Originally Posted by
Tr60
I have been monitoring closely my credit score (still in the 700s) and never carry a balance on the card.
If the card has no annual fee, I can have multiple cards for the exact same type (2 or 3 Amex hilton and 2 or 3 Freedom cards as they don't have annual fees)?
In the case of Citi, we have to close the account for 90 days before re-applying?
Should I be cancelling per the above?
There are (at least) two things to consider...
The time between bonuses differs depending on the issuer and the card. In particular, Chase can be 2+ years after canceling certain cards. They will approve you with no problem but then send you a letter denying you the bonus. Others, like AMEX, will tell you right in the T&Cs how long you have to wait. Still others, like the Citi Hilton cards, it doesn't seem to matter at all if you ever cancel or wait more than a few months or not.
The best thing to do is carefully read each thread on each individual type of card. There are stories of personal experiences with re-applying, which will give you details that are more useful than blanket statements.
The other thing to consider is how your usage pattern looks to an issuer. If you get beyond the credit score, you'll find stories of people "blacklisted" because the
only thing they do is hold every card a year or less. At some point, that could set off warning alarms that you aren't really a good potential customer, even tho your score is fine.
Part of your strategy should be to decide which you'll be holding and which you won't. If you try to strike a balance it can make manual reviews much easier.