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Q&A: Too many cards?

June 26, 2017 By Liz Weston

Dear Liz: My husband and I have opened accounts to take advantage of 0% interest financing for special purchases. These accounts are paid in full prior to the end of the promotional period and we don’t use them again. I’ve read to not ever close any accounts, but am nervous about having so many accounts open with such high limits. Is there potential for issuers to stop granting us credit because we have so much available? Are we at greater risk for identity theft with all of these open accounts?

Answer: People used to believe that closing accounts could somehow help their credit scores. Credit scoring companies and experts have done their best to combat that myth, but in doing so have left some people thinking that they can’t ever close unneeded accounts. That’s not true either.

Your credit scores won’t be hurt by having “too many” accounts with high limits. That’s generally a good thing, since multiple lenders have deemed you creditworthy. You get the most credit scoring benefit, though, from accounts you’re actively using.

Leaving unused accounts open can leave you more vulnerable to fraudulent account takeover. At the very least, it adds to the hassles in your life, since you have to keep an eye on all your accounts. And conceivably a lender could balk at seeing a lot of unused credit lines, even if it didn’t hurt your scores.

You don’t want to close accounts if you’re trying to improve your scores or in the market for a major loan, such as a mortgage or auto loan. Otherwise, though, you shouldn’t worry about closing an account now and then if you’re not using it.

Filed Under: Credit Cards, Identity Theft Tagged With: Credit Cards, Identity Theft, q&a

Friday’s need-to-know money news

June 23, 2017 By Liz Weston

Today’s top story: 5 times your credit card issuer can raise your interest rates. Also in the news: 3 DIY options for making a will online, how to split insurance in a divorce, and how much you can make in the freelance economy.

5 Times Your Credit Card Issuer Can Raise Your Interest Rate
How to avoid the bump.

Making a Will Online: 3 DIY Options
Doing it yourself.

How to Split Insurance in a Divorce
Deciding who gets what.

How Much Money Can You Make in the Freelance Economy?
Setting your own schedule.

Filed Under: Liz's Blog Tagged With: Credit Cards, Divorce, Estate Planning, freelance, gig economy, Insurance, interest rates, will

Thursday’s need-to-know money news

June 22, 2017 By Liz Weston

Today’s top story: 5 questions when shopping for a brokerage account. Also in the news: Is a robo-advisor right for you, why higher prices are squeezing both buyers and renters, and how a wife got her family out of $40,000 in debt.

5 Questions When Shopping for a Brokerage Account
What you need to know.

What Is a Robo-Advisor and Is One Right for You?
A different type of financial advisor.

Higher prices squeezing both renters and would-be homeowners
A housing shortage in parts of America is leading to higher prices.

A ‘good wife’ who secretly got her family $40,000 in debt shares how she climbed back to even
You can climb back, too.

Filed Under: Liz's Blog Tagged With: brokerage accounts, debt, housing shortage, Investing, robo-advisors, tips

Tuesday’s need-to-know money news

June 20, 2017 By Liz Weston

Today’s top story: 401(k) mistakes for new grads to avoid. Also in the news: 6 financial questions you’re too embarrassed to ask, why you should scatter your bank accounts, and 5 facts that prove Americans don’t know anything about managing money.

New Grads, Don’t Make These 401(k) Mistakes
Plan carefully.

6 Financial Aid Questions You’re Too Embarrassed to Ask
We’ve got answers.

Why You Should Scatter Your Bank Accounts
Don’t keep it all in one place.

5 Facts that Prove Americans Don’t Know Anything about managing money
We need to get better at this.

Filed Under: Liz's Blog Tagged With: 401(k), banking, college graduates, financial questions, managing money, Retirement

Are you afraid to look at your finances?

June 19, 2017 By Liz Weston

Credit counselor Linda Humburg understands why many of her debt-burdened clients don’t want to open their mail. What bothers her, though, is the sheer volume of untouched bills and collection notices that some bring to their first counseling appointments.

“The shoeboxes (full of bills) don’t make my heart drop as much as the grocery bags and garbage bags,” says Humburg, counselor manager for FamilyMeans Financial Solutions in Stillwater, Minnesota.

Not wanting to confront unpaid bills is a perfectly understandable, if unfortunate, reaction to a bad financial situation. And it’s not just people in extreme debt who might be afraid to look. Many people avoid checking their credit scores or using retirement calculators because they’re afraid of what they might find.

The problem is that delaying action usually makes matters worse.

In my latest for the Associated Press, the high cost of living in denial.

Filed Under: Liz's Blog Tagged With: Credit, debt, denial, finances, penalties

Monday’s need-to-know money news

June 19, 2017 By Liz Weston

Today’s top story: 4 keys to successful debt consolidation. Also in the news: Credit card startups want to get in your wallet, financial must-do’s for newlyweds, and the best ways to get a big credit card bonus without going into debt.

4 Keys to Successful Debt Consolidation
Put those cards away.

Credit Card Startups Race for Space in Your Wallet
One card to rule them all.

Ask Brianna: What Are My Financial Must-Do’s as a Newlywed?
Starting off on the right financial foot.

The best ways to get a fat credit card bonus without going into debt
Timing is everything.

Filed Under: Liz's Blog Tagged With: credit card bonuses, Credit Cards, debt, Debt Consolidation, newlyweds, start ups

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