Does Discover "like" thick/aged squeaky clean files?

[Anonymous]

I've read on here that Discover tends to be generous at times at letting people in that have either thin files, some bad stuff on their files, have young files, etc... but what about on the opposite end of the spectrum?  How do they view sort of the polar opposite? 

My father is in his 70's has only has one "real" card, a CSR with a $26k limit.  His only other revolver is an Amazon card with a $6k limit.  The CSR has been his daily driver forever; he's had an account with Chase for probably 30 years.  Like many people in his age group he's quite set in his ways and trying to get him to consider opening another card is a challenge.  Just today his Chase card was closed due to fraud on his account.  As a result he'll be without a card for 5 days which of course is irritating, especially this time of year.  I'm trying to convince him to be proactive and pick up a second card so that if/when this happens again (this was the 3rd time BTW, granted its been decades) he's at least got another go-to in his wallet.

I've recommended Discover to him since it's a card I picked up this past summer and really like it.  One thing he's pretty big on however is his credit limit; he likes having a healthy credit limit as he's known to go after big purchases on occasion (nearly $10k on a new TV this past summer for example).  He's under the impression that if he were to apply for Discover or any new card really that they'd start him with a tiny limit.  I told him how they started me at $12,500 and my profile isn't half as good as his.  But then I got thinking, and maybe Discover "likes" less established profiles more?  Anyway, here's a quick summary of what I believe his profile looks like:

Probably about 8 accounts on his reports.  AAoA definitely 10+ years, oldest account probably 30 years.  820-830 scores.  One HELOC.  100% positive payment history.  Single digit utilization.  Either 0 or 1 inquiry (possibly 1 from that Amazon account but that's it).  He's retired with income at $60k/yr.  As stated earlier, only 2 open revolvers of $26k and $6k.

Can anyone guess what Discover would possibly throw him as a SL with a strong profile such as this?  I've explained to him that Discover can grow rather nicely, but he's the type of person that didn't even know you could request a CLI until a month or so ago when I twisted his arm to do it with his Amazon card.  Any feedback here would be great, especially from anyone that my possess something similar to what he's got going on.

[csryang]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I've read on here that Discover tends to be generous at times at letting people in that have either thin files, some bad stuff on their files, have young files, etc... but what about on the opposite end of the spectrum?  How do they view sort of the polar opposite? 

My father is in his 70's has only has one "real" card, a CSR with a $26k limit.  His only other revolver is an Amazon card with a $6k limit.  The CSR has been his daily driver forever; he's had an account with Chase for probably 30 years.  Like many people in his age group he's quite set in his ways and trying to get him to consider opening another card is a challenge.  Just today his Chase card was closed due to fraud on his account.  As a result he'll be without a card for 5 days which of course is irritating, especially this time of year.  I'm trying to convince him to be proactive and pick up a second card so that if/when this happens again (this was the 3rd time BTW, granted its been decades) he's at least got another go-to in his wallet.

I've recommended Discover to him since it's a card I picked up this past summer and really like it.  One thing he's pretty big on however is his credit limit; he likes having a healthy credit limit as he's known to go after big purchases on occasion (nearly $10k on a new TV this past summer for example).  He's under the impression that if he were to apply for Discover or any new card really that they'd start him with a tiny limit.  I told him how they started me at $12,500 and my profile isn't half as good as his.  But then I got thinking, and maybe Discover "likes" less established profiles more?  Anyway, here's a quick summary of what I believe his profile looks like:

Probably about 8 accounts on his reports.  AAoA definitely 10+ years, oldest account probably 30 years.  820-830 scores.  One HELOC.  100% positive payment history.  Single digit utilization.  Either 0 or 1 inquiry (possibly 1 from that Amazon account but that's it).  He's retired with income at $60k/yr.  As stated earlier, only 2 open revolvers of $26k and $6k.

Can anyone guess what Discover would possibly throw him as a SL with a strong profile such as this?  I've explained to him that Discover can grow rather nicely, but he's the type of person that didn't even know you could request a CLI until a month or so ago when I twisted his arm to do it with his Amazon card.  Any feedback here would be great, especially from anyone that my possess something similar to what he's got going on.

"Just today his Chase card was closed due to fraud on his account." I think he or you and him should visit a branch or call Chase to find out what's going on. They should be able to clarify things and have replacement cards sent to his place within 1-2 days. 

