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Credit Card Blog - If I Have 5 Cards, But Only Use 1, Does It Hurt That I Don't Use the Other 4

 Wednesday, 29 August 2007

If I Have 5 Cards, Does It Hurt If I Only Use One?

It is not an uncommon practice for someone to have more than one credit card. In fact, upwards of 5 credit cards is not that uncommon either. But is that a bad thing? Many people may have 4 or 5 but only use one of those. Does that hurt your financial standing? Even if you only use one and set the other 4 aside?

Those Other Cards Are Backups

First of all, having 5 credit cards may not be that great of an idea to begin with. But only using 1, and keeping those other 4 hid away for the merchants does not actually affect you. The less you can run up in credit card debt or payments the better. So you actually are doing yourself a favor by not spending freely on multiple cards. Multiple cards can be become troublesome when you decided to use all of them, for whatever reason. That is why it is always stated to be smart with your finances and know what you are getting into. Because having 5 cards is a good way to lose control and make some mistakes that will cost your credit score and finances dearly.

Don’t Keep Applying For Those Cards

The real trouble comes when you keep applying for credit cards. If you have 5 credit cards, and applying for them over a good amount of time, then you won’t take a major hit on your credit score. If you applied for, and receive 5 credit cards at the same time, then that is not good. That sends off some sort of red flag with the creditors, and makes them believe you cannot handle your finances in a good way. That is not something you want to make them think. But do not go and cancels those cards at the same time either. That is equally as bad. That also sends off the same signal of not being able to control your finances. You would think that by canceling accounts you show them you are managing things better. But it could make them think that things were getting on top of you.

So what you want to do is find a nice midrange. So maybe only apply for a card every 9 months or a year. But when you have reached 2 or 3 cards it will be time to stop. Because you have already stated that you do not need 5, which is why 4 are rotting in your wallet. So just do not have them. If they are store credit cards then that is another thing. But you really want to steer clear of store credit cards anyways. They do a lot more harm than good.

Don’t Become a Slave to the Credit Cards

Do not think you need to apply for credit cards by the bundle. Just stick with you 1 or two, and manage those correctly. That is your best options, and can save you from a world of hurt. Show that creditor who is boss. Do not let them push you around.

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Wednesday, 29 August 2007 17:33:01 (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)  #     
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