Looking for second CC - need help - Page 2 - myFICO® Forums

CreditDunce · ‎05-14-2015

You might want to consider asking BoA for a CLI. It will typically be a TU hard pull. BoA can be generous for CLIs when asked. Getting the CLI first can help you get a larger starting limit with someone else. Not only will you have a higher limit for your existing credit card, your utilization will also be lower. Assuming BoA approves the CLI.

Secondly, you can also request BoA to do a product change (PC) of your existing credit card to a different type of credit card. You will need to ask to see what they will allow a product change to. One popular choice is the Travel Rewards. It works very similar to the Arrival, but it is 1.65% CB (with checking account), no FTF, no AF. Only Chip-n-Sig, not Chip and Pin. If you have some funds deposited at BoA or Merril (e.g. IRA), you can enroll in the Preferred Rewards program turning the TR card in to a 1.87%, 2.25% or 2.6% depending on relationship bonus. The higher your BoA/Merril balance, the higher the CB.

I think the others have given you good options for your second or third cards. But you can probably do better with your existing BoA card.

Anonymous · ‎05-15-2015

@Anonymous wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
So I went and did some research, so hopefully this looks correct:

Arrival+ == MasterCard World Elite -> NPSL
Double Cash == MasterCard World -> NPSL (??)
PenFed Promise == Visa Platinum -> hard credit limit
CapitalOne QuickSilver == Visa (no idea on category or how the credit line works)

If I read correctly, a NPSL card typically uses your highest balance as a "credit limit" which is what they report, thus how lenders see utilization. In terms of looking good to lenders, wouldn't a credit limit look better than not having one?

Also, do you have to pay the balance off in full each month for a NPSL card? I plan to do this but if I splurge a little and carry a balance, would that look bad?

Lastly, do people think the Double Cash will stay at 2%? Not sure if other cards have lowered their cash back rewards but looks like Citi regularly phases out cards for newer ones (sometimes not as good)? Sorry for all the questions, I'm new to this and it feels like I'm playing a game of Texas Hold'em in Vegas with the house always winning haha.
That's not how it works anymore. NPSL reports your credit limit as it's limit. As far as the Double Cash staying, no one really knows. There's a possiblity that it stays, or the rewards get nerfed, or the card is discontinued an existing members can keep it. For all intents and purposes, it looks like the card will stay as is for the time being.

Ah ok, thanks for explaining that. I guess I was reading outdated articles.

Anonymous · ‎05-15-2015

@CreditDunce wrote:
You might want to consider asking BoA for a CLI. It will typically be a TU hard pull. BoA can be generous for CLIs when asked. Getting the CLI first can help you get a larger starting limit with someone else. Not only will you have a higher limit for your existing credit card, your utilization will also be lower.   Assuming BoA approves the CLI.

Secondly, you can also request BoA to do a product change (PC) of your existing credit card to a different type of credit card.   You will need to ask to see what they will allow a product change to. One popular choice is the Travel Rewards. It works very similar to the Arrival, but it is 1.65% CB (with checking account), no FTF, no AF. Only Chip-n-Sig, not Chip and Pin.   If you have some funds deposited at BoA or Merril (e.g. IRA), you can enroll in the Preferred Rewards program turning the TR card in to a 1.87%, 2.25% or 2.6% depending on relationship bonus. The higher your BoA/Merril balance, the higher the CB.

I think the others have given you good options for your second or third cards.   But you can probably do better with your existing BoA card.

I just checked out my Special Offers from BoA and they must either still be cycling through my most recent major pay on the card or not like me. The Travel Rewards was an APR of 20.99% and the Cash Rewards was at 19.99%, both of which are higher than my current card (16 or 17%). Granted I just paid a large amount last cycle to bring me down to the now ~35% utilization but I was expecting something a little better than that. I don't plan on applying for a card until probably Oct or Nov but those number didn't leave me jumping for joy.

As for requesting a higher limit, that's a double edged sword isn't it? It will raise my current limit on a card that may be getting phased out but it will also do a hard pull on my credit. I'm all but certain I will be applying for either the Citi or the Barclaycard and then the PenFed Promise for a low APR card later (maybe next spring or summer) but don't all three cards need pretty clean application history? Looks like I've already got 2 pulls from last April, so add that to a pull from a CLI and another pull for one of the new cards and that's 4 pulls. I'm assuming 4 in 2 years wouldn't look terrible but the less I can do the better right?

