover. Current score on top page

and a graph that shows scores for the previous 12 month.

[Shermann]

8. I say ditch it, it's easy to get that score elsewhere nt

[question everything]

14. Of course. This is not a reason to keep it, only if closing will lower FICO

However ours is quite high so I don't know that it will make a difference.

Which reminds me that this is the time of the year when I usually visit he annual credit report site

[Shermann]

16. A thin credit file can be an issue

...but seems to be largely overstated.

I personally have had a thin file for the past year or two and my rating lowered maybe 20 points. That's not enough to really affect your interest rates if it is a high score to begin with, which you stated is the case.

A thin credit file is a good problem to have in my opinion. You want to have that problem.

[lastlib]

20. My VISA card statement shows mine. n/t

[progree]

21. I have 2 Visa credit cards, both from Chase. Neither has a credit score on the statement

but, truth be told, I just about never look at my credit card statements (which I don't get on paper anyway).

Rather I log in once a week to Chase.com and review my transactions there.

While there, I can also click on the Credit Journey link to see my credit score, which I do every week, and which also gives reasons for it being what it is, based on 8 or so key factors.

[in2herbs]

7. Finance related but not truly addressing your post, yesterday I was told that banks are

pushing to close their neighborhood bank offices and that by end of 2021 the majority of them will be closed leaving customers having to do business completely through the ATM or on-line. This conversation came about because the local WF bank office has been "temporarily" closed for about a month forcing customers to drive 10 miles to the next office. The info was shared by a BofA bank employee.

[question everything]

11. Local banks - U.S. Bank, TCF - have branches in many supermarkets with many visitors

Also adjacent ATMs. Better than trying to use an ATM on the street. I don't remember when was the last time I visited a branch.

[Lulu KC]

22. Interesting

because Chase is opening an office in our neighborhood right next to another bank. It's in a smallish building that used to be a Russell Stover candy store.

[Wellstone ruled]

9. Interesting tid bit,

Retailers Bank,whom most General Retailers use as issuer of their Store Brand Cards,will kill off your Cards for lack of activity . Amex will do the same.

[lilymidnite]

10. Capital One closed one of my cards

For nonusage. I'd only used it for foreign travel, always paying it off immediately. My FICO score dropped by ~5 points, which wasn't a big deal. I still have another Capital One card (Savor Mastercard), which I use now at least once per month (usually only for coffee), just so they don't close that.

[Dan]

12. As you get older

You realize that Credit is a trap. My wife and I have two credit cards - one for regular use and one for international travel.

[progree]

13. 2 credit cards and a debit card. I NEVER carry a balance - if I have enuf $ for investments, and

Last edited Mon Nov 2, 2020, 01:20 AM - Edit history (4)

to post here about my asset allocation and Roth conversions and capital gains taxes and so on, then I certainly have enuf $ to pay off any 13%+++ credit card. The greatest investment is one that gets rid of any such interest expense. I know of no investment other than paying off double-digit-rate debt that guarantees a higher return. None.

One credit card, the SAFE one is for autopay-RECURRING bills like utility bills that I put on autopay. Only used for relatively safe and recurring things. Reason: I hate when I do lose a card or the number is hacked, to have to spend most of a day changing all the recurring autopay accounts (Xcel, Centerpoint, ConsumerCellular, my insurance, on and on) to a new card number.

The other credit card is the "WILD" card which I use for non-autopay non-recurring things, restaurants, gasoline, and online stuff for example. If this card gets lost or hacked, (a higher probability than with the SAFE card), I won't have to change any recurring autopay items to the new card because there aren't any recurring autopay items on this card.

The debit card is just for the ATM. Hardly use it in the pandemic era because I think most places and people prefer handling a card than cash (and in most places only I touch the card, e.g. grocery store I stick it in the slot myself).

Both credit cards are with Chase. So once a week I log in to Chase and look at what's been charged to my card. Same thing with USBank where my checking account and the debit card are. I don't get paper statements.

I get my credit score from the Chase site. Since I log into the Chase site once a week, I see my score once a week.

Edited to add: both credit cards are auto-paid IN FULL monthly from my checking account.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

17. I have a Visa that is my only credit card.

I had American Express for many years, and cancelled it recently when they raised the yearly fee to more than I was willing to pay. I have a bank debit/ATM card which I use to get cash each week.

I have a very high FICO score, although I've never seen it on a credit card statement.

[brokephibroke]

19. I never use cash

Have the Apple Card, Citi Double Cash and the Chase Ultimate Rewards. Both the Apple and Citi pay me 2% back. The Chase has 5% back on specific categories every quarter.

I have been migrating to the Apple Card recently as it is the easiest to use.

Keep no balances. In fact laid $5k down on a new car yesterday, so I get $100 for us omg the card instead of a cheque.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

25. I use cash because for me it is the best way to manage my day to day spending.

At the beginning of every week I take a sum of money from my checking account, which is divided up into various envelopes, labelled Health and Well Being, Entertainment, Clothing, Cat, Miscellaneous, Christmas Club. The rest, which is a bit less than half, goes into my wallet for groceries and day to day spending.

