Is keeping a credit card active and not really using it bad?

[isasir]

I have a (formerly) Wingspan.com Visa which I had gotten awhile back when Gomez was offering $75 for signing up. It gives me 5% off Amazon purchases, and this is all I solely use it for. (I have 3 other credit cards). Being that I use this only for amazon, and order maybe $10 worth of items from them a month, should I just go ahead and close this card. Or, does it not really have an effect on my credit score since I don't charge much, and I always pay it on time? I figure it'll eventually come in handy when I finally decide to get a subwoofer or something from amazon.

 

[Jothaxe]

I have been told that having many credit cards looks bad on your credit report. You should stick to one or maybe two.

-jothaxe

 

[Murpheeee]

I have heard that the amount of cards you have can count against you if you are applying for a mortgage......

For example......If you have 4 credit cards each with $4000 credit line
They view it that you have $16000 "available" credit....even though you have a zero balance on each.

This can count against you when they are calulating how much loan you can be approved for..........or so I've heard

 

[cmdavid]

now i dont know much about credit, but I'm sure Rossman can help you out.. but.. I have the same thing, and i think the longer you keep the cards the better it looks for you... as long as you pay your bill right away, there's no way it can hurt you to keep it and not use it.... on the other hand, having lotsa credit cards and constantly switching and closing accounts may look suspicious and not so good.. so id say keep it, save yourself the trouble...

 

[AreaCode707]

Good question. I have one credit card because my parents insist but I never have used it. How about that?

 

[randomlinh]

use it occationally. one CC is good to have... just in case.. and to build yur credit.

 

[Sluggo]

As Murpheeee stated, its the "available credit" that makes lenders nervous. They can approve you for a loan based on your current debt to income ration. If you have 3 CCs w/ $10k each of unused credit on them, lenders are afraid you could take a wild weekend and run up every damn bit of it, therefore altering your debt to income ratio, and effecting your ability to repay the loan they have issued you.

 

[isasir]

<< As Murpheeee stated, its the "available credit" that makes lenders nervous. They can approve you for a loan based on your current debt to income ration. If you have 3 CCs w/ $10k each of unused credit on them, lenders are afraid you could take a wild weekend and run up every damn bit of it, therefore altering your debt to income ratio, and effecting your ability to repay the loan they have issued you. >>



Hmm... maybe I should worry more that AMEX Blue gave me a $12k credit line - more than my other three cards combined. :Q

 

[Sluggo]

Most of you guys are too worried. What worries them most is there are people (I know a couple of them) that have OVER $150,000+ in AVAILABLE credit ALL on credit cards. These people never cancel a card, and the CC companies continue to raise the limit on them.

 

[Pacfanweb]

Depends on a lot of factors, but if you have a credit card or credit line that's unused, it still reflects against you in SOME cases; Like if you're trying to get a loan, and you don't owe any money on the card, but it was still available...and your debt to income is marginal. They might make you close it out first.
I had this situation when trying to refinance my house after separation. I was stuck with a bunch of bills, but my debt to income was ok....except I had showing a 5,000 Sears account that we had been approved for once while getting estimates for fences. We never used it, but it was still open for use. I had to close it in order to proceed. Unique case, but in this one it did matter.

 

[Ameesh]

it doesnt hurt but you should make sure all your cards have similar credit lines

 

[chuckieland]

use your credit card alot and pay your bill on time also give you good credit rating
as oppose to someone never use credit card, then they have no credit

 

[RossMAN]

As Murpheeee stated, its the "available credit" that makes lenders nervous. They can approve you for a loan based on your current debt to income ration. If you have 3 CCs w/ $10k each of unused credit on them, lenders are afraid you could take a wild weekend and run up every damn bit of it, therefore altering your debt to income ratio, and effecting your ability to repay the loan they have issued you.

I would agree with Murpheeee and Sluggo two wise members. Personally I would keep everything the same, just DO NOT apply for any new cc's or request increases because that will probably ding your credit score (lowering it). You have the Wingspanbank VISA, I'm assuming there is no annual fee so it's costing you NOTHING to keep it open, just keep it. If you're going to apply for a large loan (car or home) and are nervous then I would seriously consider closing this cc then apply for this new loan after waiting at least 2 months, that's how long it takes the credit bureau's to update their records.

Credit cards with no annual fees and perks = GOOD

 

[isasir]

Sounds good. I'll keep it active then. Thanks all.

 

[Superdoopercooper]

<< I have heard that the amount of cards you have can count against you if you are applying for a mortgage...... For example......If you have 4 credit cards each with $4000 credit line They view it that you have $16000 "available" credit....even though you have a zero balance on each. This can count against you when they are calulating how much loan you can be approved for..........or so I've heard >>



Dunno about that...

I had about circa 6 cards with approx $10k+ limits on them when I went in for my mortgage approval, and they didn't give me a hard time. I have even more credit now (but fewer cards... cancelled/consolidated).. and I have other banks and different places just offereing me money and loans. They are dumb.

Just get one credit card for normal use... and one for backup. I have way too many to keep track of... its useless, stupid, and if someone where to break into my pad... they'd have more cards to choose from :|

But I don't think you should be too worried about having so many cards. If you are... call 1-800-yadda-yadda and cancel them mugs.

 

[StageLeft]

Why do you pot smokers carry like 5-6 cards if you don't even use them all?