Store cards are like many things, good and bad. They are easier to qualify for generally, which can be helpful to those starting out or rebuilding. On the other hand, major credit card issuers also know this, and therefore look on store cards less favorably than a major credit card. This becomes a major problem if starting out you use the SCT and such to wind up with a slew of low limit store cards. I have seen more than enough evidence to convince me that this often leads to low limits or rejections from prime issuers. A couple of store cards in the mix will certainly not tank your score, and many I've seen here love their Lowes card. Caution should be used to not allow it to be the major part of your portfolio IMO. I personally have no store cards, but do have the Citi Costco Visa, and the Chase Amazon Prime Visa co-branded cards.
I see your point, and thanks for replying!
I am curious about one thing: Is it possible to have a good Fico score (something like 700) with just store cards? I am curious as to whether Fico's algorithm views store cards differently (as lesser is what I mean) than bank cards.
Store cards won't harm any of your FICO scores, but they will harm the LexisNexis credit score used in the determination of your homeowner's and auto insurance rates. The reason for that is that statistically, people with store cards are more likely to make claims. (If you live in California, Hawaii, or Massachusetts, insurance companies aren't allowed to use credit as a means to determine rates.)
As mentioned, lenders may not like it of you have a wallet full of store cards. But that has to do with what appears on your credit report rather than how your score shakes out. Co-branded "major" cards, i.e. those with a Visa, MasterCard, or AMEX logo are perfectly fine. Those are simply reported as a Citi card, Chase card, or whatever.
well this post is kinda useless now as OP edited it many times and ultiamtely removed their post.. I would repost their post, but instead will just lock the thread as out of context and only the original people that saw this post might have any idea what OP was referring to.