Opened a secured card to rebuild - should I cancel it?

[Anonymous]

I have been scouring this forum for several months and it has been so helpful. The last two years my scores were in the low - mid 500's. My negative accts started aging off my report over the past year. In August 2018 I opened a secured CapOne Platinum Card and received a CLI to $500 after 5 on-time payments. Two weeks ago my last bad cc aged off and my score jumped from 604 to 700. I started researching cards and checking pre-approvals. I was approved for the AMEX Cash Magnet with a $4k limit. I wanted to apply for another card so I have 3 reporting. And I wanted to do it before the AMEX starts reporting. I just applied for the Discover it Cash Back card and was approved for $12,500. I almost sh** my pants

My question is, now that I have the other two cards should I cancel the CapOne secured card? I'm not in a rush to get the deposit back. Just want to do what is best for my score. Do I let it age? Does closing an older card have more of a negative effect on my score than closing a younger card? And if I close it I will only have two cards reporting. I know I want at least 3 so they don't ding me. Do I wait until CapOne ages to one year, open a new card then close it?

Fico8 dropped to 696 after applying for the 2 cards. Per Experian I have:
$1200 balance Fed student loan - always paid on time
Private Student Loan w/late payments - Status listed as unknown Acct transferred to another office (New account isn't reporting). Will age off report in Jan 2020.
AAOA 11Y 1M
Oldest acct 17Y 2M
4 Inquiries

Thank you!

[DIYcredit]

Congrats, on the 100+ Fico score gain. With a clean sky's the limit from here.I would close the secured cc and with the two cc's plus installment loans always make monthly on time payments.Every credit account on your cr ages open or closed.A closed  cc account the credit limit will not be calculated into the individual or overall cc utilization.So if you can keep a low cc utilization no worries.If I were you I would let those cc's age and work up to a cc that you really want not just any cc to have three, remember no rush.Keep cc utilization 1-6% for best results especially before any app and learn the azeo method.If you can keep whatever credit account that is 17 years old open would be optimal.SMOOTH SAILING...

[Anonymous]

Thank you. I will use AZEO and very low utilization. I plan on purchasing a new car in a year or two and want to get the best rate. Hoping for 750-760 range. I'm very curious to see what the new Cls do to my score. My thought was by opening the cards at the same time they age together and I won't have new accts or HPs under 1yo. Definitely don't want a bunch of cards. I did a lot of reading and the cards I opened were the best I prequalified for and looks like many here have them. I'm pretty frugal and used to paying cash for everything. Taking advantage of the cash back and opening bonus though.

The 17yo acct was a Victorias Secret card they closed in 2013 for inactivity. Hopefully it hangs on a while longer! Thanks again!

[gdale6]

You actually need 3 open revolvers to continue to maximize your Fico score so until you obtain your third unsecured I would not close out the Cap-1. Welcome to the board

Adding: Closed good accounts remain on file for up to 10 years to help with AAoA and general payment history.

[Anonymous]

Do they take off points for having a secured card?

[800FICOGoal]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Do they take off point for having a secured card?

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No they do not.

[Anonymous]

That's a good point. I wasn't sure if it would count against me bc it's a secured card. Thank you for the info. I'm thinking I might want to try getting an increase. I know Cap1 platinum is stingy but a higher line might look better vs the highest reported balance when I close the card. Or maybe that doesn't matter.

[Anonymous]

I would wait a few months and app for my third card, then close it. You won’t need the card anymore. It may affect you but very little. ✅👍🏽

[Anonymous]

Thank you @lovelymimi. I don't need any more cards so I will hold onto it for a bit. Just want to avoid losing points. 

[dynamicvb]

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@Anonymous wrote:

That's a good point. I wasn't sure if it would count against me bc it's a secured card. Thank you for the info. I'm thinking I might want to try getting an increase. I know Cap1 platinum is stingy but a higher line might look better vs the highest reported balance when I close the card. Or maybe that doesn't matter.

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Cap One normally won't give an increase on a secured card. They will give one for the credit steps, but if you ask its probably a We don't grant increases on this type of card denial. I agree with the others, just keep for now and they may unsecure it at about a year.