Closing Credit Card Accounts?

My husband %26amp; I have 20+ major CC Accts balances on 7 all each having $28k-$2K limits. Credit scores are 715/725 respectively. Each a separate Am Ex, Bank Am, Disc, 2 each Citibank,1 Capital One, Him- 2 Chase, Me-3 Chase, 1 WaMu, 1 GE, 1 GM, 1st National of Omaha. Opened at varies times due to new offers of lower rates %26amp; such. Wanted to close in writing all but maybe 1 of each kind, Visa, M/C, A/E %26amp; Disc; in our different names. Is this a good idea?

Closing Credit Card Accounts?payment calculator

Yes, you have too many credit cards.

You can just call the cards that you want to cancel and do it over the phone.

Closing Credit Card Accounts?

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NONONONONONO... IF YOU CLOSE YOUR CREDIT CARD ACCOUNT YOU CUT YOUR HISTORY AND THAT MAKES UP 35% OF YOUR CREDIT SCORES... JUST DONT USE THEM IF YOU DONT WANT TO..|||I just found out, from my Credit Union that closing accounts really kills your credit score. Better to pay them off and just not use them. Shred the cards and have fraud alert put on the accounts.|||No it is not a good idea. Your credit score is also based on how many credit cards you have and how you use them. If you cancel most of them, it will adversely affect your credit score. You might want to cancel some of the newest ones you have and do it a few at a time.|||A big part of your credit score is based on the ratio of revolving debt to available credit limit. When you close credit card accounts you decrease your overall limit, thus increasing the debt percentage of any balances. Carrying balances of more than 30% kills your score. Before you consider closing any credit cards, pay off all balances first.

Keep your oldest credit cards that don%26#039;t charge annual fees. When you close accounts, you close the history too.

While many will tell you to keep all those accounts open, I suggest that you only keep the two oldest major credit cards per person and close the rest. Your score will take a hit but it will rebound quickly. Having a stack of credit cards just for the sake of having the cards is silly and dangerous. All those cards have to be secured and monitored. They are just an opportunity for theft and fraud.

If you do decide to close accounts, do it via letter and request confirmation that the account is closed and 0 balance. Closed credit card accounts have a habit of coming back to life.|||For more info, check out some articles about FICO 08. If you do decide to close any, you definitely want to keep your oldest accounts. Also, realize that if you total the limits of all those cards, you have several thousand dollars of available credit, giving you a good ratio. Closing accounts will lower your available credit, making the ratio appear to be higher.|||Yes, close them. You can do it over the phone, but I would ask for confirmation in writing. Wait till you receive the confirmation, then destroy the cards. It may have a slight adverse effect on your credit score; but it will bounce back quickly if you keep everything current. If at all possible, close the newest accounts and those with lower credit limits. Call on the older accounts and ask them to match the lower rates you%26#039;re getting with other cards.|||There is absolutely no reason to have this many credit cards. That much credit can lead you into spending temptation and debt; and you can%26#039;t maximize the rewards on any individual card.

Yes, it can help your credit score if you have a high ratio of available credit (high limits) to debt (amount owed). But it%26#039;s more important to have a strong history of managing that credit responsibily.

First I suggest canceling any card with an annual fee. That%26#039;s an unnecessary expense, given all the options out there.

Then cancel the cards with the highest interest rates. Ideally, you%26#039;d pay off the entire bill every month and not get charged any interest, but of course that isn%26#039;t always feasible.

Then focus on keeping cards that offer rewards - cash back, airline miles, etc. Decide which rewards you would really benefit from the most.

Also, try to transfer your credit limits to the few cards you keep, or keep the cards with the highest limits.

Visa and Mastercard are pretty much accepted everywhere equally, so you can pick one or the other, you don%26#039;t each need both.

You can close in writing or over the phone, but over the phone they will try to talk you into keeping the card or switching to another, so ask yourself how firm you are before calling.