January 19,2009
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Trimming your Credit Card Collection, Pt.1 –
– Your Credit Card Tree.There can be many reasons for closing credit card accounts. Have too many and they're hard to manage? I currently have 34, all in good standing. When it came time to phase the last one out for a new one, however, I had the hardest time getting it straight. The new credit card just happened to have the same ‘last four digits' as the one being replaced and was also a VISA. This is when you realize that only these last four show up on receipts, auto-pay setup screens and, even the maintenance page for the accounts themselves. I ended up having to wait out two billing cycles to find out which payments were going against which credit card.
Having to many credit cards also makes it harder to sense when we're getting in over our heads. (For some of us, it only takes one card to do this.) Other times, the deal goes sour between you and the lender. There are many reasons people have for losing credit cards, some founded and some not.
Since not a lot is published about gracefully closing accounts, this may be a good time to explore that adventure. Reasons are also suggested, giving the pros and cons for many of those reasons. So, here are some of the suggestions and their implications. As in so many things, timing can be important. Bad timing when closing credit card accounts can haunt a person for a long time. So, when you decide it's the time to finally do, please keep these considerations in mind:
If you're financially ‘set to go': Don't worry about it. If you're "...drivin' down the road in your big Cadillac, both hands on the wheel and your shoulders right" as Roger Miller might say, you're good to go. You may not even need credit cards. Just remember that other things come into play. If you plan to rent anything substantial (like a house) or changing jobs, credit stability can weigh heavily for these opportunities. Of course, a good credit score in other areas can make a big difference, too.