Could use a new card.

[Equinox]

I currently have three credit cards and a store card.

Those being

Cap One - 500

Cap One - 750 (No Hassle Rewards)

Credit One - 400 - this card sucks i know.

Old Navy Store Card - 100 (recently slashed from 500 with a 0 balance, wtf)

I'm only 21 and have a credit history of 1.5 years. 

My FICO score at the moment is at 711/TU 739

Never ever had a late payment and am at about 20% utilization. The FICO report likes me, only thing that hurts is my credit history.

However, I would like a new card - these limits are way too low for me and I'm the type who likex to buy more expensive items on my cards but i can't really buy the Dell 24 inch i've wanted for a while with one of those and pay it off over time because it'll have a high utilization.

Case in point - I'd like a credit line that is at least in the 1500 range but i have no idea where to find that, and given the credit crunch we're in at the moment i don't even really want to apply. I have seen people combine Capital One accounts but I'd rather not lose the history i have on them. My C1 is the oldest card i have and the 750 one was opened in May. My brother, who works for US Bank suggested i get a major bank card like Bank of America, I'd really like to aim for one i can get though with said credit limit. Any general suggestions?

[Anonymous]

I have been a customer with Bank of America since I was 16 years old.  I did not get a credit card with them until September of 2007 and that was a huge mistake on my part. 

I was making a deposit at the drive thru and the young man told me that I had an offer to get a credit card with a $7500 dollar limit and he needed my approval to process the information.  I said what the heck and did not fill out any information other than a signature sent back through hitting send to teller. 

Two weeks later I received the BankAmericard with a $7500 dollar limit, however, I did not open it for about one month because I forgot about the moment in the drive thru.

I am sorry for ranting but I will give you my opinion on what you should do.  I would open a checking/savings account with Bank of America.  If you give it about a month or two with your credit scores they will have a nice pre-qualified offer for you at the bank.  When you get the card and the nice cushion of available credit I would look for your scores to make a nice move upwards.

You must remember that Bank of America takes care of it's customers by giving them high credit limits and nice CLIs when possible.  Do not ever ever ever ever ever pay your bill late because your interest will shoot through the roof.

If you decide to get a Bank of America credit card and you are not a member of the bank your credit limit might not be as generous, nevertheless, the card should give you a higher limit than what you have available right now.

Good Luck--TheTaxMan

[Anonymous]

When I was building my credit I used Capital One and Orchard Bank to build my credit history.  Capital One was not generous with my CLIs when my credit score really started moving upwards in the world of credit and Orchard Bank charged a $59.00 fee.

Down the road I decided to cancel both cards because I used them to get better cards where respect is given for responsible credit use.  I do not tell people to close cards, but I am just letting you know that when you are done with particular cards move on from the relationships.

Hence, credit building is the stage you are in right now, but you will one day be credit gardening!!!  Think four years ahead versus just today with credit.

TheTaxMan

[Itsmeagain]

I know many folks don't like HSBC but I love my Best Buy store card.  They offer 18 months interest free on any purchase above $499.  With your scores you should have no problem getting the credit line you need.  I believe you would stand a better chance by apping in the store.

[score_building]

---

@Equinox wrote:

I currently have three credit cards and a store card.

Those being

Cap One - 500

Cap One - 750 (No Hassle Rewards)

Credit One - 400 - this card sucks i know.

Old Navy Store Card - 100 (recently slashed from 500 with a 0 balance, wtf)

I'm only 21 and have a credit history of 1.5 years. 

My FICO score at the moment is at 711/TU 739

Never ever had a late payment and am at about 20% utilization. The FICO report likes me, only thing that hurts is my credit history.

However, I would like a new card - these limits are way too low for me and I'm the type who likex to buy more expensive items on my cards but i can't really buy the Dell 24 inch i've wanted for a while with one of those and pay it off over time because it'll have a high utilization.

Case in point - I'd like a credit line that is at least in the 1500 range but i have no idea where to find that, and given the credit crunch we're in at the moment i don't even really want to apply. I have seen people combine Capital One accounts but I'd rather not lose the history i have on them. My C1 is the oldest card i have and the 750 one was opened in May. My brother, who works for US Bank suggested i get a major bank card like Bank of America, I'd really like to aim for one i can get though with said credit limit. Any general suggestions?

---

before you combine the cap1s simply confirm that you will keep the age of the older account (most who combine reportedly do) and you'll be pretty close to your 1500 right there.  see if you can get a cli as well by calling a backdoor number for cap1 once you have at least 6 months on both cards.  there's no rush to do this necessarily but considering your stated goal and that multiple low limit cards are unlikely to serve you well in the long term it may be the most logical next step on your way to higher limits.

boa is a great lender to get in with and generally offers good cl's and cli's

check the boa's pre approval site, you may find a card that appeals to you that you are preapproved for:

BoA

https://preapproved.bankofamerica.com/cc/SelfInquiry.aspx

boa seems to pull EQ reports for these, but they typically pull EX and sometimes TU as well for the real thing.

i wish i had got in with a good cu when i was your age you should consider this no matter what you decide about apping prime lenders.  cu's generally offer good limits and increases on their cards as well.  moreover they are not acting out against their members in the way banks are against their customers due to the credit crunch.

[Equinox]

Thanks for the suggestions guys. I tried the backdoor number for Capital One and got a pleasant lady who basically said Capital One wasn't giving anyone CLI's due to the state of the economy and the only one she approved today was for 250 dollars. She also said that my account was not eligible for customer requested CLI's. I think I've heard that before and it's pretty absurd.

So I think i should just go ahead and combine my Capital One cards and tell them to keep the one with the longest history and lose the one i've had for six months. That'll leave me with two credit cards and the Old Navy store card. Is this a good thing to do? How will it affect me in terms of looking for a new card and my current score?

[MidnightVoice]

You could join your local credit union and try them.

Or the bank that you use regularly

[Anonymous]

I would dump CreditOne before apping with BOA.  Better bet is a credit union.

[n2win]

A  secured card is one way to get a higher limit.

In my case, with no "positive" credit in many years, I talked to my bank at the time (Wells Fargo) and although they wouldn't/couldn't approve an unsecured card, with my deposit, I was able to get a card with a $2000 limit (still my highest) and a few months later, BofA approved me for an unsecured card.

Just a thought...

[wmarat]

As always, I suggest BOA secured card or/and local CU.