I assumed you didn't want me to keep buying poultry 
Thank you all!
@Anonymous wrote:I assumed you didn't want me to keep buying poultry
Ha!! You mentioned Dave Ramsey in your original post. I believe he was the one that said you have to spend $100K just to score in the 800's. If that's the case, I would rather have most of that in the bank. At the end of the day, it's a game of give and take with creditors, and we have to just play along I guess.
@Anonymous wrote:Friends,
I feel like I've asked versions of this question over the last several days, and now I've gotten to the root of my question.
How do I relearn how to use credit?
I did Dave Ramsey and went through a phase where I believed credit was bad, unnecessary, etc. I paid off my house during this time as well.
Now, I've gotten reorganized, realize the benefits of credit, etc.
My open lines are below in the signature line. My scores are all high 700s.
What is the optimum use of the credit that I have? What should I be doing and why?
Do I need any additional credit lines? For example, should I get a share loan @ PenFed? (I have no installment accounts open).
As you see, I have four credit cards (three in hand, penfed in the mail) and one personal line of credit.
Thanks for going with me on this journey
P
1. Your existing revolving lines including the PLOC : Pay in full every month. Let one report a small balance while the other 3 report zero balances. The reason: to ensure that you have optimized your utilization factor across all FICO scoring models.
2. No you do not need any additional credit lines.
3. You can pick up points in your FICO 8 and FICO 9 scores by getting a share secured loan and paying it down to 9% of the loan amount. The question is how long will you get to keep that scoring bonus, and the answer varies from lender to lender, depending on whether the large prepayment will accelerate the due dates or not. NFCU is the only lender I know of that can be relied upon to leave the due dates where they are.
Congratulations on being in an excellent financial position, @Anonymous, even if you feel you are having to "relearn" how to do credit cards!
As you've come to realize, Dave Ramsey's approach to credit cards has its' disadvantages. Sure, if you're financially-independent, you don't NEED a credit score so maintaining it is "unnecessary" to him. However, a credit profile isn't built overnight and having a credit profile to support any borrowing you want or need to do is just part of smart financial management to most people. And it doesn't have to cost you anything to use credit cards. In fact, many of us on My Fico are at the point in our journey that we make credit cards work for (and PAY) us! Even Dave would have to love that! 
If you're going to use cards to build and maintain your credit score, you might as well use cards that benefit you financially with rewards!
I don't use debit cards and I rarely use cash. Using my credit cards to primarily pay for most charges allows me to earn rewards on most everything I buy. I also have the consumer protections of a credit card that aren't available with a debit card or if I lose a wallet-full of cash. Cards are easy to freeze or cancel if they are lost or stolen. Statements then allow me to track my spending easily. Mobile Apps have made managing cards easy and quick. I prepay many of my charges before they even hit the statement balance but sometimes I allow charges to post to statement. Either way, your lenders are reporting "paid-as-agreed" monthly to the credit bureaus. For cards that I choose not to carry for daily spending, I suggest getting them out a couple of times a year to put a few charges on them to keep them open and "current". Otherwise, they could be closed for non-use.
If there are not fees charged to do so, I use my cards to pay utility bills and other such charges. Some people even use them to pay their taxes. While my electric and gas bills are paid by card, I have my water bill deducted by EFT from my bank account since they charge a processing fee.
Something stands out at me. For someone with a Dave Ramsey background and in your finanical position, I would expect to see a much heavier focus on maximizing either cash-back or travel rewards. Your cards don't really do that very well for what I would consider most spending profiles, but you may be an exception. Two of your cards don't earn rewards at all (US Bank Platinum and PenFed Gold). Those cards are fine for people carrying a balance or wanting BT offers, but that doesn't seem to fit your needs. Unless you have a very high natural (organic) spend on airfare and hotels and unless you can easily recoup the credits, the AMEX Platinum card to me seems an odd choice for someone with a thrifty Dave-Ramsey background. That $550 AF can be difficult to recoup for many and the earnings rate on anything beyond airfare and hotels is not special. And while the US Bank Cash Plus is a great card, it limits your best rewards to just three categories and the two 5% categories are capped at $2K spend per quarter or about $153 per week. There's nothing wrong with the AMEX Platinum and Cash Plus, but they potentially leave a lot of unclaimed rewards on the table. So the question would be, what categories are your highest spending?
You seem heavily invested in US Bank, so have you considered the Altitude Reserve Visa Infinite in lieu of the AMEX Platinum? For a lower AF of just $400, and with $325 in travel category credits, the effective AF is just $75. You earn 5x points on prepaid hotels and rental cars, 3x points on travel (including not only airfare but also taxicabs, limousines, passenger trains and cruise line companies.) Moreover, you get 3x points (3%) back on all mobile wallet purchases. Not to mention a host of Visa Infinite perks as well.
I would highly suggest you consider a card that gives you the best flat-rate cash back you can earn if you don't want to dabble in multiple cards. At the minimum, having a single card that earns a flat, uncapped and uncategorized 2% would be a good target. The Altitude Reserve would come close to fitting that need and could double as your travel card. Or you could have just a travel card (AMEX Platinum or Altitude Reserve) combined with a good 2%+ card for "everything else."
Other good options might include:
3% uncapped and uncategorized:
AOD FCU Visa Signature
https://www.aodfcu.com/personal/credit-card-signature/
My AOD FCU Visa! 
US Alliance FCU Visa Signature
https://www.usalliance.org/banking-products/credit-cards
2.5% uncategorized:
Alliant CU (Illinois, not Iowa) Visa Signature
2.5% capped at $10K spend monthly; $99 AF waived Year 1
https://www.alliantcreditunion.org/bank/visa-signature-card
2% uncapped and uncategorized with no AF:
Fidelity Rewards Visa Signature
https://www.fidelity.com/cash-management/visa-signature-card
2% when redeemed into Fidelity investments account
PenFed Power Cash Rewards Visa Signature
https://www.penfed.org/credit-cards/power-cash-rewards
*2% if veteran or with checking account
As a veteran, this is my personal favorite
(of the 2% cards, excepting AOD FCU)
and one that I highly recommend. 
Citibank Double Cash
https://www.citi.com/credit-cards/credit-card-details/citi.action?ID=citi-double-cash-credit-card
State Department FCU Premium Cash Back Plus
https://sdfcu.org/premium-cash-back
Synchrony Bank PayPal Mastercard
https://www.paypal.com/us/webapps/mpp/credit-card/2-percent-cash-back-mastercard
There are about a dozen other cards that can pay 2% including some from First National Bank of Omaha (FNBO), Key Bank, BBVA, Randolph Brooks FCU, Pennsylvania State Employees CU (PSECU), and others. Some are geo-fenced.
Hope this helps you see how you might adjust your profile to make it more useful to you! Best Wishes on your journey!
