Hi everyone, it has been a while since I last posted, but I have been visiting the boards on a regular basis.
I have been credit gardening for a while and I am considering applying for a new card. I somehow accumulated a few branded cards that I am considering closing. If I do that, I may apply for another bank card so that I have more options in case BOA goes nuts again 
I am not sure what my current scores are - probably somewhere in 730-770 range. I have only one inquiry within the last year - from 4/2010 for Pottery Barn card. I also have a car loan to be paid off next month and two student loans in deferment (55k total for graduate school). I will probably be applying for a mortgage in about 1.5 - 2 years.
Would you have any suggestions on which (and how many) cards to close? And what other cards to consider? I would like low APR, no annual fee, probably a cash back card.
My current credit card mix is as follows:
BOA BankAmericard - CL 10k/opened 2/2005 (not reporting CL to all CBs, high balance around 6.5k)
BOA World Points MC - CL 5k/opened 9/2009
Home Depot - CL 3k/opened 5/2009
Pottery Barn - CL 3k/opened 4/2010 - used only once since opened but I will probably leave it open.
Shell - CL 2400/opened 5/2006 - not used much
Sears - CL 3k/opened 7/2006 - not used much
Many thanks!!!!
Thank you guys for your responses. I am considering closing cards because I just need to simplify my life. I somehow feel that keeping cards open and making myself remember to use them every few months is a silly thing to do. I know some people will not agree with me, but that's how I look at it. I am not concerned with losing the lines because I generally PIF way before the statement cuts and have an insignificant balance reporting on one or two cards only.
I am keeping HomeDepot and Pottery Barn. Once I graduate in May I will need them much more than I do now I will probably close both Sears and Shell. By the time they fall of my reports, I am hoping to have another one or two cards of decent age that I will be able to use more often. So even if my AAoA drops some at the time, it should not matter to me that much.
So which cards should I consider? I would like to avoid Chase and Discover, and probably CUs. I am not willing to pay an annual fee. As I mentioned before, low APR, probably cash back would satisfy me. I would also be willing to consider a superb rewards card and do a product change on my BankAmericard Power Rewards to a BankAmericard Cash Rewards.
@BabyBlue wrote:Thank you guys for your responses. I am considering closing cards because I just need to simplify my life. I somehow feel that keeping cards open and making myself remember to use them every few months is a silly thing to do. I know some people will not agree with me, but that's how I look at it. I am not concerned with losing the lines because I generally PIF way before the statement cuts and have an insignificant balance reporting on one or two cards only.
I am keeping HomeDepot and Pottery Barn. Once I graduate in May I will need them much more than I do now
So which cards should I consider? I would like to avoid Chase and Discover, and probably CUs. I am not willing to pay an annual fee. As I mentioned before, low APR, probably cash back would satisfy me. I would also be willing to consider a superb rewards card and do a product change on my BankAmericard Power Rewards to a BankAmericard Cash Rewards.
Why are you wanting to avoid CUs?
I know - strange, right? I am a member of one and I hate the fact that they hard pull when you join or open an additional account, including checking and savings. It is not worth it to me. Besides, not all of them report to all CBs, which seems a nonsense to track or inquire about. We all have our quirks and that's mine
Unlike a lot of people, I have been really happy w/ BOA. They gave me my first credit card ever in 2006 with a 5,200 CL (I had a really thin credit file then - just one AU card). They took really good care of me with generous automatic CLIs that stopped when CL reached 21k. In 2009, I myself lowered CL to 15k and then split it into two separate cards.
@BabyBlue wrote:I know - strange, right? I am a member of one and I hate the fact that they hard pull when you join or open an additional account, including checking and savings. It is not worth it to me. Besides, not all of them report to all CBs, which seems a nonsense to track or inquire about. We all have our quirks and that's mine
Unlike a lot of people, I have been really happy w/ BOA. They gave me my first credit card ever in 2006 with a 5,200 CL (I had a really thin credit file then - just one AU card). They took really good care of me with generous automatic CLIs that stopped when CL reached 21k. In 2009, I myself lowered CL to 15k and then split it into two separate cards.
Not trying to soud rude, but I don't understand your thinking on several issues....
No offense taken. Are you referring to my lowering the BOA credit line? They had been softing me every other day for several weeks and I was concerned about a CLD. I quit my job shortly before then and started a full-time grad program, never charged a lot in a month & I did not need the line anyway. 15k was what I was happy to settle with. I split the card into two because BOA would not do a product change to a Master Card or AMEX from the card that I had then. My school accepts only Mastercards and AMEX and I wanted the ability to pay miscellaneous charges online.
Different people, different priorities. What may seem a good solution to you, does not have to be one for me. But, it does not mean that we can't learn from each other, right? 