Thread: Is one credit card enough?

Hey Everyone

This is a very general question. Obviously, the situation changes from person to perosn.But,assuming we have a person earning an average salary of 40,000 USD per year.

He just has one credit card which he pays regularly and he does not have any debt. Its a run of the mill 2500 dollar card. He is more of a Debit card person. He just bought a 3000 dollar 97 Toyota Corolla on a check. He does not have any auto loans, any home loans. Basically - a person who is living end to end but without much savings.

How much will his credit score be? Can he ever reach 750 -800 mark?

Does he have the centurion card from American express( also known as the Black)?
If he does then the answer is yes if it's not let me know I will answer your question.

Money card I believe that's impossible for someone to have on a $40,000 annual income considering to have a black card the minimum you have to spend per year is $250,000 and there is a $5000 annual fee.

He could have a gold or platinum Amex.

Thanks for the reply-Money Card.

I am basically that kind of person. Except maybe for home-I prefer to buy everything on a Debit card. I havent yet reached that age of having to buy a home for myself.But, Credit check implications here in USA seems to extend more than just a mere credit check.

Ok-back to the question --He just has a 2500 Wells Fargo card.Not an American Express Centurion Card.

I think I know what you mean. which credit card does he have? I would say if he has a store charge card like Lor&Taylor , wal mart
Kohls , home depot any 1 of those or something similar but he only has1 that's not a good idea. but if he has a major credit card like Visa , Mastercard , American express or Discover that's ok that's fine.
1 of my co workers has 1 credit card, my cousin has 1 and another co worker has 1.

he just has to be careful with his debit. let's say his debit gets stolen. the person can run the card as credit , the money comes out of the bank just about the same as if it was debit. your friend can lose a lot of money. I think the 1 credit card is a lot safer.

So, you say that he does have a chance of reaching the 800 mark then?

Originally Posted by kamikaze

Ok-back to the question --He just has a 2500 Wells Fargo card.Not an American Express Centurion Card.

Wells Fargo Visa Card to be more specific

I don't think I've necessarily heard anything bad from having just (1) credit card since you pay in full, have no debt, etc. I forget where I've seen this, but I remember reading online about a member who only had one card through Amex since the 80's or something. The score was possibly around the 750 mark, not sure though.

I'd speculate it's not bad, but having more than one can benefit you if want to raise the credit score a bit, since you'd have a little more revolving credit. Though if you're into rewards etc, having a gratuitous amount of cards would probably limit your maximum reward earnings for each respective card.

Like the users above mention though, I use it to pay everything for its security measures. If the card is stolen, the CC company will help rectify it/credit the money back to you/etc. Your debit card has immediate access to your money- I had my card number taken from ordering from the UK once, and though they refunded the money back to my account, several attempts were made to be charged to the debit card shortly after. I ended up canceling the card and getting a new one.

Thanks ivotedale for the reply.

I have a Wells Fargo Visa Secured Card of 1500.I intend to make it a 10,000 usd credit limit by putting in money in a span of maybe 6 -12 months.

I am not sure whether that would hurt my score since I have a single credit card. But, it would certainly help me in keeping a tab on my expenses.It would tell me exactly on what I usually spend on.

What do you guys think?

Kamikaze 1 credit card under wells fargo is fine. there's nothing wrong with just having 1 credit card, like I said before I know people who have their own place and they only have 1 card. from 1987 around there up until 1998, I only had 1 credit card for those 11 years.

I forgot to ask 1 important question - does your friend travel on business?