WHAT CARDS SHOULD I DUMP? GIVE A REASON

[tdslf1]

Hello All,

Lontime lurker, non poster.

Looking for help and don't know where to go. I have 20 cards, various amounts.  looking for a strategy so I can maybe go underwater for a while then come out swinging with some better cards and better scores after the 7 years mark....maybe. So, this is what I got. BK in 3/2018, ton of inquiries, started rebuild after that. Scores high 600 low 700.  BK fell off the EQ.  What should I get rid of? What am I doing wrong?

Navy 14k           Home Depot 4k

Navy 20k           Lowes  $5k

Penfed 3.5k       Care Credit $6k

Sam's MC 3k      Amazon $2

AT Home 3k       Target  $2k

Capital1 3.5k    Credit One $1.5k oldest card

Truist 1 7k             Best Buy 3k

Apple $500            Walmart $550 

Truist 2 7k              Truist 3 5k

Truist 4 5k

[Remedios]

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@tdslf1 wrote:

Hello All,

Lontime lurker, non poster.

Looking for help and don't know where to go. I have 20 cards, various amounts.  looking for a strategy so I can maybe go underwater for a while then come out swinging with some better cards and better scores after the 7 years mark....maybe. So, this is what I got. BK in 3/2018, ton of inquiries, started rebuild after that. Scores high 600 low 700.  BK fell off the EQ.  What should I get rid of? What am I doing wrong?

Navy 14k           Home Depot 4k

Navy 20k           Lowes  $5k

Penfed 3.5k       Care Credit $6k

Sam's MC 3k      Amazon $2

AT Home 3k       Target  $2k

Capital1 3.5k    Credit One $1.5k oldest card

Truist 1 7k             Best Buy 3k

Apple $500            Walmart $550 

Truist 2 7k              Truist 3 5k

Truist 4 5k

---

Get rid of the ones you aren't and will not use in the future. You know better than anyone which cards don't get taken out.

What are you doing wrong? Applying for accounts you don't need which then prevent you from getting ones you would benefit from.   

You don't need any particular strategy other than being strategic with your applications. I understand that there is period after BK where nothing is possible, then once things get better,  people start applying for everything under the sun because it's possible, no other reason. 

[SlideOrInsert]

Navy	20000
Navy	14000
Truist 1	7000
Truist 2	7000
Care Credit	6000
Lowes	5000
Truist 3	5000
Truist 4	5000
Home Depot	4000
Capital1	3500
Penfed	3500
AT Home	3000
Best Buy	3000
Sam's MC	3000
Amazon	2000
Target	2000
Credit One*	1500
Walmart	550
Apple	500
(19) TOTAL	95550

with almost 100k in credit after a 2018 bk, I would say you are doing nothing "wrong" per se.

BUT it is probably time to let the hard inquires age out and grow existing limits.

anything with an annual fee gets cut.

anything with a hard pull for a limit increase, no rewards, or high apr gets sock drawer-ed or cut.

can't image there is much benefit to apple/walmart with $500 limits.

I guess the retail cards are okay to keep, might be helpful if you need a high ticket item and they offer promos.

if truist allows, consolidate the four truist cards into one or two large limits with rewards you might actually use.

if one of the nfcu is not the more rewards amex, I would try to convert for 3% on restaurants, groceries, and gas.

without knowing your spending habits, it is hard to determine.

[mfinsmi1]

@tdslf1 you need to sit back and stop applying ... let your limits grow and in 1-2 years come back getting cards u really want. theres no reason to close down any of these cards except the credit one if it has an annual fee wit no rewards ... all of these accounts  are reporting postive history and with age will help you. but you need to chill out for a while i would say you have some pretty decent cards with some pretty decent limits 

[BearsCubsOtters]

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@tdslf1 wrote:

Hello All,

Lontime lurker, non poster.

Looking for help and don't know where to go. I have 20 cards, various amounts.  looking for a strategy so I can maybe go underwater for a while then come out swinging with some better cards and better scores after the 7 years mark....maybe. So, this is what I got. BK in 3/2018, ton of inquiries, started rebuild after that. Scores high 600 low 700.  BK fell off the EQ.  What should I get rid of? What am I doing wrong?

