Will this hurt my credit score??

I don't think it would hurt her credit score to close all 5, or at least leave one account open and maintain a $0 balance. Nobody needs 5 credit cards, so if she has 1 in addition to your mortgage and your equity loan, that should be sufficient as far as the credit scoring goes.

Yes you will take a minor hit for all revolving being closed. Once your cards are paid off and you feel comfortable doing so,start adding about one card every six months to improve your utilization and scores.

Okay, I was wrong there, so thanks for your post cajun! I just don't get why it is necessary to have to do that. It's like saying, "Yeah, I can get credit, I'll open numerous accounts to prove it." I know that just because you have the credit available doesn't mean you have to use it. But, I think this is too big a temptation, or a crutch to a lot of people, and they find themselves in a mess.

Then again, Bureaus and credit industry are in bed together, so this makes sense from that standpoint. Set the consumer up for a fall, because it is so profitable to us.....

The reason for the ding in this case is by closing all revolving your utilization section of score will fall because it shows no available credit.

Yes the whole stuff is all about debt to credit ratio. It is calculated by dividing the total credit limit of all your credit cards and loan accounts by the sum total of the actual debt. Now, by closing the accounts, you are reducing the credit limit you have. It reduces the ratio thus adversely affecting your score.

Nelly

I want a '0' score!!! Not owing anything to anyone is looking better and better.

From what I have read, if you want to keep some cards-keep the accounts open that you have had the longest. When I bought my last home, the guy doing my loan was actually going thru my credit report and circling the accounts that I had a long history with. That was a plus in getting a good rate on my loan.

I was told too at the time that the store credit cards weren't that great to keep unless it had a Visa or Mastercard logo on it.

Accounts that have a positive payment history helps in bumping up your score. I have seen people closing old accounts that have positive history in the hope that their score will increase but alas their score took a dip :(