Speedwerx, the company that you're talking to is correct BUT when lenders see that you have kept a credit card in good standing for 6 years, they will know that they trust you and start you off with say, $1k or more.

You don't need to worry about credit limits at all. The BOA secured card you have there will take care of that. Once BOA unsecures that card, they will return your deposit and give you an increase to at least $2k (my assumption). All you need to focus is on not applying for anymore cards because as ColoNative stated, new inquiries and the new accounts are hurting your score. You will also see an increase in scores once you get those baddies removed from your credit reports.

I remember when I started with BOA in June 2007. It was my second credit card and they started me off with a measly $700 CL. After 6 months, I requested an increase a $300 CLI to bring my CL to $1k. That was after many telephone calls I made to their customer service and one of their supervisors told me that they couldn't give me an increase because it was a student card and that it was sufficient for my current expenses. She had the nerve to say that when I charged about $500 a month and paid it off in full before the statement closed. I had that card converted to the WorldPoints Visa when my account turned a year old and they gave me a $1k CLI to $2k. Now that same account is at $3.5k and I continue to use that card heavily because I know will give me a nice increase every 6 months.

So here's what you need to do

Thanks hjm331 for consolidating everyones comments concisely. I'll apply the advise given and keep everyone updated. Thanks again all.

Speedwerx, the company that you're talking to is correct BUT when lenders see that you have kept a credit card in good standing for 6 years, they will know that they trust you and start you off with say, $1k or more.

You don't need to worry about credit limits at all. The BOA secured card you have there will take care of that. Once BOA unsecures that card, they will return your deposit and give you an increase to at least $2k (my assumption). All you need to focus is on not applying for anymore cards because as ColoNative stated, new inquiries and the new accounts are hurting your score. You will also see an increase in scores once you get those baddies removed from your credit reports.

I remember when I started with BOA in June 2007. It was my second credit card and they started me off with a measly $700 CL. After 6 months, I requested an increase a $300 CLI to bring my CL to $1k. That was after many telephone calls I made to their customer service and one of their supervisors told me that they couldn't give me an increase because it was a student card and that it was sufficient for my current expenses. She had the nerve to say that when I charged about $500 a month and paid it off in full before the statement closed. I had that card converted to the WorldPoints Visa when my account turned a year old and they gave me a $1k CLI to $2k. Now that same account is at $3.5k and I continue to use that card heavily because I know will give me a nice increase every 6 months.

So here's what you need to do:
1) Close your CorTrust and both of your First Premier cards
2) Get the baddies removed from your credit reports.
3) DO NOT close your Orchard Bank card. As long you can get the annual fee waived or removed, keep it open! It's the backbone to your credit score!
4) Don't worry about your credit limits.
5) No more new applications.

cortrust - agreed with others - this provides no benefit to you
orchard - agreed with others (unfortunately). average age = 1.2y with orchard, 0.7y without.

if you don't plan on using orchard, they'll probably cancel the card eventually. your recent AOR does hurt your score for now but it sets you up nicely for some credit card "rebalancing" later on. by then, you can drop orchard with minimal impact.

since you mentioned a concern of many tiny balances i would also try to shift your credit limits. i may be wrong, but i think many (recently opened) balances is a concern. the size of the accounts is not.
- merrick to hooters ... hooters limit = 2000
- 2005 fp to 2004 fp ... 2004 fp limit = 1250

i too am surprised as to why you're keeping one fp over the other (instead of putting both on your short list).

Pardon my ignorance but what is AOR? My thought on keeping the one First Premier was the longer history. Also could you please explain what you mean by "shift your credit limits"?

cortrust - agreed with others - this provides no benefit to you
orchard - agreed with others (unfortunately). average age = 1.2y with orchard, 0.7y without.

if you don't plan on using orchard, they'll probably cancel the card eventually. your recent AOR does hurt your score for now but it sets you up nicely for some credit card "rebalancing" later on. by then, you can drop orchard with minimal impact.

since you mentioned a concern of many tiny balances i would also try to shift your credit limits. i may be wrong, but i think many (recently opened) balances is a concern. the size of the accounts is not.
- merrick to hooters ... hooters limit = 2000
- 2005 fp to 2004 fp ... 2004 fp limit = 1250

i too am surprised as to why you're keeping one fp over the other (instead of putting both on your short list).

Like HJM said, you will want to try to keep the Orchard card since it is now going to be 6 years old. History is a large part of your FICO score. My suggestion would be to call them up and request that annual fee be waived. At any rate, if you do decide to close those accounts, specifically the Orchard, you will take a hit on your score-temporarily. Eventually over a few years it will not be a big deal. Having said that, you also don't want to open any new accounts for at least a year because a new account will bring your average history down a lot.

Also, as far as the 6-7 year old collections those have to be removed at 7 years. I would track down what company has it and call them to have it removed. If they refuse contact your states Secretary of State or Attorney General to complain. Also, dispute them on the credit reports as being past the statute of limitations.

Thanks for the tips, regarding the collections...the problem is that the collection agencies are a part of a consortium. I take great steps to having them removed only to have them sell the debt to either a sister company or an affiliate! Of course when this happens the debt is then re-dated and the process starts all over again.

