Originally Posted by
koopas
I'm new to this as well. 2 questions:
-I'm seeing that many people apply and get approved for multiple credit cards with FF introductory offers. Do you folks cancel these cards eventually and start the process over of applying?
-Isn't this business of applying and cancelling cards detrimental to one's credit?
It does effect your credit, but not too much. Each credit pull can cost 2-5 points on your score. Consider each application a pull. In some cases, if you don't have a huge amount of credit already, getting more credit may actually improve your score. It all depends.
Bottom line: check your scores, and check them often to make sure you aren't doing damage.
Some people cancel quickly, but that isn't the preferred method. If a card doesn't have an annual fee, leaving it open is the best option. If it has a yearly fee, you can call when the first year (usually free) is up and try to negotiate either eliminating the fee, or getting a "retention bonus" to pay the fee and stay on board. If they are unwilling to oblige, cancel the card if it isn't worth anything to you.
All of this information is around on the links above. I'm just starting as well, but things are looking good already. Happy travels!