Which should I ditch (if any)?

[Deleted User]

Hi guys,

I guess my query is regarding available credit to income ratios. I currently have the following CCs:

HSBC £7200 limit.
Barclaycard Gold £3000 limit.
First Direct Gold £3000 limit.

Plus £250 First Direct overdraft.

So £13450 available credit against my annual income of around £35000.

All of these cards have negligible balances and I clear them by DD each month but I want to apply for a cash back CC (Probably AMEX platinum cash back) sometime in the next few months and start using that for most purchases.

I figuire that although my credit to income ratio isnt huge it might be worth getting rid of at least one of these cards before applying for the Amex (again, I applied in Jan 12 and was declined!) To that end, which do you think should be dropped? I don't really need the credit limit of the HSBC but at the same time the account has been open and run fairly well for about 8 years - is it worth keeping it open for that reason alone and maybe just requesting a limit reduction? Will having 3 CCs already damage my next application?

Also (and finally) how long should I wait before trying with Amex again? 6 months? A year? I'm not in a rush to get the card so not really too bothered about waiting till next year - think I've applied with Amex three times in the last 10 years or so and they've always declined! This will be my last pop at it I think as I'm in the best financial position I'm ever likely to be in.

Any thoughts?

Stereo

Personally, I would keep the HSBC card open if it's your oldest account. Perhaps think about a limit reduction? Or even close one of the other two cards if you don't get any benefits from them...