Strategy to get to 21 cards...

[dytch2220]

What is the best strategy for getting to the magic #21 cards.  I have 7 currently and am still in the late stages of repair before I will have "good" credit so I can start applying for cards I really want to keep.  I'm looking for the most efficient without hindering my ability to get increases or impacting my credit scores unduly.

If you dont' mind sharing, would also like suggestions of cards I should apply for from good through excellent.  I'm mainly looking for cash back and/or no annual fee type cards.  I do have accounts with USAA and PenFed, but no credit lines as of yet.

[Remedios]

What's special about 21 cards?

Have you been hanging out at Credit Karma or something? 

[CreditCobra]

I'm a huge fan of the Affinity CU Cash Rewards Visa Signature.

https://www.affinityfcu.com/Credit-Cards/Cashback-Rewards-Visa-Signature.aspx

It's a quarterly rotater, and they don't publish their calendar in advance, but it's been a fantastic card. Right out of the gate you get the following:

• 5% Cash back at Amazon & Bookstores (some exclusions apply).
• 2% Cash back at supermarkets, restaurants gas stations, watch, listen and ride services such as Netflix, Spotify and Uber.
• 1% Cash back on everything else.

Then the 5% categories stack on top of those. The 5% quarterly rotators are capped at $3,500 per quarter spend, which is still pretty generous.

For some history, here's what 2022 has looked like.

First quarter:

• Gas
• Cellular/Wireless
• Cable/Satellite

Second quarter:

• Gas
• Supermarkets (including Costco)
• Home Gardening

Third quarter:

• Gas
• Wholesale Clubs
• Fast Service Restaurants

Fourth quarter:

• Gas
• Supermarkets (including Costco)

What a year for 7% cash back on gas for the entire year, and 7% cash back at Costco for three out of four quarters. I love this card!

[SouthJamaica]

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@dytch2220 wrote:

What is the best strategy for getting to the magic #21 cards.  I have 7 currently and am still in the late stages of repair before I will have "good" credit so I can start applying for cards I really want to keep.  I'm looking for the most efficient without hindering my ability to get increases or impacting my credit scores unduly.

If you dont' mind sharing, would also like suggestions of cards I should apply for from good through excellent.  I'm mainly looking for cash back and/or no annual fee type cards.  I do have accounts with USAA and PenFed, but no credit lines as of yet.

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The best thing you can do is to NOT apply for so many cards.  I don't know why you think 21 is a magic number. 

[simplynoir]

I'm failing to understand why you want to apply for more cards right now. You state you're still in the credit repair stage of your rebuild and from what I can see in your signature with perhaps the exception of your Capital One Platinum have good cards to use right now. I wouldn't even consider anything right now and even when clean be slow and methodical with lenders possibly tightening their belts

[Anonymous]

so you only have to add 14, can be done, in dunno, 2 or 3 years? You can add a lot of store cards, including Walgreens which seems very useful(it even tells your SL). I think Tomo is SP(just 1% cb though). 

For fast growth I would recommend BoA and Amex, CCR and BCE. You already have Navy, envy you. 

If you pay rent, WF Bilt. Also WF Autograph covers a lot of areas, for 3%. 

If you want 2% flat, since you have Penfed account, PCR. But you need to park 500 at checking to get 2%, so if you don't want hassle, WF Active Cash or Citi Double Cash.

Don't expect big limits even if you get approved 4 at once(like me). See my sig, diminishing returns from the 3rd card. Realistically could app once in 3 months I guess? If you want bigger SLs, app sparingly, say once or twice a year..

[SUPERSQUID]

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@Remedios wrote:

What's special about 21 cards?

Have you been hanging out at Credit Karma or something? 

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LOL.

[SUPERSQUID]

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@dytch2220 wrote:

What is the best strategy for getting to the magic #21 cards.  I have 7 currently and am still in the late stages of repair before I will have "good" credit so I can start applying for cards I really want to keep.  I'm looking for the most efficient without hindering my ability to get increases or impacting my credit scores unduly.

If you dont' mind sharing, would also like suggestions of cards I should apply for from good through excellent.  I'm mainly looking for cash back and/or no annual fee type cards.  I do have accounts with USAA and PenFed, but no credit lines as of yet.

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IMHO you have a nice lineup already. Those 2 NAVY cards can grow quickly if used and paid prudently and I have been able to get Discover to give decent limits with a subpar portfolio, ymmv

[increasingmyfico]

21 isn't the magic number. Honestly you already have more than enough. At this point I would focus on grooming your profile and only adding cards that will benefit you or bring more value than the ones you already have. 

[sarge12]

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@dytch2220 wrote:

What is the best strategy for getting to the magic #21 cards.  I have 7 currently and am still in the late stages of repair before I will have "good" credit so I can start applying for cards I really want to keep.  I'm looking for the most efficient without hindering my ability to get increases or impacting my credit scores unduly.

If you dont' mind sharing, would also like suggestions of cards I should apply for from good through excellent.  I'm mainly looking for cash back and/or no annual fee type cards.  I do have accounts with USAA and PenFed, but no credit lines as of yet.

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I have heard nothing that indicates having 21 cards is such a great idea. For what it is worth, I think acquiring cards slowly is a good idea. I never get more than 2-3 in any single calander year, and I hope to be at 20 cards within 2 years. Since I now have 27 cards, that will require closing 7 more cards than I open. I do have a hard time closing cards though, even now, when at my age I really want to simplify life. Being really OCD, I log onto every single card online just to make sure nothing fraudulant is happening in mostly dormant accounts. I will likely reduce the numbers of cards I have the same way I built such a high number...slowly. One danger you need to be aware of, and the reason a slow build is a good idea, If you double the number of cards you have in 1 month, it will cut your AAoA in half. The one card that I have plans to close first is the barclaycard, followed by capital one, regions, and the new pf/cp card or whatever it was HSBC switched me to. Many of my cards were acquired due to a decent SUB, and are now somewhat useless to me. Closing cards too quickly will also damage your credit. Going both ways, it is best to close or open 1 or 2, wait a few months to see the effect on your score, and if small change, you could close or open another. Just take it gradual, as too many changes quickly can kill your score and make lenders nervous. Credit scores are, and always have been a marathon. Do it right, and open cards gradually, while limiting exposure to each lender. As a general rule, I normally limit exposure to 2 cards per lender, although I do now have 3 cards under the US bank banner. One is a quicken US bank. One was a State Farm US bank card that had a 17,000 dollar limit. For some strange reason they sent me a very attractive offer with a SUB to open a second State Farm Premier cash rewards also with US bank. I have no idea why, because the other card was strictly used for insurance.