Most people know that a
checkered credit history can disqualify you for a home loan, and maxed-out
credit cards can do the same thing. But what most people don't know is that
merely having a large number of credit cards, even with low balances and a
history of timely payments, can disqualify you for a home mortgage loan just as
quickly.
According to credit experts, having a number of
credit cards can be just as detrimental to the granting of further credit as a
history of late payments. Lenders look at it this way: If you have ten credit
cards, each with a limit of $5,000, that means you have the potential to run up
$50,000 in debt virtually any time you choose. That mere possibility makes you a
greater risk, from their point of view.
The moral of the story? If you are planning to
apply for a home loan in the future, keep only those credit cards you actually
need to use and cancel the others.
