topic Re: Should I open a new credit card? in Credit Cards

Should I open a new credit card?

Anonymous — Sat, 15 Aug 2020 15:22:50 GMT

I'm only 29, so my credit history is very limited. I don't spend money, like at all. I have 3 major cards. Capitalone, Bank of America, and Chase. For about 6 months my credit score was 800+. Then I took out more school loans. My credit score is no mid 770s.I'm REALLY happy with my Chase card. It is one of those Amazon Prime rewards cards. Should I even bother opening a new account? While my cli will increase, that hurts my average age of accounts. I also feel I am in a good place.

Re: Should I open a new credit card?

Anonymous — Sat, 15 Aug 2020 15:47:09 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
I'm only 29, so my credit history is very limited. I don't spend money, like at all. I have 3 major cards. Capitalone, Bank of America, and Chase. For about 6 months my credit score was 800+. Then I took out more school loans. My credit score is no mid 770s.I'm REALLY happy with my Chase card. It is one of those Amazon Prime rewards cards. Should I even bother opening a new account? While my cli will increase, that hurts my average age of accounts. I also feel I am in a good place.

Nobody likes the score drop associated with a new account but it is also a necessary evil in the credit world. If you feel you are in a good place and happy with what you have then there is your answer. If there is a card that interests you and that you will use then go for it.

Re: Should I open a new credit card?

AllZero — Sat, 15 Aug 2020 15:57:53 GMT

Perhaps, consider joining a Credit Union or two while you plan your options?

https://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Personal-Finance/CU-s-to-join-for-Savings-Rate-now-and-possible-Credit-Products/td-p/6025274

Re: Should I open a new credit card?

KLEXH25 — Sat, 15 Aug 2020 17:24:47 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
I'm only 29, so my credit history is very limited. I don't spend money, like at all. I have 3 major cards. Capitalone, Bank of America, and Chase. For about 6 months my credit score was 800+. Then I took out more school loans. My credit score is no mid 770s.I'm REALLY happy with my Chase card. It is one of those Amazon Prime rewards cards. Should I even bother opening a new account? While my cli will increase, that hurts my average age of accounts. I also feel I am in a good place.

It sounds like you're happy with what you have, and don't need any new cards at the moment. How long have you had these cards? Did you get them all at the same time, or spread out? My only suggestion would be to get a card every so many years, so that if anything were to happen to any of those older accounts, you would still have other cards with some history behind them.

Re: Should I open a new credit card?

Red1Blue — Sat, 15 Aug 2020 17:43:00 GMT

If you dont need another card then do not apply. If you do apply consider Amex and Discover Cards also to give you more variety of cards into your credit mix. I am sure both Amex and Discover would not mind light credit profile.

Re: Should I open a new credit card?

gingerflower — Sat, 15 Aug 2020 17:46:33 GMT

@AllZero

@Anonymous +1

Re: Should I open a new credit card?

CH-7-Mission-Accomplished — Sun, 16 Aug 2020 03:46:35 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
I'm only 29, so my credit history is very limited. I don't spend money, like at all. I have 3 major cards. Capitalone, Bank of America, and Chase. For about 6 months my credit score was 800+. Then I took out more school loans. My credit score is no mid 770s.I'm REALLY happy with my Chase card. It is one of those Amazon Prime rewards cards. Should I even bother opening a new account? While my cli will increase, that hurts my average age of accounts. I also feel I am in a good place.

If you are comfortable managing more than three cards, I would slowly add high quality accounts to your portfolio. The reason is that if you later decide to add cards for bonuses or any other reason, adding a new card or installment loan to a report with only 3 accounts will have a negative impact on your average age of accounts.

With your high scores, I would add one of the AMEX cards, a discover card, and one or two high quality (high limit, low interest rate) credit union cards -- like Navy FCU, Penfed, Alliant -- but do not add them all at once. Add one quality card every six months to minimize the hit from new inquiries and new accounts.

Re: Should I open a new credit card?

CreditInspired — Sun, 16 Aug 2020 04:53:12 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
I'm only 29, so my credit history is very limited. I don't spend money, like at all. I have 3 major cards. Capitalone, Bank of America, and Chase. For about 6 months my credit score was 800+. Then I took out more school loans. My credit score is no mid 770s.I'm REALLY happy with my Chase card. It is one of those Amazon Prime rewards cards. Should I even bother opening a new account? While my cli will increase, that hurts my average age of accounts. I also feel I am in a good place.
Nobody likes the score drop associated with a new account but it is also a necessary evil in the credit world. If you feel you are in a good place and happy with what you have then there is your answer. If there is a card that interests you and that you will use then go for it.

^^^ this exactly

Re: Should I open a new credit card?

SouthJamaica — Sun, 16 Aug 2020 19:47:14 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
I'm only 29, so my credit history is very limited. I don't spend money, like at all. I have 3 major cards. Capitalone, Bank of America, and Chase. For about 6 months my credit score was 800+. Then I took out more school loans. My credit score is no mid 770s.I'm REALLY happy with my Chase card. It is one of those Amazon Prime rewards cards. Should I even bother opening a new account? While my cli will increase, that hurts my average age of accounts. I also feel I am in a good place.

No, there's no reason in the world for you to open a new account.

Re: Should I open a new credit card?

Aim_High — Sun, 16 Aug 2020 20:23:40 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
I'm only 29, so my credit history is very limited. I don't spend money, like at all. I have 3 major cards. Capitalone, Bank of America, and Chase. For about 6 months my credit score was 800+. Then I took out more school loans. My credit score is no mid 770s.I'm REALLY happy with my Chase card. It is one of those Amazon Prime rewards cards. Should I even bother opening a new account? While my cli will increase, that hurts my average age of accounts. I also feel I am in a good place.

Three cards is really plenty for (most) people. If you think you're in a good place and satisfied with your cards, trust your instinct. There are those of us on My Fico who push far beyond that but there are also some here who also try to keep their cards on the simple side. It's all a matter of preference and what is working for you. You have a nice selection of banks. Which cards are these specifically?

With low volume in spending, rewards may not be worth much trouble in managing. However, if you get to the point in life where your spending increases, the big question will be how well these cards match your spending in terms of rewards. But as long as spending is limited for rewards purposes and you aren't carrying balances regularly where you need a low-APR card, which cards you have probably doesn't matter so much. Reevaluating as you go along is always appropriate. For example, even after several decades of credit, I had enough changes to my lifestyle and situation that I decided to branch out into travel cards and points as well as optimizing some cash back. Your spending will change over time and the credit world evolves also. Keeping things fresh helps you to keep relevant and useful cards.

Re: Should I open a new credit card?

Anonymous — Sun, 16 Aug 2020 21:59:21 GMT

Thanks, guys!

Re: Should I open a new credit card?

Anonymous — Wed, 19 Aug 2020 22:56:44 GMT

" You have a nice selection of banks. Which cards are these specifically? "

i have a CapitalOne quicksilver (cl 11k), a Chase Amazon rewards card (cl 8000) and a BoA card (cl 4500). My Amazon card has incredible benefits! 5% back on prime. So when I spend, I use that and order prime.