1 ACCEPTED SOLUTION
Accepted Solutions
One thing that you'll probably find is that with time, you will find where certain cards' rewards systems will work best for you. No point in having a good gas card if you use public transport; no point in a card that gives you bennies for a store you never go to; no point in a cash-back card that requires more spending than you do at this point in your life; and so forth.
So I would just garden the cards you have for now and keep doing some research as you go. I gather that you're young and/or college age. Depending on where you are in a year, you might be thinking about Chase Freedom or Freedom Plus, Citi Professional, AmEx Blue or Blue Sky, and so forth. BofA cards can be great for giving high CL's once you have a good income, but that pretty much is their rewards. You might find that with time, you'll want to switch your current card to a different BofA card. And so forth.
For those smart enough to go with a limited number of cards, as you were describing, I'd say that your long-term goal might be to have two or three from national-level banks, like BofA, Citi, Chase, AmEx, Discover; maybe one from a credit union or similar source that tends to give high CL's, and one good store card, that does NOT have Visa, MC, etc on it, from a store where you actually shop. Additionally, if you don't have them already, you'll have an auto loan, etc.
WaMu and Target are helpful in the building stage, but most people find that they don't keep growing with them. For the fee cards, you can plan on closing them right before they hit you with next year's fees. As for the others, you can decide to keep them or close them when the time comes, which isn't now. (Let them do their work for you first.
)
If you haven't already, read fused's "Closing Credit Cards" (linked in my siggy.) For now, just hold off on any actions and work what you have, and do your reading and thinking so you'll know what to go for when the time comes.
(Not to mention that there's no telling which banks will still be in business in a year's time!)
Don't close anything for now: all these TL's (= tradelines = credit accounts) are helping build a strong positive history for you. But as your credit improves, I'd say the ones to hang on to will be the BofA and the Macy's. Use the others periodically to keep them alive, pay them off immediately, and keep an eye on your online accounts. Check them at least weekly to make sure that you aren't getting any unpleasant surprises. Good luck!
So I would just garden the cards you have for now and keep doing some research as you go. I gather that you're young and/or college age. Depending on where you are in a year, you might be thinking about Chase Freedom or Freedom Plus, Citi Professional, AmEx Blue or Blue Sky, and so forth. BofA cards can be great for giving high CL's once you have a good income, but that pretty much is their rewards. You might find that with time, you'll want to switch your current card to a different BofA card. And so forth.
For those smart enough to go with a limited number of cards, as you were describing, I'd say that your long-term goal might be to have two or three from national-level banks, like BofA, Citi, Chase, AmEx, Discover; maybe one from a credit union or similar source that tends to give high CL's, and one good store card, that does NOT have Visa, MC, etc on it, from a store where you actually shop. Additionally, if you don't have them already, you'll have an auto loan, etc.
WaMu and Target are helpful in the building stage, but most people find that they don't keep growing with them. For the fee cards, you can plan on closing them right before they hit you with next year's fees. As for the others, you can decide to keep them or close them when the time comes, which isn't now. (Let them do their work for you first.
)If you haven't already, read fused's "Closing Credit Cards" (linked in my siggy.) For now, just hold off on any actions and work what you have, and do your reading and thinking so you'll know what to go for when the time comes.
(Not to mention that there's no telling which banks will still be in business in a year's time!)
Don't close anything for now: all these TL's (= tradelines = credit accounts) are helping build a strong positive history for you. But as your credit improves, I'd say the ones to hang on to will be the BofA and the Macy's. Use the others periodically to keep them alive, pay them off immediately, and keep an eye on your online accounts. Check them at least weekly to make sure that you aren't getting any unpleasant surprises. Good luck!
One thing that you'll probably find is that with time, you will find where certain cards' rewards systems will work best for you. No point in having a good gas card if you use public transport; no point in a card that gives you bennies for a store you never go to; no point in a cash-back card that requires more spending than you do at this point in your life; and so forth.
So I would just garden the cards you have for now and keep doing some research as you go. I gather that you're young and/or college age. Depending on where you are in a year, you might be thinking about Chase Freedom or Freedom Plus, Citi Professional, AmEx Blue or Blue Sky, and so forth. BofA cards can be great for giving high CL's once you have a good income, but that pretty much is their rewards. You might find that with time, you'll want to switch your current card to a different BofA card. And so forth.
For those smart enough to go with a limited number of cards, as you were describing, I'd say that your long-term goal might be to have two or three from national-level banks, like BofA, Citi, Chase, AmEx, Discover; maybe one from a credit union or similar source that tends to give high CL's, and one good store card, that does NOT have Visa, MC, etc on it, from a store where you actually shop. Additionally, if you don't have them already, you'll have an auto loan, etc.
WaMu and Target are helpful in the building stage, but most people find that they don't keep growing with them. For the fee cards, you can plan on closing them right before they hit you with next year's fees. As for the others, you can decide to keep them or close them when the time comes, which isn't now. (Let them do their work for you first. )
If you haven't already, read fused's "Closing Credit Cards" (linked in my siggy.) For now, just hold off on any actions and work what you have, and do your reading and thinking so you'll know what to go for when the time comes.
(Not to mention that there's no telling which banks will still be in business in a year's time!)
Don't close anything for now: all these TL's (= tradelines = credit accounts) are helping build a strong positive history for you. But as your credit improves, I'd say the ones to hang on to will be the BofA and the Macy's. Use the others periodically to keep them alive, pay them off immediately, and keep an eye on your online accounts. Check them at least weekly to make sure that you aren't getting any unpleasant surprises. Good luck!
So I would just garden the cards you have for now and keep doing some research as you go. I gather that you're young and/or college age. Depending on where you are in a year, you might be thinking about Chase Freedom or Freedom Plus, Citi Professional, AmEx Blue or Blue Sky, and so forth. BofA cards can be great for giving high CL's once you have a good income, but that pretty much is their rewards. You might find that with time, you'll want to switch your current card to a different BofA card. And so forth.
For those smart enough to go with a limited number of cards, as you were describing, I'd say that your long-term goal might be to have two or three from national-level banks, like BofA, Citi, Chase, AmEx, Discover; maybe one from a credit union or similar source that tends to give high CL's, and one good store card, that does NOT have Visa, MC, etc on it, from a store where you actually shop. Additionally, if you don't have them already, you'll have an auto loan, etc.
WaMu and Target are helpful in the building stage, but most people find that they don't keep growing with them. For the fee cards, you can plan on closing them right before they hit you with next year's fees. As for the others, you can decide to keep them or close them when the time comes, which isn't now. (Let them do their work for you first.
)If you haven't already, read fused's "Closing Credit Cards" (linked in my siggy.) For now, just hold off on any actions and work what you have, and do your reading and thinking so you'll know what to go for when the time comes.
(Not to mention that there's no telling which banks will still be in business in a year's time!)
Don't close anything for now: all these TL's (= tradelines = credit accounts) are helping build a strong positive history for you. But as your credit improves, I'd say the ones to hang on to will be the BofA and the Macy's. Use the others periodically to keep them alive, pay them off immediately, and keep an eye on your online accounts. Check them at least weekly to make sure that you aren't getting any unpleasant surprises. Good luck!