We’d all like more money, right? I can’t imagine anyone I know turning it down. Most of the time when we think about acquiring more money (winning the lottery, inheriting from a long-lost relative, finding a small pile of it in the driveway), we think about all the fun things we could buy or the exotic places we’d visit.

But sometimes having more money – or to put it more precisely, access to more money – means something else entirely. It’s still a good thing but you probably should think twice about buying that boat or booking those flights to Bali.

You may find yourself with access to more money on your credit card because your credit limit has been increased. There’s a small caveat here – just because the money is available doesn’t mean you should spend it. So your immediate reaction of “Cool, they just increased my limit on my credit card, let’s go shopping!” should be replaced with “Hey, I’ve got available money squirreled away on my credit card should I ever really need it.”

Here’s why: The more credit available but not used by you will increase your credit score. It’s called increasing your capacity and it counts for 30% of your credit score.

Let’s look at Susan and Jim. Married couple, combined accounts, and shared credit cards except for one with an $18,000 limit that Jim has in his name only. He’s never used it but because he has the ability to borrow that money, his credit score is 50 points higher than Susan’s. And the only thing he did differently than Susan was to increase his capacity, the amount he can borrow.

Here are some great things about having an increased capacity:
•If you ever have an emergency and need to book a last minute flight, rent a car or need emergency home repairs, you can easily tap into your increased limit. There’s nothing worse than having to scramble around, applying for a loan, or having to call your credit card company at the last minute to ask them to increase your limit.
•It provides a cushion should you suddenly find yourself without a job. Once you’ve lost your job, qualifying for more credit can be very difficult so it’s smart to take it when it’s offered.
•Think of it as a kind of teaching tool, showing you how to control your spending. You’ve got to be very disciplined with a credit card.

The key to enjoying these benefits is to keep your debt to no more than 30% of your capacity. In other words, if your card has a limit of $10,000, make sure your bill is never more than $3,000. It’s fine to go over that occasionally, but try to avoid maintaining a balance higher than that or chances are your credit score will decrease.

Also, having a high limit on one credit card is far better than having lots of smaller retail cards. It’s too easy to build up balances on several cards and lose track of the total amount you owe. With one card, you can see the whole picture. Plus, it’s much easier to make one payment each month than five or six, each with a different due date. If your credit limit is increased and you have balances on several cards, it’s probably a good idea to consolidate all of them onto one card.

Remember this: If your credit limit is increased, it’s because you’ve earned it with your responsible behavior. With access to more funds, you’ll have the ability to improve your credit score. And you just might sleep a little better, knowing you have an emergency fund should you ever need it.

Terri Mossbrucker is the Member Solutions Manager at Elfcu, where she has contributed her financial knowledge for the last 18 years. She loves teaching members how to restructure debt, avoid bankruptcy, improve credit scores, and keep their houses. She and her husband Mike have two grown sons, Trent and Kyle, who are both college football coaches. The Mossbruckers are avid sports fans.