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@Gunnar419 wrote:I agree that after you've got the 2-3 cards needed to make FICO happy, there is no optimal number. It's more a matter of how old they are, how you manage your util and payments, etc.
FWIW, I'm at 805 EQ with six cards and no installment loans or mortgage. But my payment record is perfect, my AAoA is 20+ years, and my util is under 6%.
More proof that high scores can be obtained without installment loans.
Does the quantity of credit cards (e.g. 9+) lengthen the amount of time it takes to hit 800?
@Dw4250 wrote:
2-3 bank cards and at least one installment loan. I don't think the number of cards/loans after that matters...
Is there not a penalty for >= 50% of revolving lines reporting a balance?
Is there not a penalty for zero revolving lines reporting a balance?
How does one avoid both of these penalties at the same time with only 2 cards? I thought we were talking about "optimal".
@core wrote:
@Dw4250 wrote:
2-3 bank cards and at least one installment loan. I don't think the number of cards/loans after that matters...Is there not a penalty for >= 50% of revolving lines reporting a balance?
Is there not a penalty for zero revolving lines reporting a balance?
How does one avoid both of these penalties at the same time with only 2 cards? I thought we were talking about "optimal".
You make it as optimal as you can to fit your own situation.
The approach is basically the same with just two cards. Let one report a small balance and the other report a zero balance each month. You might get dinged a few points for "more than half of revolving accounts reporting balances" but IMO it's not enough to worry about.
You can add another card but that is up to you.