@tinuviel wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:I really want to start gardening for the next 2 1/2 years, however, I have much better credit now than I did just 6 months ago (583) now 700's and above across the board, I have 5 CC's and 1 store card. I now have a AmEx Blue Cash (finally a prime card 2000CL) and I was able to have it backdated to 91 and I'm AU on my Fathers AmEx Platinum Optima (opened in 84 16,000CL) and the other 3 CC's I have are just starter cards that will most likely never grow with me.
I really want just one more prime CC and I am thinking of apping for another AmEx CC (not sure which one yet) for 3 reasons.....
1: They only pull form EX
2: I can have it backdated to 91
3: It will be my second prime card
I feel having 2 prime cards is plenty for now, then this way I can sit back and tend to the garden for the next 2 1/2 years and weed out 1 or 2 of these starter cards that have an AF and will most likely never see a CLI no matter how perfect my pymt history with them and how much my scores go up.
My goal is to start looking for a home in about 2 1/2 years, by then I should have met my goal score of 775 and will have a perfect Credit File.
Does this sound like a good plan? Should I app for one more AmEx since I can have it backdated to 91 and its only 1 inq on EX? ( I have 3 now) my latest 3/26/11 AmEx, this way in 2 1/2 years from now I will have 0 inq's all across the board and by then my new Blue Cash should have a much better CL and so would the other AmEx if I apped for it now.
Any suggestions? Garden for now, or app for one more AmeX?
IMO, this sounds like a reasonable plan. If your goal is to buy a home in about 2 1/2 years, the inquiry will have fallen off, and with the backdating, your AAoA won't take a hit. I would consider this particular app to be a "seed" that you're planting in your garden!
Thank you tinuviel, I appreciate your response, I just need to figure out which AmEx is best for me.
Thanks again.
@DI wrote:I just about fell off the garden wagon. The freeze on my credit reports saved me. The creditor couldn't access my reports. Ha!
Oh No ~ be careful DI ~ hung on tight ~
Yes!! Good, Lucky you 
Still sitting on that porch swing checking out the view of the garden from a distance -- nothing for me to work on, just relaxing because All Is Good. 
@tinuviel wrote:
I can certainly understand the curiosity factor. When rebuilding, it can be very tempting to see what you might be able to be approved for. There's a Citi card that, according to financeglobe.com, should be within my score range. I have a hard time believing I'd actually be approved, but the curiosity can be a killer at times.
But, it sounds to me like you do have a goal, and it's the same one that I have... to get scores up to the upper 600s (maybe 700!) and be approved for better cards. I, myself, did app for a couple of cards this months, for reasons outlined elsewhere. It killed me to know that my scores were going to take a hit. That thought and the knowledge that my AAoA will be affected are enough to keep me from satisying any curiosity from here on out. You and I both need to wait before attempting to get any prime cards.
So, you and I can both focus on watching our scores rise, knowing that eventually we will get there. I pull my scores on the first of the month. Yes, it costs a little bit, but tracking my scores has turned into something of a hobby, and it's one that will pay off in the long run. Watching my scores rise helps to keep me motivated. Perhaps doing the same would help you as well? Or you might be able to find some other way of staying focused on your goal; everyone is different, after all. And keep in mind -- next May you should be able to reach your goal of having better scores and then apply -- and hopefully! -- receive a prime card! Wouldn't that be a wonderful gift to give yourself!
I do try to pull my scores almost every month, since Im curious what my TU and EQ score is everytime I get my free EX score from PSECU. But I really am done applying for a long long time. To be honest, I dont know if I even want a prime card. The only prime card I can think of getting, is one from Citi. Really, the credit cards I have now the NFCU would be enough for me. We should see who can go the longest without apping, 
I’ve been gardening for three weeks now & I gotta tell ya it’s HARD not to pull the trigger on another CC app after you’ve been on a roll! Just this morning I was gonna pull the trigger on the Amex blue cash app, but I remained strong (and possibly saved myself a quick denial!!!). Here’s my list…
Total Card (First CC ever, only reason I still have it!)
Capital One Platinum
Capital One No Hassle Cash Rewards*
Discover More*
Amex Zync*
* = New Cards
I waited four years before I pulled the trigger on my recent CC additions & only had one inquiry when I applied. I’m under 5 inquires right now & my total utl is about 2%. I plan to keep things quiet for a while, probably another two years so all my inquires can fall off my reports. I’m sure my score’s will drop soon considering the new CC’s I’ve added (AAoA), but hopefully they will bounce back pretty well by the end of the year. My goal is to be in the 700 club by the end of this year! Good luck to you all & keep the faith, it’s the perfect season for gardening!
