|
How Many Credit Cards Are Enough? In the end, your goal is to carry only one or two credit cards, and pay off the balances at the end of each month. If you've gotten carried away and have five, six, or more cards, consider the benefits of closing out most of them:
Keep it simple. Fewer credit cards will be easier to track. In addition, you'll have a much better sense of your total debt level when it's on one or two cards, rather than spread across a bunch cards. Better credit record. You'll want to have at least one credit card to help build your credit score. If you're married, your spouse should have at least 1 card in their name only, for the same reason. Too many credit cards can hurt your credit rating, (Check your credit now at CredMax.com) particularly if they all have large unpaid balances. Less temptation. The more credit cards you have, the easier it is to rationalize excessive spending. "After all, this card only has $500 on it!" (Never mind that you've got two more that are carrying $5,000 each.) But, remember that your card's credit limits are not like poker bets: you don't have to match (or much less "raise") them. Fewer cards, lower balances: that's your goal.
 |
Subscribe to this comment's feed