Navy 14k           Home Depot 4k

Navy 20k           Lowes  $5k

Penfed 3.5k       Care Credit $6k

Sam's MC 3k      Amazon $2

AT Home 3k       Target  $2k

Capital1 3.5k    Credit One $1.5k oldest card

Truist 1 7k             Best Buy 3k

Apple $500            Walmart $550 

Truist 2 7k              Truist 3 5k

Truist 4 5k

---

At Home: do you actively use the 6 months 0% on purchases of $299 or more? If not, get rid of it. Ugly, vertical card. 

Credit One: Yes, this may be your oldest card; however, the age will still benefit you up to 10 years after closing. By then, your other credit wil have aged nicely, softening any blow that may come from it falling off. 

Walmart: has the introductory 5% off for 12 months on Walmart purchases ended? If so, do you actively use the 2% off feature? If not, no reason to keep it. Eventually you could get a 2% cash-back card (i.e. Citi Double Cash, SDFCU, FNBO et al.) that would be more useful.

Apple: what was the intended purpose of this card? Just because? I have seen SP CLI here so it may be a keeper if you can get the limit up.

Best Buy: I never understood this card. Sure, I had one in 2000 to finance a Compaq (LOL) but I find the card to be of limited use between purchases. How are you using this card? 

Truist 1,2,3 & 4: Why do you have four Truist cards? Were some BB&T and Suntrust before the merger?  I do not know much about them as I am in the West and we do not have this bank. If credit lines can be combined (not sure if that is a thing with Truist) I would identify the two I want to keep and transfer the limits of the two I want to close and transfer them to the ones I am keeping. 

I will echo what others have already said:

only you know which cards are useful to you now and perhaps in the future. You should base your decision to close or to NOT close accounts based on how you benefit from the accounts. I stand by what I said about Credit One though. They have obviously served their purpose and got you better cards. Credit One is very good for that; but they have a sell-by date usually and I beleive you are past that. 

Not even 5 years out of bankruptcy you have done an amazing job at rebuilding. So I do not believe you are not doing anything wrong. But you may want to start to strive for quality of quantity. Apply for credit only when you need it and work on getting SP CLI's on the cards you have. In the very near future you can begin to apply for the card(s) you really want/need.  

Strategy: keep reporting balances under 30% of the credit line for each card; practice AZEO when you can, apply for SP CLI's on your keeper cards and only add more credit when you need it.  

[Brian_Earl_Spilner]

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@Remedios wrote:

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@tdslf1 wrote:

Hello All,

Lontime lurker, non poster.

Looking for help and don't know where to go. I have 20 cards, various amounts.  looking for a strategy so I can maybe go underwater for a while then come out swinging with some better cards and better scores after the 7 years mark....maybe. So, this is what I got. BK in 3/2018, ton of inquiries, started rebuild after that. Scores high 600 low 700.  BK fell off the EQ.  What should I get rid of? What am I doing wrong?

Navy 14k           Home Depot 4k

Navy 20k           Lowes  $5k

Penfed 3.5k       Care Credit $6k

Sam's MC 3k      Amazon $2

AT Home 3k       Target  $2k

Capital1 3.5k    Credit One $1.5k oldest card

Truist 1 7k             Best Buy 3k

Apple $500            Walmart $550 

Truist 2 7k              Truist 3 5k

Truist 4 5k

---

Get rid of the ones you aren't and will not use in the future. You know better than anyone which cards don't get taken out.

What are you doing wrong? Applying for accounts you don't need which then prevent you from getting ones you would benefit from.   

You don't need any particular strategy other than being strategic with your applications. I understand that there is period after BK where nothing is possible, then once things get better,  people start applying for everything under the sun because it's possible, no other reason. 

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Basically this. How am I supposed to tell you what cards to get rid of and give you a reason why when I have no idea what your spend and use is like?

[CYBERSAM]

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@tdslf1 wrote:

Hello All,

Lontime lurker, non poster.

Looking for help and don't know where to go. I have 20 cards, various amounts.  looking for a strategy so I can maybe go underwater for a while then come out swinging with some better cards and better scores after the 7 years mark....maybe. So, this is what I got. BK in 3/2018, ton of inquiries, started rebuild after that. Scores high 600 low 700.  BK fell off the EQ.  What should I get rid of? What am I doing wrong? 

