BOA or Citi?

[BluePoodle]

I really had planned on aping for a second AMEX card this year but nothing really strikes my fancy this Jan when I was planning to apply.  Not really even sure I need or want another card other than to diversify and increase CL for util.  

I received two offers recently, Citi Bank Diamond Preferred  and Bank of America Cash Rewards Visa.  Honestly, the Citi card looks worthless with no rewards, a shorter 0% APR and higher APR afterwords. So I am really not considering it.  But what about the BOA?

I am more interested in if they will offer me a larger starting CL.  I really don't want to apply with anything under $5k. Any thoughts?

Also my Amex is going to be eligible for the 3x CLI request (181 day request) on Jan 12. I am guessing I should put in my CLI request BEFORE apping for anything, correct?  I currently have a $4.5K limit with them and would love to at least get countered at $10k or the full $13.5K I will be requesting. But I don't want to jeopardize that request with a new ap.

As always, I appreciate any thoughts and feedback!

[Anonymous]

How old are the CCs you already have open?

[BluePoodle]

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@Anonymous wrote:

How old are the CCs you already have open?

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Cap1 - 2yrs in April
Discover - 1 year just this month
AMEX, Barclay, Target - 8 months old this month

Chase Disney 4 months and Slate 2 months

[kdm31091]

I kind of think the BOA Cash Rewards may be a bit superfulous for you if you have an Amex ED. You have to use the ED at least 20 times a month to get the extra points. If you have BOA Cash Rewards for other categories you may not get much benefit from your ED. ED is meant to be a main spending card.

The Citi Diamond preferred is basically a worthless card unless you need a 0% APR period. It doesn't have rewards, although it has some sort of "Citi Easy Deals" thing that sounds like it is kind of like rewards, but not.

[BluePoodle]

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@kdm31091 wrote:

I kind of think the BOA Cash Rewards may be a bit superfulous for you if you have an Amex ED. You have to use the ED at least 20 times a month to get the extra points. If you have BOA Cash Rewards for other categories you may not get much benefit from your ED. ED is meant to be a main spending card.

The Citi Diamond preferred is basically a worthless card unless you need a 0% APR period. It doesn't have rewards, although it has some sort of "Citi Easy Deals" thing that sounds like it is kind of like rewards, but not.

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Yep that was kind of what I was thinking. I do meet the 20 swipes per month for my 20% bonus with my ED. Like I said, it will be for diversification and util. But not really sure it is worth the HP so I haven't applied yet. I have seen some decent initial CL's reported recently with BOA, so that would be a reason I would consider applying though.

[Anonymous]

If you want a 5K+ starting limit you may need to wait a while still unless you have a pretty high income. All of my cards are very young in age and I didn't start getting 10K plus starting limits until I started to use my full income on my applications. Once I did then larger starting limits were no problem. I would say in my experience income is way more closely tied to starting limit while credit score and history are more closely tied to APR. Others may agree or disagree, but that is what I have personally noticed on my 14 recent new accounts. 

[Anonymous]

Also do you pre-qualify for any of the more value added Citi cards on the pre-qual site? I agree the Diamond Preferred is totally useless unless you need a balance transfer or want to buy a car at 0% on a CC.

[BluePoodle]

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@Anonymous wrote:

If you want a 5K+ starting limit you may need to wait a while still unless you have a pretty high income. All of my cards are very young in age and I didn't start getting 10K plus starting limits until I started to use my full income on my applications. Once I did then larger starting limits were no problem. I would say in my experience income is way more closely tied to starting limit and credit score and history are more closely tied to APR. Others may agree or disagree, but that is what I have personally noticed on my 14 recent new accounts. 

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Thanks! I will keep this in mind.  I have not checked on the pre-qualified sites. These were mail offers I received and I am less familiar with Citi and BOA products so I wasn't really shopping around with them anyways.

[Anonymous]

I'm not really a fan of the rewards structure of either of those cards. If you're looking for a good rewards card from Citi, the obvious choice is the Double Cash. If you're looking for a good rewards card from BOA, a strong (albeit less obvious choice) is the Better Balance Rewards.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

If you want a 5K+ starting limit you may need to wait a while still unless you have a pretty high income. All of my cards are very young in age and I didn't start getting 10K plus starting limits until I started to use my full income on my applications. Once I did then larger starting limits were no problem. I would say in my experience income is way more closely tied to starting limit and credit score and history are more closely tied to APR. Others may agree or disagree, but that is what I have personally noticed on my 14 recent new accounts. 

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+1.  A high score and a decent income = High starting limit.