Does REI mix with Travel Hacking?

[Ronnie Carney]

I have been pondering this lately.  I'm still in the education and learning phase of my journey, and I'm about one year away from purchasing my first property.

My wife and I like to earn hotel points and frequent flier miles via credit card signups. As a result I have about 32 credit cards listed on my credit report.  Only 12 of them are open, and I only use 3 of them.  I have NEVER paid interest on credit cards, paying them off in full every month.  Like I said, they only exist for the travel benefits.

So will this unusually large number of credit cards on our reports impact our ability to obtain mortgages, or multiple mortgages?  The only debt we have is the mortgage on our primary residence.  In anticipating the start of our journey, we have tapered off new credit card applications since January, but it hurts to pass up on so many lucrative offers.

Are there any other people out there like me, who have forayed into travel hacking? Should we give up on our credit card hobby to make REI work, or can the two co-exist?

If there are any mortgage experts out there, what are the chances somebody like me will qualify for multiple mortgage loans (one a year, plan on having 20% down.)