Addicted to credit cards. How many is too many?

[redpat]

Unfortunately more cards don't equal more rewards.

10 more and OP can make a deck of cards out of them.

[ChargedUp]

I agree with doing product changes on the older non-rewards cards that will allow so. Chase and Citi are both pretty open to product changes generally and you wouldn't lose the age of the original account. As far as closing anything, this would solely be at your discretion. As said earlier, the account will still provide positive influence for another decade beyond closure, but with no AF, I don't see the point unless you just don't want to deal with a card or two anymore.

It sounds like OP has done extremely well in handling all aspects of his credit profile. To that, I say Cheers!

You're in a position where you can pretty much get what you want, when you want. Extracting a $250K line out of Sir Barclay is a feat in itself.

@MahrajaWould be proud!

[NRB525]

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@wasCB14 wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

My old Chase and Citi cards have lines of $30K to $75K

My old MBNA cards are now with Bank of America and where switched to cash rewards cards. These too have good lines of $50K to 90K

I do have one card with a line of $250K but I do pay an annual fee for that with Barclays of $195. It is the Luxury card. Rewards are only 1% but they offer so many services that the card is more then worth it.

I am a Forensic Pathologist so I have job security as long as people , hmm, ok enough said LOL

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What was the appeal of the Luxury Card (Titanium version)? It has a bit of a reputation as "more sizzle than steak". Most people here opt for Amex Platinum or Chase Sapphire Reserve instead. $250k is a very nice limit, though!

Having a high recession-resistant income definitely helps get high SLs.

Cards should be useful. It doesn't sound like you need the old mediocre ones to get property loans on good terms.

---

Um, I've not read of another revolving CC around here that is anywhere near a $250,000 Credit Line. Kudos to the OP for that. Say what you will about the Barclays Titatinum card, that is a CL worth carrying around. This discussion gets into the realm of "why do people carry the Centurion Card"? Because they can. 

OP I will say it sounds like you are doing fine. The main thing about credit cards is to always pay on time. As long as you are doing that, everyone else's opinion is meaningless. 

Regarding the old Chase card, have you talked with them about product changing that over to a Freedom Unlimited? With your spend level, that could result in some substantial UR points earning. I PC'd a useless Slate card from 2001 to a Freedom Unlimited a couple years ago. Keeps the same history, and gets you good earnings. Combine that with a Chase Sapphire Preferred or Reserve, and rewards become more meaningful.

If you still think you want to close cards, maybe raise your Minimum Acceptable Credit Limit. $5,000 in your league is pipsqueaks. Start cutting any card that won't give you at least a $10,000 limit. Work up from there if you like. 

[ChargedUp]

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@NRB525 wrote:

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@wasCB14 wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

My old Chase and Citi cards have lines of $30K to $75K

My old MBNA cards are now with Bank of America and where switched to cash rewards cards. These too have good lines of $50K to 90K

I do have one card with a line of $250K but I do pay an annual fee for that with Barclays of $195. It is the Luxury card. Rewards are only 1% but they offer so many services that the card is more then worth it.

I am a Forensic Pathologist so I have job security as long as people , hmm, ok enough said LOL

---

What was the appeal of the Luxury Card (Titanium version)? It has a bit of a reputation as "more sizzle than steak". Most people here opt for Amex Platinum or Chase Sapphire Reserve instead. $250k is a very nice limit, though!

Having a high recession-resistant income definitely helps get high SLs.

Cards should be useful. It doesn't sound like you need the old mediocre ones to get property loans on good terms.

---

Um, I've not read of another revolving CC around here that is anywhere near a $250,000 Credit Line. Kudos to the OP for that. Say what you will about the Barclays Titatinum card, that is a CL worth carrying around. This discussion gets into the realm of "why do people carry the Centurion Card"? Because they can. 

OP I will say it sounds like you are doing fine. The main thing about credit cards is to always pay on time. As long as you are doing that, everyone else's opinion is meaningless. 

Regarding the old Chase card, have you talked with them about product changing that over to a Freedom Unlimited? With your spend level, that could result in some substantial UR points earning. I PC'd a useless Slate card from 2001 to a Freedom Unlimited a couple years ago. Keeps the same history, and gets you good earnings. Combine that with a Chase Sapphire Preferred or Reserve, and rewards become more meaningful.

