Greetings, fellow credit gardeners! We’re starting a new month, so it’s time to start a new thread. I'm going to kick this one off a day early so that I don't have to worry about typing it out over my morning coffee tomorrow. With that, I hereby convene the June meeting of the myFICO Garden Club.
For those who are new to the concept of gardening, it involves refraining from applying for new credit or seeking CLIs that require hard pulls. Soft pulls CLIs, however, are not only acceptable, but are encouraged. The idea is to allow one's current TLs to grow and mature, waiting for inqs to age or fall off, and possibly waiting for "baddies" to be removed or age off. During this time, one tends to one's current accounts and watches their AAoA grow and the new credit ding fade.
So, if you're at the stage of your credit journey where you're ready to enter the garden, please come and join us. You may pick up your complimentary watering can and garden gloves by the front door -- you can even choose your favorite color! We're proud to offer a well appointed clubhouse. There is a snack table set up. Last month we added a full featured gas grill to our club house, and since this month marks the beginning of summer, we're going to start putting it to good use! Burger, hot dogs, and kebobs are available for your dining pleasure! There's iced tea, lemonade and sodas, and if you like, a variety of ice cold beers. And as always, we have a selection of mini-quiches, as Relevate really likes them. Please feel free to bring and add any items that you'd like. And, in the corner diagonally across from the front door, there is a fully stocked bar. If needed, there are some anti-itch medications stocked in our supply cabinet near the door -- Lanacaine, Benedryl, etc. If you need to place your reports in the deep freeze, we also have a freezer, located next to the bar, so go ahead and throw your reports in! 
Come on in and make yourself comfortable. Make a gardening plan and commit to sticking with it! Are you planning to wait six months before applying for additional credit? A year? Until the last of your baddies drop off? Whatever your goal, we're here to support you. If you feel the "app-itch" coming on, let us know and we'll try to help you through it.
Now, if you happen to leave the garden prematurely, that’s your decision and we respect that. You are always welcome to come back, pick up your gardening tools and start over again. But please, celebrate any approvals on another thread. While we are happy with members’ success stories, we really do want to keep this thread’s focus and tone to be consistent with gardening efforts. You are certainly welcome to celebrate soft CLIs on this thread, though, as they do not involve inqs or apps for new credit.
NEW STARTING THIS MONTH:
Garden Club Challenge: Pick a firm date for staying in the garden and post it in your siggy!
Garden Club recognition levels: To qualify, your reports must contain:
- No new tradelines of any type on one's accounts (this includes backdated Amex accounts, as they are STILL new "seedlings").
- No HPs for anything that would allow for the possibility of a new tradeline being issued or increasing the CL of an existing tradeline.
. You will be able to add the following to your siggy if you have abided by the above for the following time periods...
1 month - bronze spade
3 months - silver spade
6 months - gold spade
12 months - platinum spade
24 months or more - diamond spade
Please note: recognition levels reset once you add an account or incur a HP. We recognize that there may be very good reasons for "leaving the garden," and we respect whatever thoughtful decisions members make. As stated previously, members are always welcome to come back, grab their gloves and start gardening once more.
So, how's everyone's garden doing this month?
I'm really looking forward to this month, as an old CO and the resulting CA account are due to fall off my EX report sometime in June! That leaves one last CO, which will come off in August. All of these are due to fall off of TU in August. I don't have the exact month for these to fall off of EQ, but it should be in line with the others. Once this happens, I'll be apping for the last few cards that I have on my wish list. I've been app-free since last October, so it's just a little bit more time to wait.
Last month LS suggeted that everyone pick a firm date for staying in the garden. I can't give a firm date, as I don't know exactly when the baddies will drop, just that it will be sometime by the end of the summer. So... I'm on record as stating that I'm staying planted here until my reports are CO and CA free. That's a firm goal and it's one that I'm well on my way to meeting.
I'd also like to ask the folks here if they believe that the Garden Club threads have helped them. I would really like to hear how they have helped, or if they haven't, what can we do that might be useful. Thoughts???
So, with that lengthy intro to the thread, please feel free to share and mingle!
Current Scores: EQ 775 (03/04/2014), EX 756 (03/01/2014), TU 760 (03/01/2014)
Ruby Spade Garden Club Member - Last App: 03/04/2013 - No apps until 2014
Cards: Cap1 Venture 6.4k, Cap1 Quicksilver MC 1.75k, BankAmericard 1-2-3 Visa Signature - UCF Alumni Association 5k, Discover 7k, Citi Diamond Preferred MC 10.35k, Wells Fargo Rewards Visa 7k, Chase Freedom 5k, Chase Ink 7.5k, Amex Green NPSL, Dillard's Amex 7.5k, JC Penney 7.5k, Kay Jeweler's 5.1k
Hi all, this is my first time to officially try out gardening. Thanks to this forum, I now know exactly what it is and how to use it to my advantage. I made the decision on this a few days ago, so here's what I'm looking at.
TU I have 2 CA that are due to fall off in August this year
EX I will have a couple of hard inquiries that are due to fall off in October.
So my plan is to stay in the garden for a year and let my current cards mature to raise my AAoA which will hopefully increase my chances of better "Prime" cards. I really have my sites set on a Discover More and either a Freedom or AmEx of some sort, but I have plenty of time to configure my game plan.
One question, after the 2 CA fall off (medical bills) can the CA put these back on my account after they've fallen off? Just not sure how this works. My understanding is that the SOL is 7 years here in Texas, but I would hate for them to fall off and continue to haunt me. Sorry if I should of put this in a different thread. Just thought you folks in this thread may have some experience with this. Thanks again and glad to be in the garden with everyone!
Let the gardening begin. I got my 3 rebuild cards, got rid of all my baddies, got my student loans under control, and got the new car (albeit sooner than I wanted to, but the old car just couldn't hold out any longer 
).
Ready to sit back with my margarita, watch my garden grow, keep an eye out for any weeds that should pop up, and prepare for the Amex next year, as well as a mortgage.
By the way...the pool is warm now and you really should take a dip! Don't forget your sunscreen. 
I will be gardening indefinitely. Hopefully I'll be able to get a job after graduation this August and have a steady income. Really the only card I want at the moment is AMEX BCE, and maybe some CLI's on my current cards.
Been in the garden since February and plan to stay there!
Happy gardening to everyone!
Hello all! This is my first time in the garden and I am happy to be here. After lurking about and learning the lingo I'm ready to see the fruits of my labor. Between April and May, I app'd and was approved for 4 new cards not to mention refinancing my car. I got a Walmart cc $800/limit, Kohls cc $1000/limit, Best Buy cc $800/limit, and Amex Zync NPSL! I was excited by them all. Now I am ready to let them mature and let my scores soar. I know my limits aren't high but I figure higher credit score, higher limits....right? Anyway, I think I put my most recent scores that I was able to obtain in my sig. I guess I'll know once this post. Just wanted to say hello again to all and happy gardening.
Starting Score: ?So who's in on the challenge??............................
