Surprise results from my CC app mini-binge this week. A little background first:
BK13 filed in 04/05 with discharge in 10/07 and have been on the straight & narrow since. Home mortgage secured 10/07 without going subprime, GEMB/WallyWorld CC ($500CL) and BoA Platinum 99/500 for about 18 months now. Only one hard pull on my CR back in April when considering a refi on the home. All scores 724-726 as of this month with 700+ for over a year now.
Despite the current economy, decided to make a run for another unsecured to help rebuild scores with strategic use.
Applied for Visa with Suntrust (my bank) after conversations with local office saying "90% sure" I'd be OK, but declined anyway due to public record, length of accts, # of recent inquiries (WTH with the last one? Only 1 pull in 6 months!). The rejection resulted in me making a strategic swing @ low-hanging fruit since I had one hard pull now and no plans to do anything major soon so might as well hit a few more times.
Requested CLI on the BoA 99/500, hoping to go unsecured but still waiting on the letter. Not getting hopes up, but at least it was not an instant "no".
CA for ExxonMobil MC (Citi) and went down in flames due to BK history. Backdoor reconsider gave me a flat "No credit from us if BK is on ANY report, even if past 7 years". I questioned this wording--they verified if it shows @ all (10 years), then no credit. Don't know if I missed this on the boards or new hard-nosed approach from CITI, but be advised & save yourself the hard pull!
Hooters turned me down immediate on the website! So did CrapitalOne after online chat with CSR assuring me the "No Hassle Cash Rewards" should be no problem to secure. I know times are tough and CC lenders running scared, but this was getting really annoying!
About to give up on the mini-binge, I decided nothing to lose in giving HSBC a try based on the boards here. Gave it a go on the pre-approve soft pull and was approved. Went for the gusto and approved with $500CL. Not much to brag about, but still a victory! 
And now the amazing part.....
HSBC--my last resort for the night and the only one to actually extend credit to me--was the mortgage holder of my prior home that I surrendered during the BK and mortgage was IIB! No idea what this experience really means (if anything), but though I'd share the outcome so that others might not give up like I was about to due to old history and assumptions that bridges had been burnt. It is a strange world out there right now!
Now for some quiet time for my scores so they can recover from me beating on them this week!