If you still think you want to close cards, maybe raise your Minimum Acceptable Credit Limit. $5,000 in your league is pipsqueaks. Start cutting any card that won't give you at least a $10,000 limit. Work up from there if you like. 

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Well... There was this guy.
https://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Credit-Card-Approvals/UBS-Visa-Infinite-20-Years-old-Crazy-Limit/m-p/5880780#M651766

Which now makes me curious what kind of SL the OP could yank out of UBS

[Kforce]

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@longtimelurker wrote:

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@Kforce wrote:

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@longtimelurker wrote:

Very much an individual thing, but signs that you are getting close to having too many:

1) You start getting declined for credit products, or get terms less favorable than you expect.   This is because you have too many inqs or new accounts, or just too much credit for a new issuer to feel happy.

2) The task of managing the cards is becoming a pain, more than the joy of getting a new card!   

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+100

#2  hit me at 7 cards, last month.

Just got the 3% USAlliance, did not pursue the AOD 3% the following month

For some there is no such thing as "too many"

For me as a cashback only card person, I found diminishing rewards after 5-7 cards.

If you like getting, having that many, no harm.

I would not want to  manage, rotate spend, split rewards, etc on 40+ cards.

I have 7 and am thinking about closing 2 of them.

For me 5 would be just right.

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And hate to say it, I'm almost OPs age, self-managing my IRA (I have retired).   And everywhere you see warnings about "cognitive decline" which certainly can be scary as you are probably not aware of it.   I imagine "later on" buying a lot of one speculative stock, forgetting I have done so and go through the same reasoning, "Oh I should buy some of that" etc.

Fortunately, credit cards are a little less risky, with autopay etc.

---

Older than both and been retired 13 years.

I like math and just run the numbers.

For my real spend

1 gets me 2%, with a couple of new unknown cards 3%

3 gets me  3 - 4%

7 gets me  4 - 4.5%

24 gets me almost 5%

25+ almost no gain

(3-7) by the calculator, not rocket science, just spreadsheet and real spend.

Now if I had a business or traveled a few more would help but 12 still tops the list by math

40+ cards would just be a pain in the a**

This forum is the only reason I have my 7, until 7+ years ago I only had 3

Will admit I now have better cashback rewards as compared too 10+ years ago

One needs to look at if it is just a hobby, fun, collecting, etc or for the rewards and benefits.

If it is hobby, have fun, if for rewards you must look at the numbers compared to the work/time/time to rewards, etc.

For most (yes there are a few exceptions)  I believe more than a dozen cards is a hobby, addiction, not a valid financial decision.

Nothing wrong with a hobby of collecting cards or getting the last 0.01% reward, but not a valid reason by someone willing too give up that last 0.05% rewards.

There are many better ways to earn money than getting 40+ credit cards for rewards and benefits.

[Citylights18]

Here is how the process usually goes for ramping to high amount of CCs.

1) Takes out store cards at the register for discounts. Puts some spend on them with the idea of paying later.

2) Get a credit card with the bank you have checking setup with for "emergencies"

3) Say yes to that airline credit card when the stewardess walks by.

4) Fearing loss of job takes out another CC just in case from a credit union and starts charging.

5) Job is gone and starts racking up debt on the bank cards.

6) Accepts BT offer from the airline card for 1.99 APR 6 months.

7) Racks up more debt and now looks for a new BT card to pay things off.

8) Buys a new car and accepts a complementary CC offer.

9) Takes out another 0% APR BT card.

10) Finds a credit union willing to hand out a 30k balance and BTs the outstanding 25,000

Its usually either a young person taking on way too much credit card debt and/or has job losses and they get on the app cartwheel.

The way out of it is to get higher SL cards to raise utilization, hide bills and spend on a card with high balance, eventually get more of your balance at low APR, use CLOCs/PLOCs to rapidly reduce statement balances. Very quickly your pushing 20 accounts.

Once you get off the cartwheel there really isn't a need for more accounts unless you're pursuing more rewards and even that is a finite game. The goal I think should be to get enough useful perks to the point where it renders SUB chasing futile.

Going back to the OP what I'm hearing is his criteria on closing a card is whether or not the CL is above 5,000 or not. The criteria should be based around perks and earnig mainly. A second consideration around how long you've had the cards. I have one card that I'm carried for 8 years with a low SL (8,000) just for AoA purposes only. Everything else I have I will use for something.

