New Year, New Cards...

[jakemod1]

I recently took up an offer from Discover for their "It" card, and got approved. This is my first app since Jan 2012. I am interested in joining the AMEX family and I'm currently looking into getting the AMEX BCE as an addition. I don't have any prior history with AMEX.

I thought I'd ask before I apply, what are my chances of getting approved given my circumstances:

1) I currently have 7 credit cards and two car loans.

2) AAoA is 4yrs, my oldest account is from 6/2007

3) Currently, my util is 54%, but it should go down to 28% once Discover reports.

4) My TU FICO is 701 (according to the FICO simulator, should go up into the 720s to 740s if I keep making on-time payments for 3mos)

5) Annual income of $35K

Should I focus on paying my cards off and getting my util down first? Since I just opened a new account with Discover, will that factor into their decision of my approval/denial? Should I wait for my Discover account to report and then apply? Any other cards I should apply for?

I'm sorry if these questions have been asked before, but I really couldn't find a definite answer with my current situation. I just started getting into the bandwagon of getting my credit score as high as possible and would like as much guidance as I can. Luckily, I was pretty responsible with my credit when I was younger and I am starting to realize how good of an impact that had on my credit score. Also, I should note that I do have one baddie (30day late) on one of my car loan (due to a direct deposit problem and check not clearing), but that happened back in 7/2010. Otherwise, everything is paid on time, no missed payments, and all accounts are reporting paid as agreed.

Thanks in advance.

[thom02099]

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@jakemod1 wrote:

I recently took up an offer from Discover for their "It" card, and got approved. This is my first app since Jan 2012. I am interested in joining the AMEX family and I'm currently looking into getting the AMEX BCE as an addition. I don't have any prior history with AMEX.

I thought I'd ask before I apply, what are my chances of getting approved given my circumstances:

1) I currently have 7 credit cards and two car loans.

2) AAoA is 4yrs, my oldest account is from 6/2007

3) Currently, my util is 54%, but it should go down to 28% once Discover reports.

4) My TU FICO is 701 (according to the FICO simulator, should go up into the 720s to 740s if I keep making on-time payments for 3mos)

5) Annual income of $35K

Should I focus on paying my cards off and getting my util down first? Since I just opened a new account with Discover, will that factor into their decision of my approval/denial? Should I wait for my Discover account to report and then apply? Any other cards I should apply for?

I'm sorry if these questions have been asked before, but I really couldn't find a definite answer with my current situation. I just started getting into the bandwagon of getting my credit score as high as possible and would like as much guidance as I can. Luckily, I was pretty responsible with my credit when I was younger and I am starting to realize how good of an impact that had on my credit score. Also, I should note that I do have one baddie (30day late) on one of my car loan (due to a direct deposit problem and check not clearing), but that happened back in 7/2010. Otherwise, everything is paid on time, no missed payments, and all accounts are reporting paid as agreed.

Thanks in advance.

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Getting your Util down to under 30% will almost certainly help.  At 54% now, your chances are not as good. 

AMEX pulls EX usually.  Do you know what your EX score is, or at least a FAKO EX for an indication of your direction?  What about inquiries? 

[ycm]

Knowing inquiry details about your Experian and focusing on lowering your utilization will definitely be beneficial.YMMV though.  I have two charge cards w Amex but I know that because I want to add a revolver that I really need to focus on lowering  my utilization on other cards. Even when that happens (hopefully by March) I'll need to wait for it to hit the reports. Recommendation is to check your Experian, work on utilization and keep your eyes on the prize. 

[jakemod1]

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@thom02099 wrote:

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@jakemod1 wrote:

I recently took up an offer from Discover for their "It" card, and got approved. This is my first app since Jan 2012. I am interested in joining the AMEX family and I'm currently looking into getting the AMEX BCE as an addition. I don't have any prior history with AMEX.

I thought I'd ask before I apply, what are my chances of getting approved given my circumstances:

1) I currently have 7 credit cards and two car loans.

2) AAoA is 4yrs, my oldest account is from 6/2007

3) Currently, my util is 54%, but it should go down to 28% once Discover reports.

4) My TU FICO is 701 (according to the FICO simulator, should go up into the 720s to 740s if I keep making on-time payments for 3mos)

5) Annual income of $35K

Should I focus on paying my cards off and getting my util down first? Since I just opened a new account with Discover, will that factor into their decision of my approval/denial? Should I wait for my Discover account to report and then apply? Any other cards I should apply for?

I'm sorry if these questions have been asked before, but I really couldn't find a definite answer with my current situation. I just started getting into the bandwagon of getting my credit score as high as possible and would like as much guidance as I can. Luckily, I was pretty responsible with my credit when I was younger and I am starting to realize how good of an impact that had on my credit score. Also, I should note that I do have one baddie (30day late) on one of my car loan (due to a direct deposit problem and check not clearing), but that happened back in 7/2010. Otherwise, everything is paid on time, no missed payments, and all accounts are reporting paid as agreed.

Thanks in advance.

---

Getting your Util down to under 30% will almost certainly help.  At 54% now, your chances are not as good. 

AMEX pulls EX usually.  Do you know what your EX score is, or at least a FAKO EX for an indication of your direction?  What about inquiries? 

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I will definitely work on getting my util down...just waiting for Discover to process the BT so I can start paying a good chunk of it off. I checked Credit Sesame, which I believe pulls from EX, and it states I have a FAKO score of 718. Only inquiry within the past year is from my recent Discover app on 1/25/13.

[jakemod1]

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@ycm wrote:

Knowing inquiry details about your Experian and focusing on lowering your utilization will definitely be beneficial.YMMV though.  I have two charge cards w Amex but I know that because I want to add a revolver that I really need to focus on lowering  my utilization on other cards. Even when that happens (hopefully by March) I'll need to wait for it to hit the reports. Recommendation is to check your Experian, work on utilization and keep your eyes on the prize. 

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Ok, so it seems I should most likely wait for my Discover account to report and lower my util down. I shouldn't have any inquiry in my EX...last time I apped, with the exception of last week, was back in Jan 2012 for a Best Buy account through HSBC. Do they pull from EX? I know Discover pulled from TU.