I have a score of 770 according to creditkarma, and my latest free credit report looks okay, except I have a new card I applied for within the past three months. I got it, a MasterCard, and I had applied for it since I read it was good to have at least one MasterCard to go with all my VISAs... don't know if that suggestion had any merit. I have a Discover, three VISA and one MasterCard to my name. The ones I don't use are the oldest, and so I am not going to close those. The new ones are the Discover, which I like for the cashback deals/promos, a Chase freedom, and a Capital One Cashback card.

A lot of credit card stuff sounds and feels like black magic, so I figured I might ask the gurus before I embark on the next mission, which is...

I am thinking of applying for a couple of miles or rewards points oriented cards. I can think of three I'd want to apply for now. Chase Sapphire, SPG, and United Miles. Will applying for (and hopefully getting approved for) all these adversely affect my credit score? This is important since it is quite possible (>80% chance) that we'll be applying for a mortgage within a year, pending a couple of decisions related to home buying.

Also, any suggestions on what cards to apply for, provided I should be okay applying for new cards?

Does it really matter if I get rewards I can convert to miles, or is cashing out rewards in real $$ the better option? We do one or two domestic air trips and one international trip each year, on average.

Thanks!

Yes, applying for these cards will adversely affect your credit score, but likely only a small bit and for a small chunk of time. Still, conventional wisdom on FT is to not apply for credit cards within 6 months - 1 year of applying for a large loan. The increased interest can easily negate any benefit from the bonus miles. If I were you, I'd wait until I had my mortgage settled and then apply to my heart's content.

If you're >80% sure that you'll be applying for a mortgage in the near future, I would hold off on applying for any new cards until after that's completed. Getting the best possible rate on a mortgage will benefit you more over the long term than some cc sign-up bonus(es).

As for what to do once you are ready to apply. If you normally fly several times a year, it can definitely be worth it to churn a couple of travel cards. The sign-up bonuses are generous, and you actually get some perks when flying (free luggage, early boarding, etc).

Unless you're getting 5% cash back (like you can with Discover sometimes), my preference is to go with the travel rewards instead of cash back. The 3 cards you suggest are good ones -- SPG is an excellent program if you need to stay in hotels a few times a year (cash&points is great value) and they can be transferred to a host of mileage programs too.

Sounds good, looks like I will hold off on new cards for a bit.