What would you do with this credit profile? I need your expertise.

Question

Hello MyFico Community,
I am trying to build a decent credit profile. Is there anything I should be doing or not doing to improve my Credit Profile? Currently I have one foot in the Garden-LOL!For the last coupe monthsI have been receiving a lot of mailers, Citi, BoA, US Bank, AARP and a few others, so its  sort of tempting.  My Fico Scores are:
760, 755 & 756. These scores are from my Discover, CapOne and Barclay statements. Goals scores are 800 across the board.   Reports:
All reports are clean, 100% on-time payments, nothing negative reporting. Inquiries:
I have 7, 6 and 8 inquiries showing on my reports.AAof Credit:  Not sure about this Experian/Credit.com- 6.7 years. Credit Sesame says 1.8 months?   Accounts:The accounts with balances will be paid to $0 by June 26th.Account Name:            Credit Limit:            Balance: 
Amex Everyday              $10,000                    $286
CapOne Venture            $10,000                    $1112CapOne QS                    $5000                       $555CapOne Platinum           $6800                        $0   Aviator                            $4000                        $0J.Crew                            $4000                        $0SportsmanGuide            $2500                        $0
Discover                         $2000                        $0
Target                             $200                          $0
Wells Fargo                    $1700                        $0  I've begun using QS and Amex (0%APR) as main go-to cards. 
Was also thinking i’d put everything I can on cards and PIF each month to take advantage of the 0% and rewards.
Is this a good plan? I'm still learning how to best utilize my portfolio. Are there other cards I should look at acquiring?  I appreciate any input.

Answer 1

 
Re: What would you do with this credit profile? I need your expertise. 
Options06-15-2015 05:49 AM - edited 06-15-2015 06:03 AM
What I'd do doesn't really matter.  These are not one-size-fits-all matters so each needs to determine his/her own strategy and tactics based on the individual's situation, goals, priorities, preferences, etc.  IMO you don't know what to do because you're not clear on these matters.  Very True, I am not clear but with the help of the community giving me things to consider I am getting there.
You need to define what you needs/want and then prioritize that list.  That will give you a list of critiera that you then use to select cards that suit you. Thanks. Good way to focus my thinking about it.
Rewards is a common criteria and if rewards matter to you then you need to look at your spend and where your money is going to select rewards with the most benefit to you. Since i’m going to be using a main CC, I’d rather have cash rewards first or rewards that are versatile for gift cards. I already have a travel card that works well for me so thats not that important.
RandomSpirit wrote:
AAof Credit:  Not sure about this Experian/Credit.com- 6.7 years. Credit Sesame says 1.8 months?  Thanks. Was wondering where they figured this. AAoA is just an average like any other average.  Add up the ages of the accounts and divide by the number of accounts.  Many find it easier to convert into months, calculate and then convert back into years.  You can use Excel and its date formulas if you don't want to do this manually.  There are also online AAoA calculators.  Experian is more likely to be correct.  CS is probably providing AAoOA.
 RandomSpirit wrote:
Was also thinking i’d put everything I can on cards and PIF each month to take advantage of the 0% and rewards. Is this a good plan? You're really not leveraging a 0% offer if you're PIF'ing each month.  However, if you're not PIF'ing each month on cards without 0% offers then you're killing rewards.Okay this is confusing, would you mind clarifying? The Amex and QS have 0% interest for well into next year (not sure of exact date, I will look up again) so it would seem that it would not matter if i carry balance or pay in full until the real APR begins next year.
So whats the best way to utilize these as my main cards to get as much cash back(QS) and MR point as possible. Carry balance or pif, or does it not matter in this case for now?
 RandomSpirit wrote:
Are there other cards I should look at acquiring?  As with all other request you need to tell us what you need/want so we have something to use to narrow down the options for you.
Now, I am leaning towards low interest being the most important to me, secondly would be cash back.
RandomSpirit wrote:
Was thinking about BoA Cash Rewards offer for 12.99 because of the lower interest rateHere's an example of why a prioritized list of criteria matters.  If the lowest possible interest is a priority above all else then you shouldn't be looking at rewards cards as they typically come with higher interest rates.  If you want the lowest possible APR you need to fins a barebones card.  They're offered with rates as low as 6.x% depending on what you qualify for. This is most important to me
That said, rewards and a low APR aren't mutually exclusive but typically rewards cards will come with a higher APR as you aren't getting something for nothing.  While I do try to get my APR's as low as possible you might want to consider why APR is a concern if you're paying in full. In case I ever have to carry a real balance.Not telling you what to do here but consdier such things when prioritizing your list.  For example: is a lower APR more important than the biggest rewards for your spend?
 RandomSpirit wrote:
Citi Dble Cash and, perhaps
Chase Freedom for sign-up bonus?
Honestly, I was thinking  to have a more diversified portfolio. I don;t have any Chase or City cards.So far we have:
• 1 Low APR
• 2-High rewards rate on non-category spend (Double Cash)
• 4-Sign up bonus
• 3-Diversity
Which is most important?  Which is least?  Where do the rest fall?  We can't tell you this.  You need to tell us.
Again, I'd recommend looking at your spend and ensuring that your card lineup maxmizes rewards on your spend.  The Double Cash is a good option for non category spend but if you haven't found higher rewards for a major spend category that you have then you might want to look into finding something for that category. Thanks for taking the time to offer your suggestions Tekeshi74. If gives me a lot consider.