Post by pantsparty on Jul 17, 2013 15:10:04 GMT -5
I saw that post. Holy crap. I don't even know how one gets 12 credit cards. I mean, I know HOW, but I have 2, and that pretty much covers everything I need.
In the past, I had credit card balances for YEARS on 2 cards. I can't imagine how stressed I'd be with 12.
I mean, I guess I have a number of credit accounts b/c I have opened store cards for promos, but I only use 2 cards regularly. I would never be able to keep up with that many active accounts.
ditto. I may very well have 12 quite honestly, but I really only use a couple of them
Post by mrsjuleshs on Jul 17, 2013 15:15:02 GMT -5
I can't even imagine. It has got to be exhausting to try and keep up with all of that. I have 2, a upromise mastercard and my sears card for appliance purchases I have had since 99.
I had a friend who applied for every single store to get the perks. We went out to lunch and she had a binder with like baseball card pages of credit cards. It was disturbing. Her wallet is normal sized now, I wonder what happened with that.
I saw this the other night, I'd never be able to keep track of them.
And I kind of wondered why she doesn't cut down on something one time per month and pay off the lowest balanced one (to get her started). Then take the minimum balance from that one that she was paying and save it to pay off the next highest. Her lowest balance card is only carrying 70 some dollars. She has the minimum payment of 25, so scrape together the 50/60 bucks she needs and pay it off. Then she has an extra 25 each month to put towards another card.
All of the cards carry such low balances, save for the few that are 1k+
Post by RoxMonster on Jul 17, 2013 15:29:18 GMT -5
I honestly probably have 12-15 cards if you count my store cards. BUT I only have one credit card (my Visa) I use with any regularity. Plus if I use a store card to get an extra discount, I always immediately pay off the balance in store. I am paranoid about CC debt.
She's asked for help in eliminating the debt and at least trying to fix it.
Signed, Started $$MM with 6CCs and 1 LOC.
FWIW, I now have 1 major CC that I use for travel, an Am/Ex for everyday purchases (paid off monthly as its a charge card) and 3 open, but unused CCs so I can keep my stellar credit rating while we buy a house.
I just checked and I have six major issuer cards (Visa/MC/AmEx/Discover) and five store cards (Target, Nordstrom, J. Crew, Amazon, and Home Depot). It's no big deal at all, since I never carry a balance unless I'm taking advantage of a promotional APR; for example, I only have the Home Depot card because they offered 0% for 24 months, and we were buying a washer and dryer set anyway.
I have 19 cards...none are store cards and none have balances. I vary the couple I actually use based on promos, points, trips planned, etc.
That said, I have over 130k of available credit and my credit score is great. Long explanation of why and how, but it's fine if you are smart and don't live outside your means! (and for me, that means paying off balances and not buying things I can't pay off!)
Post by fuckyourcouch on Jul 17, 2013 16:14:24 GMT -5
i probably have 15-20 CCs counting store cards. i don't carry a balance on any of them (except a small balance on my care credit card that is getting paid off in 6 months at 0 interest or whatever). oh and my home depot has a small balance because of 0 interest as well.
i agree with @misoangry this is only a problem if you carry balances.
I have three major cards, but only use 2 regularly. H uses the 3rd one since it's our only joint c/c. I also have a few store cards, but rarely use them.
Carrying balances on 12 cards would drive me crazy. I'd do whatever it takes to pay that shit off, and consolidate any that I could.
ETA: Just looked at the MM thread. Those interest rates are killing her + the minimum payment is really high on c/c #10.
Just saw the post on MM -- when I worked in debt collection a few years ago I experienced debtors who had situations similar to hers, they got in trouble with credit cards in college and it carried over into their adult life. I saw people at all stages, from the ones who just went into default on one card but have many more that are behind, to the ones who have multiple accounts closed with thousands of dollars in balances and just don't give any fucks about paying them. Now having said that I just checked and I have 10 credit cards if you count store cards but I don't carry a balance on them from month to month. I have a Sears Mastercard that I used once to buy a TV with 0% interest, and I know some people who open major cards all the time to get free airline miles and stuff. I don't think it's all bad all the time.
I have a card for just about any store that offered me a perk. BUT...I pay them in full every time I use them so it isn't a big deal for me to have that many cards.
There is no way I could sleep at night carrying a balance that I couldn't pay off!!!