Here I was thinking I had almost everything sorted out and then I join this crazy world of credit cards haha. I do appreciate all the help everyone is providing though!

CreditDunce · ‎05-15-2015

@Anonymous wrote:
@CreditDunce wrote:
You might want to consider asking BoA for a CLI. It will typically be a TU hard pull. BoA can be generous for CLIs when asked. Getting the CLI first can help you get a larger starting limit with someone else. Not only will you have a higher limit for your existing credit card, your utilization will also be lower.   Assuming BoA approves the CLI.

Secondly, you can also request BoA to do a product change (PC) of your existing credit card to a different type of credit card.   You will need to ask to see what they will allow a product change to. One popular choice is the Travel Rewards. It works very similar to the Arrival, but it is 1.65% CB (with checking account), no FTF, no AF. Only Chip-n-Sig, not Chip and Pin.   If you have some funds deposited at BoA or Merril (e.g. IRA), you can enroll in the Preferred Rewards program turning the TR card in to a 1.87%, 2.25% or 2.6% depending on relationship bonus. The higher your BoA/Merril balance, the higher the CB.

I think the others have given you good options for your second or third cards.   But you can probably do better with your existing BoA card.
I just checked out my Special Offers from BoA and they must either still be cycling through my most recent major pay on the card or not like me. The Travel Rewards was an APR of 20.99% and the Cash Rewards was at 19.99%, both of which are higher than my current card (16 or 17%). Granted I just paid a large amount last cycle to bring me down to the now ~35% utilization but I was expecting something a little better than that. I don't plan on applying for a card until probably Oct or Nov but those number didn't leave me jumping for joy.

As for requesting a higher limit, that's a double edged sword isn't it? It will raise my current limit on a card that may be getting phased out but it will also do a hard pull on my credit. I'm all but certain I will be applying for either the Citi or the Barclaycard and then the PenFed Promise for a low APR card later (maybe next spring or summer) but don't all three cards need pretty clean application history? Looks like I've already got 2 pulls from last April, so add that to a pull from a CLI and another pull for one of the new cards and that's 4 pulls. I'm assuming 4 in 2 years wouldn't look terrible but the less I can do the better right?

Here I was thinking I had almost everything sorted out and then I join this crazy world of credit cards haha. I do appreciate all the help everyone is providing though!

You are absolutely right it is a two edged sword to apply for a higher CLI. There is no guarantee you will get anything. However, the INQ will almost certainly be on TU. Penfed will pull EQ and not see the INQ. In any case, I think Penfed cares much more about new trade lines than INQs. I think of Citi as a EQ puller, but I can't promise that. I have heard Citi will deny apps if they see more than 5 or 6 INQs in the past 6 months. Barclay is a TU puller and will more than likely see the INQ on TU. Barclay doesn't like to see a lot of new accounts, but I don't know how INQ sensitive they are. I think I had 2 TU INQs when I applied for the Arrival+ last year (instant approval). Assuming you don't have a lot of INQs in the past 6 months, your utilization and payment history is much more important than the number of INQs.

On balance, I think the CLI would be worth it to you. If you can get a higher limit from BoA, it will likely help give you higher limits for any new card you are approved for by other CCC's. Higher limits beget higher limits. It will also make your utilization much better. Note: the Citi Double cash is known for small starting limits. Often it requires another HP/INQ to increase the limit after you have been approved.

The way a product change works is you normally keep the same terms (interest rate, CL, existing balance, etc) that you currently have. BoA will just change the type of card you have. I am not recommending you apply for a new card from BoA. It does not matter what cards or terms BoA is offering on their website. A PC does NOT require a INQ/HP. You can find out if they are willing to do a PC for your existing card via the chat feature. Last year I PC'd my Cash Rewards card to the Better Balance Rewards card. It took about 6 weeks to get the new card, but it was very painless. If you like, you can request the PC after you have other cards. On the other hand, it doesn't make sense to BoA card, if you still plan to close it after you get your new cards.