If I don't have money in the envelope for what I need, say buying perfume(health & well-being) or a new pair of slacks or going to a restaurant, then I don't do it. I almost always have excess money in the envelopes, especially these days. Oh, and if I have cash left over in my wallet at the end of the week, it goes into an envelope I think of as Super Miscellaneous. The point is, I can move money around as needed. It works very well for me.

I know this is a highly personal preference.

[A HERETIC I AM]

23. You guys are all so wonderful!

LOL....just reading through this makes me smile.......



The smartest, most helpful little group on DU! Well, that's my story and I'm stickin' to it!

Let's see....I have 6 Credit Cards in my wallet and one Debit card, plus at least 3 other lines of credit I rarely use.

Like Progree, I have a few Chase accounts which includes 3 cards;

1) Chase Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Rewards Visa
I think is my oldest current card. As a trucker, I had the good fortune of working for a few firms over the years that paid for a hotel every night on the road, so my Marriott points balance, while not on par with an executive, has enough points to pay for a weeks stay at a 5 star hotel virtually anywhere.

2) Chase Amazon Prime Visa.
I use this almost exclusively for online purchases, and got it through a promotion with Amazon Prime (duh!) It pays points no matter where I use it, and those points become basically a cash balance that I can redeem with any Amazon purchase.

3) Chase United Airlines Explorer Mileage Plus Visa.
I got this last year when my firm started flying me more often. This is one of those that gives you a points bonus if you spend a given amount in a certain time-frame, in this case it was 40,000 miles after spending $3,000 in 3 months, which was no big deal to do at all. Again, like the Marriott card, this one now has enough points/miles to take a free ride to Europe 1st class or 5 or 6 domestic coach fare flights and like yours, it covers the first checked bag fee.

Then I have;

4) Citibank American Airlines Mastercard
Again, my firm started flying me a bunch last year, so the first Airline card I got was this one. It had a promotion similar to the United card above - this one gave me 50,000 miles after spending $3 grand or so in 3 months. So now this has enough points to get me BACK from Europe (LOL) 1st class or a bunch of domestic flights. This one also gives me a free checked bag, even if I don't use it to pay for the flight.

5) Hilton Honors American Express.
I've been a Hilton Honors member since the late 80's when I first started working in Motor Racing, but this card is fairly recent. I've had AMEX cards in the past; I had a Platinum Card back in the 90's because I flew overseas a few times a year and their benefits for international travel were pretty good. The annual fee was steep, but if I ever needed a life-flight helicopter ride in Queensland, it was a part of the deal (or so I was led to believe)

6) Bloomingdales American Express
I recently got this one as well, and use it primarily for online purchases from Bloomingdales, though it is a regular AMEX and would pay points to my Bloomies "Loyalist" account no matter what. Way back in the olden days, I worked for Bloomingdales in Miami, and I have always liked their store and the way they do business. The nearest one to me is over 160 miles away (Orlando) but they have a robust online presence and tend to carry outstanding quality (OK, ENOUGH of the commercial! LOL)

I have a couple no-interest lines of credit I don't use too often, both issued by Synchrony Bank which is a GE Capital spinoff. One with Ashley Furniture and a "Care Credit" card, These are the type that if you make regular payments and pay it off in whatever the agreed time-frame - 6 mos., 12, 18, whatever, it is no interest at all and no fees. You have to be careful with these however, as they can ding you for all the interest that was deferred if you become delinquent.

I also have a card from Best Buy backed by Citibank. I think the last time I used it was to buy this Apple iMac I am typing on, maybe 3 years now. It also offers no interest programs.

A few of these cards offered interesting promotions during the course of the year due to the pandemic, for instance 4 X points when used at a grocery store, because we were all staying home!

As you mentioned, I too use a couple of them for recurring monthly charges (phone, insurance, etc.) but one must be careful to note whether or not a direct checking account debit saves more than the points are worth. I have found this to be the case on a few occasions. I'm happy to say that I also pay these all off in such a way that I haven't paid a cent in Credit Card Interest charges in like 5 years.

Oh! Yeah...edit here to add this;

The way I look at these lines of credit anymore is, what does it benefit me? I used to (25 years ago) have all of them (Visa, MC, AMEX, Discover, even a Diners Club for a while) but outside of the aforementioned Platinum AMEX, none of those cards really did diddly squat for me, from a points or rewards perspective. They were a convenient way to defer payment or stretch it out, and boy, did I!

Nowadays, if it isn't paying me cash outright, or getting me a free ride to Europe or a week in a nice hotel in Milan, fuck em! I'm not interested.

Again, It is my honor to be the host of this group, as I find some of the most interesting discussions on DU here.

Thanks for your continued participation question everything, and to all the rest who might read this, thank you very much for participating in this tiny little corner of DU.

We can do, and have done real good work here. Truly. Good, solid, no bullshit financial advice and guidance can help people in an immeasurable way.

You regular contributors should be very proud that you have participated in such efforts.

[XanaDUer2]

26. I love Discover and use it for everything I can

great customer service- they even helped me set up my discover dot com account. I have the regular card and Discover Miles- you get 1.5 points for every dollar spent to use for any travel-related expense. I already have $366 dollars for whenever we can travel again.

No annual fees. Love it