topic What happens when you get a card you end up not liking? in Credit Cards

What happens when you get a card you end up not liking?

Anonymous — Sun, 22 Jul 2018 16:42:21 GMT

Hello!
Right now I have a Discover It card and that's it. I bought my car with no loan, so my credit history is pretty much just that one card. Thanks to this wonderful forum, your help, and all of your tips, my FICO score is 778 after 16 months of credit.

I was told I should probably get another credit card just to make my credit history and report thicker and look better. I've narrowed it down to a few cards I think I will like.

But I guess my question is, what if I get a card I don't like or just don't use. Do credit card companies cancel credit cards often for non use?

I know it's hard to close out a credit card account and that you typically shouldn't do it either. Does closing your credit card or the credit card issuer closing your account affect your credit score very much?

I'm just worried I'll pick a card I won't use often.

Re: What happens when you get a card you end up not liking?

Anonymous — Sun, 22 Jul 2018 16:52:16 GMT

If you do your research and find a card that fits your needs you'll use it.

If you don't find yourself using it regularly, you can always put a tank of gas on it every few months to keep it active... and pay it off right away.

People's needs do change, and people do close cards and switch cards. If you go with an issuer that offers a range of cards you can always request a product change in the future if your needs change as well.

Re: What happens when you get a card you end up not liking?

HeavenOhio — Sun, 22 Jul 2018 16:55:47 GMT

Which cards are you looking at? People here can tell you if they like the cards or not, and they can offer alternatives that you might not have thought of.

As far as keeping cards active, you should always try to charge something at least once every six months. It'd be nice to avoid closing the card as closed accounts will remain on your report and continue to affect your AoYA (age of youngest account) and AAoA (average age of accounts).

Re: What happens when you get a card you end up not liking?

Kforce — Sun, 22 Jul 2018 16:58:00 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
If you do your research and find a card that fits your needs you'll use it. If you don't find yourself using it regularly, you can always put a tank of gas on it every few months to keep it active... and pay it off right away. People's needs do change, and people do close cards and switch cards. If you go with an issuer that offers a range of cards you can always request a product change in the future if your needs change as well.

Re: What happens when you get a card you end up not liking?

Anonymous — Sun, 22 Jul 2018 17:00:35 GMT

Oh woah, I hadn't heard of that one before! So sometimes, you can essentially switch accounts to another card with that same credit card company? That's interesting. I'll definitely remember that.

Re: What happens when you get a card you end up not liking?

Anonymous — Sun, 22 Jul 2018 17:18:22 GMT

@HeavenOhio Hello again! Thanks for all of your help over the years!

These are the ones I was looking at:

Amex Blue Cash Everyday

https://www.americanexpress.com/us/credit-cards/card/blue-cash-everyday/?eep=25330&linknav=US-Acq-CCSG-Prospect-CategoryCashBackCards-BCE-CardTitle-Bottom-Pos3

Amex Everyday Credit Card. I think the main difference are instead of cash back, it's points. Not sure if the cash back or points are better.

https://www.americanexpress.com/us/credit-cards/card/amex-everyday/?eep=25330&linknav=US-Acq-CCSG-Prospect-CategoryRewardsPointsCards-AED-CardArt-Bottom-Pos1

Chase Freedom

https://creditcards.chase.com/freedom-credit-cards?CELL=6D9M

Thanks for your help!
I don't know too much about AMEX or Chase as companies either...

Re: What happens when you get a card you end up not liking?

Brian_Earl_Spilner — Sun, 22 Jul 2018 17:26:18 GMT

To be honest, you should give everyone an idea of your spending habits and things you like to do. You may get a recommendation that fits your lifestyle that you might not have known existed. For example, my family spends a lot on groceries and eating out, so I'm hoping to get a card that covers that spend in the future. We travel a couple of times a year, but not enough that a travel card or Amex MR points would really benefit me. Plus, I don't want to have to juggle points and add cards to maximize my rewards, so I prefer cash back in general.

Re: What happens when you get a card you end up not liking?

HeavenOhio — Sun, 22 Jul 2018 17:27:23 GMT

They'ra all good cards.

