Looking to begin/expand churning!
Hey FT-
I've been reading here for a while, but haven't posted much yet! I'm hoping for some insight/recommendations going forward so that I don't make rookie mistakes, and hopefully a question I have answered as well. I've read through many posts, and all this information has my head spinning a bit. I'm sure this is one of the most typical threads, but I didn't want to hijack someone else's with my own situation.
First off, a little bio:
I'm 25, 790 FICO score, ~$20K annual CC spending. The question I have is regarding becoming a homeowner. I plan to purchase a home probably the end of 2013/early 2014, and I'm not sure if churning is not recommended before a mortgage app and, if so, roughly how long before the app I should go with no credit hits.
My current cards:
Citi TY card (2006, keeping open for history)
Citi AA personal (08/2010, opened w/ 75K promo)
Citi TY Premier (10/2011, opened w/ 50K promo)
Chase Freedom (06/2010)
Chase CO (11/2010, opened w/ 50K promo)
Chase UA (02/2012, opened w/ 60K promo)
My basic plan, going forward, was to apply for the Chase SW card and, if pended, call and see if I can transfer/close the Chase CO card onto/into the new one. In addition, I have a targeted AMEX PRG offer (75K points w/ $1K-3mo) that I'm interested in. I have no relationship with BofA or Barclays or AMEX at this point.
Furthermore, I haven't actually "churned" any of my cards yet. All the cards I've opened are for the first time, and I haven't closed any yet. I got back the annual fee on the CO card by calling, and I don't pay any on the Citi cards, but I'm not opposed to paying an annual fee if the rewards for the card are worth it.
I'm hoping for some recommendations or pointers on where to go next, though. I'm only operating on about 6 years of credit history, but I have a good score and a substantial amount of revolving credit, so hopefully that means I can allocate around at least what I have with Chase if I go for the SW card.
I appreciate the vast amount of knowledge on these forums, and hope to eventually be able to contribute more on my own! Thanks in advance!
-roki