This was the last brand of card that I wanted in my card portfolio and previous attempts had been very unsuccessful. I wasn't going to apply again until some of my inquiries fell off and my scores were in the mid 700s (currently high 600's and low 700's). BUT, then I saw a promotion that Chase was having giving a $100 cash back check for new accounts (given that you spend $799 on the card within 3 months), plus 5% cash back on quarterly categories, with no annual fee. I thought this was a great offer and decided to try my luck again. i got the "7-10 days decision" message and almost gave up. I'm the most impatient person I know and I like instant gratification so I decided to call the backdoor number and got a scary sounding lady. She looked up my info and said "Sorry, it looks like you've been declined for excessive inquires". Ughh!
I took a deep breath, put on my brave face and told her that I would really like to be reconsidered as I feel I should not have been declined. She verified some more information and asked about my recent applications for other cards as well as asked about my student loans. I told her that I have not had any lates in over 3 years including all my other cards, and mortgage. She did some more searching and asked me my income which I told her ($85K). She said okay, hold on and I'll try and re-open your application and see what happens. She put me on hold for about a minute while I held my breath. When she came back she said "Okay, you've been approved for the Chase Freedom Visa for $5K and will be getting your card and welcome package within a week". Woohooooooo!!!!! My very first successful recon!!
By the way last year my only cards were subprime one's with credit limits no more than $400 and annual fees up to $50/year. This year I was determined to step out and be among the chosen ones. The order of my applications are:
1. Discover More (instant approval for $4,500)
2. Nationwide Visa (instant approval for $1,500)
3. Amex Green (instant approval)
4. Bank of America Cash Rewards (approved after calling in for decision- $5K)
5. Chase Freedom (approved after recon $5K)
I also applied and got approved for store cards: ValueCity ($2.5K), Sears ($1.7K), Jcpenny ($1.4K).
The cards I was declined for were USAA , Amex Blue and Citi.
By the way, my scores less than two years ago were in the low 400's. I have since cleaned up my credit and gotten a mortgage among the above successes. I'm done applying for now until my old inquires fall off and then the last card I want to add is the Amex Blue that I hope to product change within the next two years. I pay off all cards before they are due but allow a little balance to post once in a while and then pay off immediately. Now that I'm done applying, my scores can continue to climb and recover from those inquiries.
Good luck to everyone out there looking for a break!!
Starting Score: 452
Nicely done! I received my Chase Freedom Visa (non-signature) and Bank of America Platinum Rewards Visa today. I totally forgot about the $100 bonus, thanks for reminding me!
And good luck on getting the Blue Cash, I have a feeling it will be your primary card 
Congratulations!!