The main thing to know about Chase is that they like to see that one's oldest card is a year old. You have that. They also dislike newly opened accounts. No problem there.

Both AMEX and Chase have reliable pre-qual sites that you should check out. If you see a solid APR (e.g. 15.5%) vs. a wide range (13–22%), your chances are good.

Someone else is going to have to explain the MR points on the Everyday card. I decided that MR points were too complicated for me and opted for the Blue Cash Everyday.

Note that product changes are pretty easy with Chase cards. For example, if you got the Freedom card now and decided that you'd rather it be a Freedom Unlimited, there should be no trouble switching.

AMEX offers product changes, but they're more restrictive. MR cards can be changed to other MR cards, and cash cards can be changed to other cash cards. You wouldn't be able to PC the ED into a BCE or vice versa. But you could PC the ED to an Everyday Preferred. Or you'd be able to PC the BCE into a Blue Cash Preferred or Magnet.

Re: What happens when you get a card you end up not liking?

Anonymous — Sun, 22 Jul 2018 17:39:31 GMT

@Brian_Earl_Spilner

Thank you for your response!
I definitely prefer cash back at the moment (rather than airline points or something like that.) I'll be honest, I'm very thrifty. I don't spend a lot of money on anything really. I don't eat out a ton, I don't travel much yet (when I graduate that'll change though), and I don't spend a lot on myself in general.

I'm one of the odd people who finds some pleasure in saving money rather than spending it and feeling good when you pay bills...

I don't think this helped much though.

Re: What happens when you get a card you end up not liking?

Anonymous — Sun, 22 Jul 2018 17:42:57 GMT

@HeavenOhio

Thanks so much for your advice and help! And I'll definitely check out the pre-equal sites.

I think I'm with you on the MR points though. And because I can't see their rewards store, it's hard to say which is actually better for cash back.

If I may ask, what's your preferred credit card?

Re: What happens when you get a card you end up not liking?

Brian_Earl_Spilner — Sun, 22 Jul 2018 17:47:09 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
@Brian_Earl_Spilner
Thank you for your response!
I definitely prefer cash back at the moment (rather than airline points or something like that.) I'll be honest, I'm very thrifty. I don't spend a lot of money on anything really. I don't eat out a ton, I don't travel much yet (when I graduate that'll change though), and I don't spend a lot on myself in general.

I'm one of the odd people who finds some pleasure in saving money rather than spending it and feeling good when you pay bills...
I don't think this helped much though.

Actually, it does help and I'm sure people will chime in with recommendations that fit your lifestyle better. Depending on how much travel you plan to do, right now, it doesn't seem like any of Amex's products would be a good fit. But the experience on this board may prove otherwise.

Re: What happens when you get a card you end up not liking?

HeavenOhio — Sun, 22 Jul 2018 18:22:03 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
@HeavenOhio
If I may ask, what's your preferred credit card?

For you, I like the BCE and the Freedom. But I like them for different reasons. I think the BCE is likely to offer you a fairly high limit. And that limit can be increased early in the game, probably by three times after 61 days.

Check out this topic:

The Definitive Amex 3X CLI Guide

Because it's a long thread, I'd suggest reading the first few pages and the last few pages to get the gist of it.

The advantage of the Freedom card is that it's a Visa. It'll be more widely accepted than AMEX and Discover.

Re: What happens when you get a card you end up not liking?

Caught750 — Sun, 22 Jul 2018 19:15:10 GMT

Possibly a freedom unlimited since BCE would offer some higher reward rates on common spend categories then 1.5% on everything with FU

Re: What happens when you get a card you end up not liking?

codimom — Tue, 24 Jul 2018 17:39:45 GMT

I'm a little late to this party, but . . . I like the AMEX Blue Cash everyday for you... my reasoning is ... no annual fee... static/non changing point structure and it was my go to card for the longest time.
not that you asked but ... my current everyday card is actually a citi double cash. I have most of my montly bills auto pay on that card, pay it off monthly so no interest paid by me, but its 1% when you buy 1% when you pay it off and its cash back. My reasoning for recommending that one is simply because I'm running into vendors who don't like the high swipe fee on the AMEX, so I use the MC.