TU: 687
EX: 685
EQ: ???
I too am in gardening mode, I really, really want to move up to PRIME
I would like to get the Citi AA card (I fly quite a bit and want that 75k sign up bonus) and also a PSECU cc because of their generous credit lines. Those are my two cc goals for summer of this year.
I have paid down my cc in the past two weeks and prior to that my EX score from (PSECU 4/11) was 656. I am hoping that since paying a chunk of that util down my scores will be up when I get my next PSECU EX score in 5/11. I plan to pay the remaining balances off next month and leave a small recurring charge on one card and hopefully that will help my overall scores move up nicely. I still have two baddies reporting as paid collections which are due to fall off 5/12 and 9/12.
Unfortunately, I only have two cc's and one store card. A Public Savings with a limit of $500 (1 year in May), CapOne with a $750 limit (1 year in June) and a Kay with a $4000 limit (1 year in July). I wanted to show util and payment history so when I first got the cards I used them quite a bit. I also have a car loan with a balance of $8000 and I am making a payment of $4000 next week to bring that down. My Credit History is about 12 years, but my aaoa is only 5.10 years.
I have 2 inq. one on EX Amex Zynx 12/10 - denied, one on EQ( can't remember) Wells Fargo 12/10 - denied.
My Eq Report dated 3/11 was 647 TU dated 1/11 was 638.
I continue to get pre-approvals from Cap One to apply for another card, NO THANKS, as much as I am tempted, I keep telling myself it will probably be another low limit card I also got a pre-approval from Victoria Secrets but I just don't want these lousy cards!!
I am hoping to start getting some good offers starting in June as all my cards will be paid off!! YAY!! I really want my credit back 
@Anonymous wrote:I too am in gardening mode, I really, really want to move up to PRIME
I would like to get the Citi AA card (I fly quite a bit and want that 75k sign up bonus) and also a PSECU cc because of their generous credit lines. Those are my two cc goals for summer of this year.
I have paid down my cc in the past two weeks and prior to that my EX score from (PSECU 4/11) was 656. I am hoping that since paying a chunk of that util down my scores will be up when I get my next PSECU EX score in 5/11. I plan to pay the remaining balances off next month and leave a small recurring charge on one card and hopefully that will help my overall scores move up nicely. I still have two baddies reporting as paid collections which are due to fall off 5/12 and 9/12.
Unfortunately, I only have two cc's and one store card. A Public Savings with a limit of $500 (1 year in May), CapOne with a $750 limit (1 year in June) and a Kay with a $4000 limit (1 year in July). I wanted to show util and payment history so when I first got the cards I used them quite a bit. I also have a car loan with a balance of $8000 and I am making a payment of $4000 next week to bring that down. My Credit History is about 12 years, but my aaoa is only 5.10 years.
I have 2 inq. one on EX Amex Zynx 12/10 - denied, one on EQ( can't remember) Wells Fargo 12/10 - denied.
My Eq Report dated 3/11 was 647 TU dated 1/11 was 638.
I continue to get pre-approvals from Cap One to apply for another card, NO THANKS, as much as I am tempted, I keep telling myself it will probably be another low limit card I also got a pre-approval from Victoria Secrets but I just don't want these lousy cards!!
I am hoping to start getting some good offers starting in June as all my cards will be paid off!! YAY!! I really want my credit back
It may sound funny, but if and when you qualify for citi AA, PSECU will be a useless card for you (you will not want a no rewards card then).
I say this coz AA is one of the toughest cards from citi and when you qualify for citi AA, you can get nearly any prime card happily.
@vish1 wrote:
It may sound funny, but if and when you qualify for citi AA, PSECU will be a useless card for you (you will not want a no rewards card then).
I say this coz AA is one of the toughest cards from citi and when you qualify for citi AA, you can get nearly any prime card happily.
I hear what you're saying, but I look at the typically high CL's of CU cards as their version of rewards.
It seems like cards from the "big-boy" banks are staying with lower CL's these days. They might be big enough for regular usage, of course, but if you let balances report, you can wind up with a ding for util.
There's nothing like having one or two 5-digit CU cards to insulate against util damage.