Need help with managing credit cards

[caribsun]

Hello all. My wife and I have a credit limit available to us is $131,200, and would like some assistance on how to deal with our credit cards.  I am 74 and my wife is 58. Our mortgage is paid off, currently do not have an auto loan, and we do not carry balances on our cards. We have credit freezes on our reports and not concerned about our credit scores at this time.

I have the following cards:
Pentagon Federal CU Platinum Rewards - $50,000 Limit
Amex Costco True Earnings - $15,000 Limit
Amex HiltonHonors - $16,500 Limit
TD Bank Cash Rewards - $20,000 Limit
Citi Double Cash Card - $5,000 Limit
Kohls Store Card - $ 1,500 Limit

My wife has the following:
TD Bank Rewards - $15,000 Limit
BOA Cash Rewards - $7,500 Limit

The Citi Double Cash was opened April 2015 and has become our go to card. Should we close some of these accounts? What is the best way to use the cards effectively? Thank you.

[Anonymous]

You do have some very good cards.. Here is what I will do..

Pentagon Federal CU Platinum Rewards - $50,000 Limit (Never Close)
Amex Costco True Earnings - $15,000 Limit (Close and roll limit over to another Amex as Citi is taking over Costco)
Amex HiltonHonors - $16,500 Limit (Move limit from Costco to this card and live open)
TD Bank Cash Rewards - $20,000 Limit (Combine limits if allowed with other TD card if allowed and then close 1- see other card)

Citi Double Cash Card - $5,000 (open)

My wife has the following:
TD Bank Rewards - $15,000 Limit (Combine limits if allowed with other TD card if allowed and then close 1)
BOA Cash Rewards - $7,500 Limit (close)

Why?  You still need some utlization padding assuming your wife uses the card and is AU on all accounts.  Thats what I will do if I were in your shoes...

[Anonymous]

The Citi DC is their go to card, so I'd assume they want to keep that one open.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

The Citi DC is their go to card, so I'd assume they want to keep that one open.

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+1, I'd keep the Citi DC open.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

The Citi DC is their go to card, so I'd assume they want to keep that one open.

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Agreed... That was an error and a good catch.

[CreditDunce]

Please forgive me if this is a little crass.  But I would recommend your wife have at least three credit cards in her own name.  Something could happen to you and she would loose all of the credit you have available.  Perhaps she could get her own DC?  Just a suggestion.

Also, if you are spending heavily on the DC, it might be worth your while to try to get the limit increased.   It just makes things easier if you don't have to worry about exceeding your CL while on vacation (assuming you have the cash to PIF when you get back). 

[takeshi74]

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@caribsun wrote:

The Citi Double Cash was opened April 2015 and has become our go to card. Should we close some of these accounts? What is the best way to use the cards effectively?

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What categories is your spend in and what sort of volumes?  How far are you willing to go to maximize rewards?  Why did you open these cards if you didn't know how to use them effectively?  Not criticizing or trying to offend -- we just need a better idea of your situation and goals to provide relevant recommendations.  Do you have a use or need for cards other than your Double Cash?

If you value simplicity then putting all spend on the Double Cash may be the way to go.  There are some general recommendations that can be made such as keep as much of your CL's as you can reasonably manage to keep your utilization low and you and your wife each should have at least 2-3 cards.  I'm not so sure about the advice on keeping the PenFed card if you have no use for it.  You'll need to verify this but IIRC FICO may not factor in credit limits at 50K and above.

[StartingOver10]

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@CreditDunce wrote:

Please forgive me if this is a little crass.  But I would recommend your wife have at least three credit cards in her own name.  Something could happen to you and she would loose all of the credit you have available.  Perhaps she could get her own DC?  Just a suggestion.

Also, if you are spending heavily on the DC, it might be worth your while to try to get the limit increased.   It just makes things easier if you don't have to worry about exceeding your CL while on vacation (assuming you have the cash to PIF when you get back). 

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+1000.  It is highly risky for your wife to not have credit. The advice to close her credit cards altogether is flat out wrong (for your wife).  Develop and keep individual credit profiles without using the AU feature. It is the most prudent thing to do in today's credit environment.

[caribsun]

 Will definitely keep spouses cards open. Thank you all for your suggestions.