Re: What happens when you get a card you end up not liking?

SouthJamaica — Tue, 24 Jul 2018 20:35:25 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
Hello!
Right now I have a Discover It card and that's it. I bought my car with no loan, so my credit history is pretty much just that one card. Thanks to this wonderful forum, your help, and all of your tips, my FICO score is 778 after 16 months of credit.

I was told I should probably get another credit card just to make my credit history and report thicker and look better. I've narrowed it down to a few cards I think I will like.

But I guess my question is, what if I get a card I don't like or just don't use. Do credit card companies cancel credit cards often for non use?
I know it's hard to close out a credit card account and that you typically shouldn't do it either. Does closing your credit card or the credit card issuer closing your account affect your credit score very much?

I'm just worried I'll pick a card I won't use often.

1. Don't feel compelled to get another credit card if you don't feel the need for one. I disagree with the advice to get a card to make your credit file thicker and look better. Your score is only going to go up, with the passage of time, so long as you pay promptly.

2. Closing a card is NOT hard, and will have little effect on your score unless it affects utilization severely.

3. Yes the issuers often do cancel accounts if the card goes for a long time without being used at all.

4. Since you're a cautious person, you should only get a card you will like having.

Re: What happens when you get a card you end up not liking?

SouthJamaica — Tue, 24 Jul 2018 20:36:32 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
@HeavenOhio Hello again! Thanks for all of your help over the years!

These are the ones I was looking at:
Amex Blue Cash Everyday
https://www.americanexpress.com/us/credit-cards/card/blue-cash-everyday/?eep=25330&linknav=US-Acq-CCSG-Prospect-CategoryCashBackCards-BCE-CardTitle-Bottom-Pos3

Amex Everyday Credit Card. I think the main difference are instead of cash back, it's points. Not sure if the cash back or points are better.
https://www.americanexpress.com/us/credit-cards/card/amex-everyday/?eep=25330&linknav=US-Acq-CCSG-Prospect-CategoryRewardsPointsCards-AED-CardArt-Bottom-Pos1

Chase Freedom
https://creditcards.chase.com/freedom-credit-cards?CELL=6D9M

Thanks for your help!
I don't know too much about AMEX or Chase as companies either...

Points are only good if you're a frequent traveler.

Re: What happens when you get a card you end up not liking?

SouthJamaica — Tue, 24 Jul 2018 20:37:27 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
@Brian_Earl_Spilner
Thank you for your response!
I definitely prefer cash back at the moment (rather than airline points or something like that.) I'll be honest, I'm very thrifty. I don't spend a lot of money on anything really. I don't eat out a ton, I don't travel much yet (when I graduate that'll change though), and I don't spend a lot on myself in general.

I'm one of the odd people who finds some pleasure in saving money rather than spending it and feeling good when you pay bills...
I don't think this helped much though.

Based on that, I don't see why you need another credit card.

Re: What happens when you get a card you end up not liking?

Anonymous — Thu, 26 Jul 2018 01:06:32 GMT

Thanks for your help and advice!

I checked out the AMEX thread and it's a world of new knowledge. Thanks for sharing and I will use it!

And I definitely didn't know that about it being a VISA. That is nice!

Re: What happens when you get a card you end up not liking?

Anonymous — Thu, 26 Jul 2018 01:08:03 GMT

@Codimom

Thanks for your help! So do not a lot of places take AMEX then?

Re: What happens when you get a card you end up not liking?

Anonymous — Thu, 26 Jul 2018 01:11:51 GMT

@SouthJamaica Thanks for your reply and your help!

That's all great to know!

I still need to think about it. And I don't want to make hasty decisions. But you've definitely given me more to think about!

The main thing, is I want the best credit score I can get by the time I graduate. That's when my whole new life starts. Everything from buying a new car, to getting a job (read a lot of engineering jobs can check your credit score), to being able to spend a lot, and so much else. I just want the best I can do for now, so it pays off later.

Thanks for your help!!