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Not a bad idea to close the cards you use...Can you share profolio with us...lol...I'm curious to see all your cards....
Yes. List of cards and their current limits would help
we can give directed advice on what you should close, then you can choose to follow it or go your own path on it
Ok that helps. And congrats on your progress. It is great to do things in phases, like you have kicked off
You have some solid CL on most cards, which is good
I would lose the Amazon store card as you already have the Amazon prime card
and you can do cancellations online you don’t need to make a call
for my Amex, i did it through a Chat window
nordstrom i sent a request when logged into their website. They closed it without questions.
So so it is pretty easy to do
good luck on your progress
I am 54 years old and have never really had good credit until I started to consciously work on it 3 years ago. I have taken credit for granted since I graduated from high school. I really never understood how important credit played in my life. If I was denied a loan or credit card because of my poor credit management, I would just work hard and save up cash and obtain what I wanted that way.
In 2006 I was starting over credit-wise, yet again, and was doing well. Had a good job, a clean credit report and building credit without realizing it. Obtained several credit cards, had a car loan and was paying my bills. The recession hit in 2008 and I did not know how to manage my credit crisis so old habits took over and in trouble, I went again.
I am now obsessed with my credit. Starting over for the fourth time, I decided to educate myself about how to use and maintain credit. I made some applications, denied at first, approved for a Cap 1 QS1.
Not knowing what I was doing, I decided I wanted a Visa, Mastercard, Discover and AmEx CC. With a lot of google searching and reading about how to, I finally happened on the myFICO forums when I realized that Credit Karma was not the end all be all of the credit world.
So, now I am making $65K a year as an RN. My goal is to obtain $100K in revolving credit and to purchase a home in a few years. I have enough emergency cash in savings to support myself for 6 months if necessary. I am in the garden for my credit-seeking behavior as I need to wait for my 5/24 to drop so I can app for my coveted Chase Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards Priority Visa Signature credit card.
While in the garden I keep the "serenity prayer" in mind when I think about mine or someone else's credit issues.
God, grant me the serenity
To accept the things I cannot change;
Courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.
So, yes, I am obsessed with my credit. A creditholic? I hope not. Everything in moderation.
@Anonymous wrote:
... I’m currently down to 22 and counting.
My goal is to get down to around 10 then I think I will be fine!
You remind me of someone dieting! Lol
Credit diet.
Just remember, like dieting, the best fixes are not
the short term changes but the lifestyle changes.
Elsewise, we end up back in the same situation.
@britt585 wrote:Can you share (portfolio) with us...lol...I'm curious to see all your cards....
An interesting choice of words and it speaks a lot about the way many of us My Fico'ers view our credit cards.
Portolio is usually a term reserved for a collection of valuable assets or objects of significant financial value.
Our credit cards are actually potential debts, not really assets.
Rethinking our perception of their "value" might go a long way towards unplugging when we see ourselves getting out of control.
There is a reason credit card companies brand our cards with valuable metal names like Titanium, Gold, Silver, Platinum or names like "Signature", "Infinite" "Elite", "Prestige" and "Reserve". They are appealing to our perception of their value and prestige. Some people can easily fall victim to this and it plays into their compulsion to apply for more cards and use them as an expression of their connection to something of exclusivity, prestige and value.
@Medic981 wrote:So, yes, I am obsessed with my credit. A creditholic? I hope not. Everything in moderation.
Some good observations and advice.
Yes, everything in moderation.
"Process" addictions are an obsessive-compulsive approach to things like shopping, sex, eating, exercise, gambling, finances, or the internet. The double-tricky thing about process addictions is that, unlike substance addiction to drugs or alcohol, many process addictions can involve processes that are normal and healthy human behaviors but they have been taken to an extreme by someone who is thinking obsessively and acting compulsively. Everyone needs to shop, fulfill their sexual needs, exercise, manage their finances, or be able to access information on the internet within reason. But when these things are out of balance in proportion to everything else in our lives, we need to make adjustments.
So balance and moderation is key.
The definition of when a process starts to become problematic and an addiction is based on the nature of someone's thoughts about it (preoccupation) and on the evidence of the compulsion (acting out) interfering in their ability to function "normally" in daily life as most people are able to do. Some questions to ask about any of these things is to identify how much we think about them and if they are interfering in our relationships or daily activities.
@Anonymous wrote: Thanks to everyone for your responses and understanding ...I spoke to my wife about this issue and have started making some progress. I froze all of my reports and I am simply going to leave her with the codes to lift the freezes. I have also cut up a bunch of cards, and simply will let them close on their own, and I’m no longer going to worry about putting $1 charges on them to keep them all open. My next step is actually calling to cancel them, which I’ll work on...
You're welcome, glad to be helpful. Those sound like some great first steps so you're on the right track! Discussing the issue with us and your wife and having the accountability-partner (wife) aspect are both important parts of changing your approach to the credit cards. Keep up the good work! Our credit life should supplement our physical lives, not be a distraction from it or a burden to maintain.