@Abelcrdn wrote:
So i went on an app spree for literally every card I have ever wanted and use every single one of them for the various perks! How can I best let these cards grow? I'm not planning on buying anything or needing my credit at any point this year. My Citi & Us bank Cash + are both on 0% promos until next year. How do you guys manage multiple accounts to ensure you don't miss a payment? Thanks!!
1.) Amex BCE $1,000
2.) Amex Delta $2,000
3.) Costco Citi $6,500
5.) Barclay MC Rewards $7,500
6.) Southwest $2,700
7.) Alaska $2,800
8.) Us Bank Cash + Visa $2,000
9.) NCFU $2,600
Congrats on a VERY successful app spree! I read through most of the thread and you've gotten a lot of good info...but here are my two cents LOL.
GROWING CREDIT LINES
1.) AMEX CARDS - 3X CLI's
- Amex only allows 1 CLI request every 180+1 days THIS IS ACROSS ALL YOUR CARDS with them
- @3X CLI @ 61 days - you can request a CLI equal to 3x's your starting line @ 61 days. Do this on the DELTA Card ( 3 x $2000 = $6000 )
- Amex SOFT PULLS Experian (constantly) before requesting your 3X CLI wait for AMEX to update your FICO Score in your online account.
2.) COSTCO / CITIBANK
- Citi likes to seem some usage for new accounts, you will see online a CLI request. make sure it says they won't pull your report.
- Usually they look at EX & EQ
3.) BARCLAY MC REWARDS
- Barclay can be a bit tricky, but I've had great experience with them. I have the Arrival+. I was declined instantly online in March, BUT APPROVED for $5000 on recon call. It's now at $20,000 with only 1 additional TU hard pull.
- Call the customer service number after you 6th statement and ask if there are any offers to lower your interest rate. You should get transferred to a specialist that can look at lowering your interest rate AND THEN YOU CAN ASK THEM ABOUT A SOFT PULL CLI ...DO THIS EVERY 6 MONTHS.
- Use the card wisely, pay it in full every month. NEVER run the balance up past 20%-30% at any time, make early payments to keep it down.
- Don't let a statement cut with a balance greater than 10% of the limit UNLESS the balance is from a BT.
- Barclay is known for wanting to be your primary card.
- They like your TU profile since you got a $7500 SL.
4.) SOUTHWEST / CHASE
- Chase is hard for credit line increases...
- Use the card (lots of swiptes & spending)
- PAY THE CARD TO A ZERO BALANCE AT LEAST TWICE EACH BILLING PERIOD
- AFTER 3RD STATMENT THEY WILL SOFT PULL BOTH EX & EQ AND IF YOU'VE DONE THE ABOVE PROB GIVE YOU A HEALTHY AUTO CLI
- my CSP went from $5k SL on 5/3 to $10k on 8/5 after following this process after my 3rd full statement
- my RITZ card was opened on 10/2 with a SL of $20k and is coming up on 3rd full statement. I've put $20k thru card in 3mths & have a $0 bal hoping fo a big auto cli
5.) ALASKA AIRLINES / BANK OF AMERICA
- Huge Growth Potential but will usually cost you a TU HP
- In your online account you will see a link show up to request a CLI ( usually every 90 days)
- Be smart with your requests...make sure your TU scores are UP when you pull the trigger on these for maximum increases
6.) US BANK CASH+ *** Can be challenging...search the forum info and compare profiles of memebers who have had success with them.
7.) NFCU - This card has the greates (short term) growth potential for you. I'm not a member but from the posts it can grow very fast to $25k or more
KEEPING TRACK OF PAYMENTS
1.) Make sure you enroll for online access to all of your accounts through each bank/card website
2.) Sign Up for MINT.COM - it's free and is great for keeping track of balances and now also tells your when payments are due.
3.) I use my bank (BofA's Online Banking & Bill Pay) for making my payments it's easy and most payments sent this way post the next day to my CC acounts.
4.) IF you bank offer's Bill Pay + Ebills (by CheckFree) which a lot do..this is helpful for seeing statements keeping life organized as well.
5.) IF you CAN'T keep track, sign up AUTO pay through each card and set it to pay AT LEAST THE MINIMUM each month so you don't MISS any payments
MANAGING YOUR CREDIT
1.) Sign Up for MyFico's 3B Monitoring Service. It updates your FICO 8 scores constantly as creditors report your accounts each month.
2.) Keep your total revolving credit usage under 10% reported (total of your credit card credit lines x 10%) to max your scores
3.) #2 is important right now as you are trying to grow these new cards. Usually anything under 30% overall utilized is considered "Good"
4.) #2 & #3 - Overall Utilization makes up 30% of your FICO Score
5.) Most creditors report your balance when your statement cuts, so if you've got a high balance on a card when the statement cuts thats what will get reported.
6.) Invidiual card utlization matters...over 30% on a single card will usually result in a hit to your score, even more when it's 50% and big hits at 70% & 90%
7.) Try to keep most of your cards at a $0 balance reported allowing only 1 or 2 to ever report a balance (this helps maximize score)
Sorry for the essay post but hopefully this helps and gives you a head start. This FORUM IS AWESOME. We are all here to help each other. The only dumb question is the one you DONT ASK. Good Luck and again congrats on your spree!!!
who do you suggest 3 and who do suggest the 6?