As far as another card for him, it's really up to him to see which one he likes. No one knows what credit line he would get. Every credit card company probably likes the profile he has. However, if all his Chase cards are closed by Chase due to faud without clarification, this might hurt him in his credit report. It's better to clarify this with Chase and see if a new card with different number could be re-issued right away. I like your suggestion of Discover. No annuel fee cards with high cash back on everthing like "Citi Doublecash" might also be a great option. 

All in all, fraud is probably going to happen again. Changing or adding card will probably not help much...

[Anonymous]

Let me clarify regarding the fraud.  He noticed 2 charges on his account that were not his.  He called the company from which the charges were made (video games or something) and told them they were not his charges.  They said to call the bank.  He called Chase and Chase said they were going to cancel his card and send him out one right away and that he'd have it within 5 days.  Hopefully that makes sense.

I agree that fraud is going to happen, but with 2 cards at least one wouldn't ever be left high and dry as the odds of fraud on both at the same exact time is quite small.  I don't ever recommend that anyone put all their eggs in one basket and only have one card because things (like this) happen.  I just think the smart move is for just about everyone to have at least a second card.  Just my opinion, though.

Another reason I suggested Discover is that my father absolutely hates calling any company and having to speak with someone that he can barely understand.  With Discover this is never an issue, and something I think he'd really appreciate.  I also think the Discover page when you sign into your account is extremely easy and user-friendly, another small positive for most but something that certainly matters a lot to him. 

[Anonymous]

My mother with over 800 score applied for discover got a 2500 limit last June the gravy train was rolling strong. I push for an increase and it went up over 10 grand so she could do a balance transfer. She was treated very well but the initial approval seem pretty low.

I understand your frustration I assume I'm never going to get my way on the first call if it something funky. if you have a foreign person it's not as offensive as you think to ask for another rep or a native English speaker. Just put you on hold hand you off to someone else and grab another line for pennies on the dollar right

[Anonymous]

You're just like me OP.. it's the little things that cumulatively added up can give someone a much better/worse experience with a product or service.

I've always felt that Discover was very picky.. meaning if you didn't have a good looking profile they'd deny you. I'm sure if he applied he would get an awesome starting limit and an instant approval!

[Revelate]

If he's got that CSR why not open a Freedom Unlimited or another Chase card?

Single lender is just as good as two lenders from a fraud perspective, fraud on one card doesn't cancel both and if you're worried about relationships seems like he's got a Chase one in spades and must presumably like them.

[joltdude]

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@Revelate wrote:

If he's got that CSR why not open a Freedom Unlimited or another Chase card?

Single lender is just as good as two lenders from a fraud perspective, fraud on one card doesn't cancel both and if you're worried about relationships seems like he's got a Chase one in spades and must presumably like them.

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Im not agreeing with this one exactly... Actually both cards would make sense if we are trying for point maximization.. 

Still think having a relationship with another card issuer is a good thing.... Iv run into silly things like places not taking Visa or MC (yes only one not the other), and if for some reason Chase gets spooked...  Know your father is of the Keep it Simple ..... You could easily get like an FU card to amp up the points, but still like the idea theres an other option to go to... esp if travel is involved...  Tried typing my diatribe last night when the forums went down to update and wasnt allowed to save it.. But in short...

I predict he will get less than he desired on initial approval, but after the 3 statements i predict an auto-cli, may have to hit the CLI button for the full payout, but I think he will come close to or over his Chase limit...  but the card cant be SD'ed for 3 months...  Its discover being discover.. 

[Creditplz]

My mother in law applied for Discover with 750-760 Fico8 across all 3 CRA, and was denied, AAoA is 9 years, 8% utl... they prompted her to call and asked her for a co signer... then citi gave her 17k about 20 minutes later

[Anonymous]

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@Creditplz wrote:
My mother in law applied for Discover with 750-760 Fico8 across all 3 CRA, and was denied, AAoA is 9 years, 8% utl... they prompted her to call and asked her for a co signer... then citi gave her 17k about 20 minutes later

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Wow, all over the map. They approved me at 635/627/628 with 1-year-old baddies (>90!), collection on file and fairly high utilization.  I wonder why they turned her away.

[longtimelurker]

I have a thick squeaky clean file, scores were around 830 at the time, two years ago, and AAoA was 7 years +, oldest account  was over 25 years.   I got IT Miles with a SL of $12.5K, which was my smallest limit.    Now $12.5K isn't bad, but hardly a huge limit for a clean file either.   So, YMMV!