One last thing, since you only want two new cards, I would apply for them on the same day. It does reduce your AAoA more in the short term. In the long term, it will give you a slightly better AAoA. It works especially well when the CCC's pull different CRA's.

Anonymous · ‎05-18-2015

@CreditDunce wrote:
You are absolutely right it is a two edged sword to apply for a higher CLI. There is no guarantee you will get anything. However, the INQ will almost certainly be on TU. Penfed will pull EQ and not see the INQ. In any case, I think Penfed cares much more about new trade lines than INQs. I think of Citi as a EQ puller, but I can't promise that. I have heard Citi will deny apps if they see more than 5 or 6 INQs in the past 6 months. Barclay is a TU puller and will more than likely see the INQ on TU.   Barclay doesn't like to see a lot of new accounts, but I don't know how INQ sensitive they are.   I think I had 2 TU INQs when I applied for the Arrival+ last year (instant approval). Assuming you don't have a lot of INQs in the past 6 months, your utilization and payment history is much more important than the number of INQs.

On balance, I think the CLI would be worth it to you.   If you can get a higher limit from BoA, it will likely help give you higher limits for any new card you are approved for by other CCC's.   Higher limits beget higher limits. It will also make your utilization much better. Note: the Citi Double cash is known for small starting limits. Often it requires another HP/INQ to increase the limit after you have been approved.

The way a product change works is you normally keep the same terms (interest rate, CL, existing balance, etc) that you currently have. BoA will just change the type of card you have. I am not recommending you apply for a new card from BoA. It does not matter what cards or terms BoA is offering on their website. A PC does NOT require a INQ/HP.   You can find out if they are willing to do a PC for your existing card via the chat feature.   Last year I PC'd my Cash Rewards card to the Better Balance Rewards card. It took about 6 weeks to get the new card, but it was very painless. If you like, you can request the PC after you have other cards. On the other hand, it doesn't make sense to BoA card, if you still plan to close it after you get your new cards.

One last thing, since you only want two new cards, I would apply for them on the same day. It does reduce your AAoA more in the short term.   In the long term, it will give you a slightly better AAoA. It works especially well when the CCC's pull different CRA's.

Well, I went ahead a pulled the trigger on a CLI...

6k to 12k with instant approval (I just requested 12k, clicked the button and it said congratulations). I think I would have rather gotten approved for a new card but like you said, this raise will probably help me get better rates/limits on other cards.

Now the question is how long do I wait before I apply to new cards? I was originally shooting for Oct/Nov. Will that be too soon to apply for the PenFed card and one of the rewards cards? I think I'm leaning towards the Barclay as of right now for "rewards" but I'm sure which ever way the wind blows might sway my opinion.

someone379 · ‎05-18-2015

I don't know if your in a state that you can apply for it, but if you are you might consider the BNBO 6.25% AMEX card - It seems that you carry balances so 6.25 APR might be beneficial to you (along with the 1.5% cash back.

https://www.firstnational.com/common/shared/amex/amex_march_landing.html?ecid=150204OMACRD0073PTMMS1...

For carrying balances, if you can't do the FNBO maybe a Barclay Ring (also for low APR)

If I have misread, and you nromally don't carry balances, maybe these are not the best choices for you, but if you do carry balances I tend to think that rewards take a back seat to the APR.

CreditDunce · ‎05-18-2015

If I recall correctly, your utilization is currently ~40% with the plan to reduce it down to 30% next billing cycle. With the CLI, you utilization should drop down to ~15%. I think your credit score just zoomed right up! Congratulations!

You will want to wait at least a week or two after your next CC statement before applying for anything new. That will give time for the CRA's to update your new CLI. Any time after that, you can apply for your new credit cards (just try to get your reported utilization down as much as possible (but not zero) before applying. If you are thinking about applying in a couple of months you may be able to get well below 10% util.

I don't remember if you currently have any Penfed loan products. If you do, be sure to check your pre-approval's on Penfed's website in July. Since you don't have any new accounts, I am sure Penfed will approve you even without the pre-approval. But it is nice to know you are pre-approved. Note: You may need to be a member with Penfed for a long time before they offer any pre-approvals. Don't worry if you don't have any.