Navy 14k           Home Depot 4k

Navy 20k           Lowes  $5k

Penfed 3.5k       Care Credit $6k

Sam's MC 3k      Amazon $2

AT Home 3k       Target  $2k

Capital1 3.5k    Credit One $1.5k oldest card

Truist 1 7k             Best Buy 3k

Apple $500            Walmart $550 

Truist 2 7k              Truist 3 5k

Truist 4 5k

---

I would get rid of Walmart/Capital1 and Credit One for now! They all going to report for next 10yrs. Also anything that is not growing or you don't use which has low CL.

As others have pointed out, STOP apping for any card that winks at you...

Moving forward I would pick a 2% general spend card but not till your score is near mid 700 and you are no longer considered Credit Seeker. So wait till your inq falloff.

For now,  join the Garden and evaluate your spending and CCs. 🌱

[SouthJamaica]

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@tdslf1 wrote:

Hello All,

Lontime lurker, non poster.

Looking for help and don't know where to go. I have 20 cards, various amounts.  looking for a strategy so I can maybe go underwater for a while then come out swinging with some better cards and better scores after the 7 years mark....maybe. So, this is what I got. BK in 3/2018, ton of inquiries, started rebuild after that. Scores high 600 low 700.  BK fell off the EQ.  What should I get rid of? What am I doing wrong?

Navy 14k           Home Depot 4k

Navy 20k           Lowes  $5k

Penfed 3.5k       Care Credit $6k

Sam's MC 3k      Amazon $2

AT Home 3k       Target  $2k

Capital1 3.5k    Credit One $1.5k oldest card

Truist 1 7k             Best Buy 3k

Apple $500            Walmart $550 

Truist 2 7k              Truist 3 5k

Truist 4 5k

---

1. What should you dump? My suggestion would be Credit One. (Reason: predatory card; you're past that stage in your rebuild)

2. What you're doing wrong? Just applying for too many cards. Time to relax and work with the cards you've got.

[FinStar]

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@Remedios wrote:

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@tdslf1 wrote:

Hello All,

Lontime lurker, non poster.

Looking for help and don't know where to go. I have 20 cards, various amounts.  looking for a strategy so I can maybe go underwater for a while then come out swinging with some better cards and better scores after the 7 years mark....maybe. So, this is what I got. BK in 3/2018, ton of inquiries, started rebuild after that. Scores high 600 low 700.  BK fell off the EQ.  What should I get rid of? What am I doing wrong?

Navy 14k           Home Depot 4k

Navy 20k           Lowes  $5k

Penfed 3.5k       Care Credit $6k

Sam's MC 3k      Amazon $2

AT Home 3k       Target  $2k

Capital1 3.5k    Credit One $1.5k oldest card

Truist 1 7k             Best Buy 3k

Apple $500            Walmart $550 

Truist 2 7k              Truist 3 5k

Truist 4 5k

---

Get rid of the ones you aren't and will not use in the future. You know better than anyone which cards don't get taken out.

What are you doing wrong? Applying for accounts you don't need which then prevent you from getting ones you would benefit from.   

You don't need any particular strategy other than being strategic with your applications. I understand that there is period after BK where nothing is possible, then once things get better,  people start applying for everything under the sun because it's possible, no other reason. 

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This ^^^ @tdslf1

Unfortunately, TRUIST does not allow account combinations at the present time so there's likely some duplication or overlap on those cards. Decide which single card you may want to keep -- only if you use it moderately and/or earns any type of rewards, all things considered.

[tdslf1]

Hello All,

I really don't spend too much on the store cards. Only if I go to that store. I run all my bills through currently walmart and capital one and apple without movement in limits. I thought some heavy use might make those move for the past three months and no movement in limits. I thought to close

Home

Lowe

target - just got this

amazon

care credit

credit one

 Thought about closure on 

capital1

walmart

apple

bestbuy - just got this

Truist- 2 of these. 

Then garden. Filed BK on everything.So, really good cards are off the table for now if ever. My inquiries are a mess. At least 50+.On top of big house amounts, student loan and a car note. extreme love from NAVY.