Considering AOR in 6 Months

[KA14]

I want to add a couple of prime cards to my stash, and I'm considering an AOR in 6 months to get the job done.

Currently my FICO scores are Ex 666, Eq 686, and TU 682. I just got my limit raised on my main card (from $300 to $2,000) and lowered my utilization from around 80% down to 4%, so I'm assuming that when this bill closes, my scores will raise again. I always pay my cards off in full about a week before the bill in due, and I plan to keep my utilization around 5% for the next six months. How much do you think my score will raise by then?

Inquiries:

Ex - 9

Eq - 4
TU - 19
(A lot of my inquiries are from the auto loan, and they were all pulled on the same day.)

My current cards:
Bank of America Cash Rewards - $2,000 limit - 1y1m
Chase Amazon Rewards Visa - $1,000 limit - 1m
Amazon Store Card - $700 limit - 1m
Authorized user on my husband's Capital One - $300 limit - 1m

Loans:
Student Loan - $317 - 9m (I plan to pay this off in full next month)
Nissan Auto Loan - $32k - 3m

Income is $45k, self employed, home day care.

The cards that I want:
Discover IT
Amex BCE
Chase Freedom
Citi Simplicity
Barclaycard Rewards Mastercard
I also want to go for credit line increases on my current cards.

What can I do over the next six months to increase my score and chances of approval? Do you think that I have a reasonable chance of approval with the cards that I am applying for? Do you have any other suggestions for no annual fee, rewards cards? Thanks in advance!

[KA14]

Also, utilization question, is it better to have 5% utilization on one card and zero balances on the others, or 5% across all cards? Or just 5% total utilization?

[MT936]

you have a chance with the discover it and chase freedom but I'm not too sure about the BCE because you generally need 700+ for it. Just keep your utilization low in the coming months and the discover it and freedom should be yours. It is better to have 1 card report a 1-9% utilization and the rest 0

[KA14]

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@MT936 wrote:

you have a chance with the discover it and chase freedom but I'm not too sure about the BCE. Just keep your utilization low in the coming months and the discover it and freedom will be yours for sure. It is better to have 1 card report a 1-9% utilization and the rest 0

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Thanks for the quick reply! I will definitely do that then, I'll just use my BoA, and keep the others at 0.

Is there another Amex that I'd have a better chance getting? My sister told me that it's really important to get your foot in the door with them early because they back date all new cards to the date you opened your first card, is that true?

Also, do you think that I'd get a CL higher than $2,000 with the Discover or Chase?

[MT936]

I personally got my amex BCE at around 720-730 FICO and then got my gold charge card a year later but I would reccomend you go for their charge cards with your scores, they are usually what people use to get their foot in the door with amex and are easier to get than their credit cards, there is a annual fee but the charge cards do not count towards your utilization % which is a good thing. The green has a $95 annual fee but they all have the same requirements so you can go for the gold or platinum if you wish. As for the CL you would get its hard to predict every lender has a different way of calculating your limit but I would say your income definitely supports a 2k+ limit

[mongstradamus]

From what i have read its probably easier to get an amex charge to get your foot in the door with MSD and the such.

[KA14]

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@MT936 wrote:

you can go for their charge cards, they are usually what people use to get their foot in the door with amex and are easier to get than their credit cards, there is a annual fee but the charge cards do not count towards your utilization % which is a good thing. The green has a $90 annual fee but they all have the same requirements so you can go for the gold or platinum if you wish. As for the CL you would get its hard to predict every lender has a different way of calculating your limit but I would say your income definitely supports a 2k+ limit

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Is it reasonable to assume that due to the fact that my utilization will be much lower now that my score could raise to above 700 (20-ish points) by mid-end January?

[MT936]

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KA14 wrote:

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MT936 wrote:

you can go for their charge cards, they are usually what people use to get their foot in the door with amex and are easier to get than their credit cards, there is a annual fee but the charge cards do not count towards your utilization % which is a good thing. The green has a $90 annual fee but they all have the same requirements so you can go for the gold or platinum if you wish. As for the CL you would get its hard to predict every lender has a different way of calculating your limit but I would say your income definitely supports a 2k+ limit

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Is it reasonable to assume that due to the fact that my utilization will be much lower now that my score could raise to above 700 (20-ish points) by mid-end January?

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yes and to answer your earlier question, yes they do backdate which is why your sister was right when she said it is important to get your foot in the door with amex

[One7]

Wait until December to apply, by then your scores will have improved and even though it's the end of the year you'll still have this year 2014 on the card. Just a thought though because I'm impatient and can never wait to apply haha. Good luck

[KA14]

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@One7 wrote:

Wait until December to apply, by then your scores will have improved and even though it's the end of the year you'll still have this year 2014 on the card. Just a thought though because I'm impatient and can never wait to apply haha. Good luck

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Oh, I'm very anxious to apply but I heard that it's important to wait at least 6 months for the inquiries to not count as much on my credit score. I just got two cards last month, and a credit line increase this month... All hard inquiries and 15 in May from the auto loan. Do you think 5 months would be enough time to not scare away the lenders? Haha.