Thanks for the responses, My concern quite frankly is my score dropping for any reason. I thought that perhaps I now have too many cc's more importantly several with "low limits". I was told by a noted credit repair company that this was not optimizing my credit score, not only affecting initial limits given to me by new creditors, but also weighing in negatively on my ability to secure large unsecured credit.

In terms of credit usage, I keep my monthly balances between 5-20% at all times. My use of the cards has only been to facilitate building credit. I simply substitute my cash purchases for the card and pay them off monthly without issue.

Just a note; I am also combating 3 re-occurring 6-7 year old collections (medical) and a 6 year old hospital judgment. Not being sure how these are specifically affecting my score, has me a bit crazed about doing the things that I can to optimize my credit score.

Like HJM said, you will want to try to keep the Orchard card since it is now going to be 6 years old. History is a large part of your FICO score. My suggestion would be to call them up and request that annual fee be waived. At any rate, if you do decide to close those accounts, specifically the Orchard, you will take a hit on your score-temporarily. Eventually over a few years it will not be a big deal. Having said that, you also don't want to open any new accounts for at least a year because a new account will bring your average history down a lot.

Also, as far as the 6-7 year old collections those have to be removed at 7 years. I would track down what company has it and call them to have it removed. If they refuse contact your states Secretary of State or Attorney General to complain. Also, dispute them on the credit reports as being past the statute of limitations.

Thanks for the responses, My concern quite frankly is my score dropping for any reason. I thought that perhaps I now have too many cc's more importantly several with "low limits". I was told by a noted credit repair company that this was not optimizing my credit score, not only affecting initial limits given to me by new creditors, but also weighing in negatively on my ability to secure large unsecured credit.

In terms of credit usage, I keep my monthly balances between 5-20% at all times. My use of the cards has only been to facilitate building credit. I simply substitute my cash purchases for the card and pay them off monthly without issue.

Just a note; I am also combating 3 re-occurring 6-7 year old collections (medical) and a 6 year old hospital judgment. Not being sure how these are specifically affecting my score, has me a bit crazed about doing the things that I can to optimize my credit score.

Welcome to FG and thanks for the in-dept posting, it really helps us out when we get ready to respond to you.

Two things I am surprised of:
1. Why Hooter's did not try to match Merrick Bank?
2. Why Orchard did not offer you an increase since 2003 and if they did, why so little?
Other than that, I agree with hjm, this is the reason why I have kept Orchard for so long. I try to tell people that when they apply, especially in the beginning, to apply for a plenty of cards at the same time because you do not want a gap in your first card. Had you been approved for at least 2 or 3 other more cards with Orchard in the same year, you could have closed all 3 since you had some others to back up your 5 year history.

So you have 2 First Premiere cards? I think I would have added that to the top list too because you have some nice cards on the bottom. HSBC is not one of our best cards around, but they do add to the rebuild lists. To answer your main question, yes your scores will drop. I don't know how you feel about your scores at this time, but they drop everyday and they will really drop if you bring your balance up pretty high. It is not going to look good on your behalf since you have 6 new accounts less than one year and only one from a 5 year history (If you decided to close).

At this time, I would hold on until I get ready to apply for non sub-primed cc's, at least you would not really argue with scores dropping because it is for the best, and they will re-increase again much faster than it did from when you first started to rebuild. Let your 2008 new accounts age some, and the credit crisis reduce before making a move. Go check yourself in the Credit Addict Club to keep your fingers off of the Luv Button so you will not cause any damage to your other cards.....lol.

I wouldn't close the Orchard Bank card. It has a longer history than your First Premier card opened in 2004 and it may have a higher interest rate, you can avoid it by using it for a small purchase and pay it off before your statement closes.

I would close both First Premier cards and the CorTrust card. The Orchard Bank is your oldest and most valuable card and it does not contain fees such as the First Premier cards. Other than that, you're in good shape and don't apply for anymore credit cards because you will end up closing a lot of the ones you will not use. I'm telling you this from my experience. A year ago, I opened about 14 new credit cards and now I'm down to about 6 of them. I started closing the ones that I didn't need or use.

Hello,

This is my first official post and I'd like to begin by thanking all of you for your commitment to this site and the purpose it serves. The 4 short weeks I have been a member here has proven to be invaluable. The wealth of knowledge and candidness on display here has served me well.

Now that I have successfully attained within the last 4 weeks both a Hooters Mastercard and a BoA Visa(secured). Id like to now rid myself of 2 or 3 cards which have served their purpose namely:

Cortrust 2006, $500 limit (29% apr $60 fee)
First Premier 2005, $600 limit (18% apr $70 fee)
Orchard Bank 2003, $500 limit 18 (21% apr 60 fee)

That said, I intend to keep/maintain:

Merrick Bank 5/2008, $1500 limit
HSBC 11/2007, $650 limit
First Premier 2004, limit $650 limit
Hooters 12/2008, $500 limit
BofA 12/2008, $1200 limit (secured)
Best Buy 12/2008, $3000.00 limit
Kays 12/2008, $3,300 limit

Understanding the importance of credit history, my question is: If I close the 3 bank cards mentioned, exactly how will this affect my credit score? Also how will this be viewed by future creditors? And are there other variables to be considered in addition to credit history when closing certain accounts?

Thanks in advance for your answers