You can also check Citi's, CapitalOne, etc to see which cards they have you pre-qual'd for. Just remember the pre-qual is not guaranteed. But it is a good yardstick to measure where you are at.

When you are ready, do both applications on the same day. It would be nice if the two credit cards pulled different CRA's. But with only two app's, it will not matter. Penfed will probably be manually reviewed, so do not worry if it isn't an instantly approval.

You can also request BoA to do a product conversion whenever you like. Assuming BoA has a card you like. The PC does not affect your credit report. I don't think the CLI will effect when you can request a PC.

Goodluck!

PS Sorry if I was a little pushy on the CLI. I am glad it worked out for you.

PS2 Someone379 is recommending a low interest card from FNBO. I don't know much about the card, but it could replace the Penfed app if you like. Personally, I would stick with Penfed since you are already a member. But they are both good companies to have credit cards from.

Anonymous · ‎05-18-2015

@someone379 wrote:
I don't know if your in a state that you can apply for it, but if you are you might consider the BNBO 6.25% AMEX card - It seems that you carry balances so 6.25 APR might be beneficial to you (along with the 1.5% cash back.

https://www.firstnational.com/common/shared/amex/amex_march_landing.html?ecid=150204OMACRD0073PTMMS1...

For carrying balances, if you can't do the FNBO maybe a Barclay Ring (also for low APR)

If I have misread, and you nromally don't carry balances, maybe these are not the best choices for you, but if you do carry balances I tend to think that rewards take a back seat to the APR.

That doesn't seem like a bad card. I would like to not carry a balance anymore, so that will be my new goal once this card is paid off. That being said, I am looking at getting a new computer before next spring, so that may end up carrying a balance. I'll do some digging to see if there is one around but PenFed may be my best bet for a low APR right now. Much appreciated!

Anonymous · ‎05-18-2015

@CreditDunce wrote:
If I recall correctly, your utilization is currently ~40% with the plan to reduce it down to 30% next billing cycle. With the CLI, you utilization should drop down to ~15%. I think your credit score just zoomed right up! Congratulations!

Reported as: 42%

Pre CLI: 35%

Post CLI: 18%

I would say those are pretty good numbers seeing as how I was almost at 100% 2 months ago. Thanks for the advice!

@CreditDunce wrote:
You will want to wait at least a week or two after your next CC statement before applying for anything new. That will give time for the CRA's to update your new CLI. Any time after that, you can apply for your new credit cards (just try to get your reported utilization down as much as possible (but not zero) before applying. If you are thinking about applying in a couple of months you may be able to get well below 10% util.

I may be able to squeeze one more payment in before the cycle ends but are you saying I shouldn't pay it completely off if I'm looking at applying in a few months? Credit Karma already picked up on the inquiry, so I'm assuming everyone else isn't far behind?

@CreditDunce wrote:
I don't remember if you currently have any Penfed loan products. If you do, be sure to check your pre-approval's on Penfed's website in July. Since you don't have any new accounts, I am sure Penfed will approve you even without the pre-approval. But it is nice to know you are pre-approved. Note: You may need to be a member with Penfed for a long time before they offer any pre-approvals. Don't worry if you don't have any.
[...]
PS Sorry if I was a little pushy on the CLI. I am glad it worked out for you.

Yup! Auto loan/savings account for 3 years. The preapproval was actually the driving factor to the increase. Looks like PenFed does quarterly FICO scores, which would mean this quarter is close to being ready (possibly end of the month), so I wanted to try and squeeze this new increase/utilization in before the end of the quarter. That way if I decide to apply for their card early, it should be closer to that FICO than where it was in Feb.

You weren't pushy, I did some long thinking this weekend about it and decided to pull the trigger today. Worse case scenario I didn't get an increase and I had a TU inquiry, which hopefully wouldn't have played a huge factor if I decided to shoot for the Barclay.

Certainly appreciate everyone's advice. Guess I just sit back for a few months to decide which card to apply for next. Hopefully there's some added sign on bonuses around that time (not sure if banks have certain months they do extra bonuses or not).