[wasCB14]

@NRB525 

I'm not disparaging all high AF cards. Centurion has real benefits. I'm just mentioning the fairly broad consensus that the Barclays products don't hold up to their Amex and Chase competitors.

If I had the income and expenses to merit a $250k CL, I'd rather use a card with better rewards than 1% cash back. Heck, I'm thinking of closing a 1.5% card and a 2% one.

[longtimelurker]

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@Kforce wrote:

---

@longtimelurker wrote:

---

@Kforce wrote:

---

@longtimelurker wrote:

Very much an individual thing, but signs that you are getting close to having too many:

1) You start getting declined for credit products, or get terms less favorable than you expect.   This is because you have too many inqs or new accounts, or just too much credit for a new issuer to feel happy.

2) The task of managing the cards is becoming a pain, more than the joy of getting a new card!   

---

+100

#2  hit me at 7 cards, last month.

Just got the 3% USAlliance, did not pursue the AOD 3% the following month

For some there is no such thing as "too many"

For me as a cashback only card person, I found diminishing rewards after 5-7 cards.

If you like getting, having that many, no harm.

I would not want to  manage, rotate spend, split rewards, etc on 40+ cards.

I have 7 and am thinking about closing 2 of them.

For me 5 would be just right.

---

And hate to say it, I'm almost OPs age, self-managing my IRA (I have retired).   And everywhere you see warnings about "cognitive decline" which certainly can be scary as you are probably not aware of it.   I imagine "later on" buying a lot of one speculative stock, forgetting I have done so and go through the same reasoning, "Oh I should buy some of that" etc.

Fortunately, credit cards are a little less risky, with autopay etc.

---

Older than both and been retired 13 years.

I like math and just run the numbers.

For my real spend

1 gets me 2%, with a couple of new unknown cards 3%

3 gets me  3 - 4%

7 gets me  4 - 4.5%

24 gets me almost 5%

25+ almost no gain

(3-7) by the calculator, not rocket science, just spreadsheet and real spend.

Now if I had a business or traveled a few more would help but 12 still tops the list by math

40+ cards would just be a pain in the a**

This forum is the only reason I have my 7, until 7+ years ago I only had 3

Will admit I now have better cashback rewards as compared too 10+ years ago

One needs to look at if it is just a hobby, fun, collecting, etc or for the rewards and benefits.

If it is hobby, have fun, if for rewards you must look at the numbers compared to the work/time/time to rewards, etc.

For most (yes there are a few exceptions)  I believe more than a dozen cards is a hobby, addiction, not a valid financial decision.

Nothing wrong with a hobby of collecting cards or getting the last 0.01% reward, but not a valid reason by someone willing too give up that last 0.05% rewards.

There are many better ways to earn money than getting 40+ credit cards for rewards and benefits.

---

On the other hand, adding another credit card can be very little work.   A few mins to app, another few mins to set up online and autopay in full, and hey!   I now have this card, with NO AF!!!! that will give me an extra 0.25% (over a 2%) on the first three glass harmonica disks I buy each year at a certain store (up to $10 extra!)   So what's the harm?   Just have to remember to use that card if I ever a) get a glass harmonica, b) need replacement disks, and c) get them from that store.   Free money for just 15 minutes of effort.

[Mv350]

To me, too many is only a factor if they are being maxed out, and used irresponsilbly. I will be closing a couple this year, because one is no longer needed, and one has an AF. But this is also to make room for others. If it's not creating a problem, then why not?

[Anonymous]

It is not that hard to maintain them all.  I use a steno book. I list them all by statement closing date and every sunday I go through the last weeks closings and check every card online that just had the statement cut off.

As far as Barclays I used the Luxury card in November 2017 for around $85,000 to pay real estate taxes. At that time the line was $95K. I paid off the card before the statement closed. So I went into the statement period with a  zero balance and ended the period with a zero balance.

In January of 2018 I hit the CLI increase button on the site and received the standard we will get back to you.  Then I received a phone call from Barclays a day later. Asked me some very odd questions and told me the line has been increased to $250K. I requested only $150K. Go figure. I assume that the increase was based on the large purchases from 2017. I have used it every November since but I never asked them for a CLI again. I think I am done with that for that card as far as CLI's.

When they called me about the CLI she was very much wanting to know about my income and why I didnt use much of the credit I have since I never allow more then $3,000 show up on my credit reports. I explained that I use the cards alot and just pay them off before statement cut off date. But she could have seen that on my equifax report as it shows months payment amounts received.