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Right now i have about 15+ credit cards...
I will be paying all of them off by 2013 and plan to do the following:
Keeping 4 CCs with highest limits (7k, 4k, 2k, 2k)
Out of the 4, one was opened in 2006 and the rest about >2009.
My question is that I have two, small CL cards ($300), that were opened back in 2007, and the rest of the 12+ cards were opened after 2009.
As far as AAoA, will these two small CL cards have a big impact on my credit score once I close them?
@blaksun333 wrote:Right now i have about 15+ credit cards...
I will be paying all of them off by 2013 and plan to do the following:
Keeping 4 CCs with highest limits (7k, 4k, 2k, 2k)
Out of the 4, one was opened in 2006 and the rest about >2009.
My question is that I have two, small CL cards ($300), that were opened back in 2007, and the rest of the 12+ cards were opened after 2009.
As far as AAoA, will these two small CL cards have a big impact on my credit score once I close them?
Closing credit cards does not impact one's AAoA immediately. The accounts will continue to appear on your reports for 10 years after they are closed. So, you're AAoA will take a dip in 10 years, but by then your newer cards will have had a chance to age, thus buffering the effects.
Thank you!
@blaksun333 wrote:Thank you!
You're welcome!
@blaksun333 wrote:Right now i have about 15+ credit cards...
I will be paying all of them off by 2013 and plan to do the following:
Keeping 4 CCs with highest limits (7k, 4k, 2k, 2k)
Out of the 4, one was opened in 2006 and the rest about >2009.
My question is that I have two, small CL cards ($300), that were opened back in 2007, and the rest of the 12+ cards were opened after 2009.
As far as AAoA, will these two small CL cards have a big impact on my credit score once I close them?
I am wondering why close them entirely instead of sock drawering them? Or even cutting them up and throwing them away but leaving them open? I really do not know which is better, but I'd love to hear opinions.
@ficojoe wrote:
@blaksun333 wrote:Right now i have about 15+ credit cards...
I will be paying all of them off by 2013 and plan to do the following:
Keeping 4 CCs with highest limits (7k, 4k, 2k, 2k)
Out of the 4, one was opened in 2006 and the rest about >2009.
My question is that I have two, small CL cards ($300), that were opened back in 2007, and the rest of the 12+ cards were opened after 2009.
As far as AAoA, will these two small CL cards have a big impact on my credit score once I close them?
I am wondering why close them entirely instead of sock drawering them? Or even cutting them up and throwing them away but leaving them open? I really do not know which is better, but I'd love to hear opinions.
Sock Drawing (SD) is a decent option, but can be too much of a maintenance issue. As generally the bank will close the account anyway if you don't use it every so often due to inactivity. So if you find that trying to manage when you last put a charge on each card too much hassle closing it can be a better choice. The same is true for fraud (you will have to monitor each account for fraudulent activity as although you aren't using them someone might be...)
I closed all the starter cards I used to establish credit, even though none of them had annual fees. They stay on your reports for 10 years, at which point them falling off won't have much effect. There's no need to leave them open, and I really don't like having open accounts that I don't use. There's the chance they could be used fraudulently and I don't want to have to think about them.
@Anonymous wrote:I closed all the starter cards I used to establish credit, even though none of them had annual fees. They stay on your reports for 10 years, at which point them falling off won't have much effect. There's no need to leave them open, and I really don't like having open accounts that I don't use. There's the chance they could be used fraudulently and I don't want to have to think about them.
+ 1 - some good advice about...
How many credit cards is too many?
Is there an idea number for FICO scoring?