New and need some advice.

[creditdreamer240]

Hey Im new registered here ive browsed as a guest for a while,Im almost 24 and came to the point that i wanna work harder to build my credit and start getting rewards for my purchases,prepare for purchasing a house in a couple years or so.Ill start by saying I have established credit but not a lot of stuff on there(mainly installment loans).I have nothing bad on my credit and i think decent scores.i pulled my reports yesterday so i know exactly whats on there and where i should start.I havent pulled my scores yet (waiting to see what you guys think).I have my scores from previous loans for a baseline.my EQ is the strongest i started building credit years ago but the bank i was using only reported to EQ not all 3.

My EQ on 7/10/2012 from my new credit union was 711 for $9500 60mth auto installment loan.TU showed nothing so they pulled EQ per request have a gaurantor since i was new to them and limited history. perfect payments to date balance is down to $7651

I Started a secured card of 400 cl with them to start building credit around 6/12.Ive payed on time everytime after the statement but it it was my first credit card and didnt really know about utl ect. and had a 301 balance report in Jan until i found this site in feb/13 Every since ive payed before the statement and kept the reported balance 10% or lower.

My TU on 2/28/13 was 659 (that was with my high utl on the credit card showing) I got another 24mth secured auto installment loan $3000 on another vehicle i already owned to build more credibility with the Credit union i got that loan by myself.perfect payments(actualy a little more than the amnt due) balance is down to $2286 

I have kept my utilization down at 10% or less for the past 6mths,i tried  to get a lowes card on 3/20/12 and got the wait a few days note and was denied so i havent applied for anything else since.(I believe it said my score wasnt high enough but i cant remember 100% They pulled TU)  So now I have these 3 Things reporting to all 3 CBR in good standings,My EQ showes My 4 PIF loans from 08,09,10,12 three of them were unsecured $1000 the last one was unsecured $1500 my AAOA is 2years 4months on EQ.I have 5 inq on EQ phone,house rental,2 from getting my first auto loan and on from my old secured loans there all at least 11 months old.My Tu has 5 Inq 3 from the credit union when i got my loans the first time it was pulled twice a month apart.one was a amazon from a while ago and the other was the lowes.the lowes was on 3/20/13 and the $3000 dollar loan was on 2/28/13 the others are over a year.My Ex has 1 Inq for TV service over a year ago.

Sorry for the long post i think i covered most of it.Basically im just wondering if i should pick a few cards to go on a app spree then go to the garden or if i should wait a little longer.the lowes card put me down when i got denied.but i then realized it was GECRB and have read they calculate your score a little differently on the lowes and amazon (I dont think they like me lol)Discover It keeps sending me card apps mutiple times a month,i noticed Prm Discover has SP my EQ like 3-4 times a month from 7/13 back to 8/12 but there is a Discover Fincl that has sp me a few times back in 1/13 back to 8/12 and Chase freedom keeps sending me apps but no sp at all,but im not sure if id get approved for those cards.I think if i could get lucky and have some cards pull EQ Im sure id get approved for some cards.so should i wait to apply for some cards of should i go ahead and try for some if i should can you suggest a few i could apply to that are a little easier or known to pull Eq more often?Thanks for any help.

[09Lexie]

Welcome to the forum! You've done an excellent job detailing your credit history. Based on your rev cr history, Chase, Discover It and Barclays - should give you and inq on each bureau if they pull Ex, EQ,Tu respectively.

Edit: typos

[myjourney]

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@09Lexie wrote:
Welcome to the forum! You've done an excellent job detailing your credit history. Based on your rev cr history, Chase, Discover It and Barclays - should give you and inq on each bureau if they pull Ex, EQ,Tu respectively.

Edit: typos

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+1 spread the INQ's around for a 1st spree...soak -rinse-repeat 

[djc1puno]

Great job in getting started w you credit! Looks like youve also taken better care of what you have super!

[rex_03]

Welcome aboard.

[creditdreamer240]

Thanks everyone, so I take it an app spree would be fine now, what is a rough number of apps I should apply for? I'll try the discover it,should I try the chase freedom or another chase card.I looked at the Barclay's site yhey have a lot of cards,should I try for one of there world master cards,rewards cards or for a retail? I understand I have to build my way up to the better cards and higher limits so I don't wanna apply for cards that are way out of my league. Thanks again

[Themanwhocan]

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@creditdreamer240 wrote:

Thanks everyone, so I take it an app spree would be fine now, what is a rough number of apps I should apply for? I'll try the discover it,should I try the chase freedom or another chase card.I looked at the Barclay's site yhey have a lot of cards,should I try for one of there world master cards,rewards cards or for a retail? I understand I have to build my way up to the better cards and higher limits so I don't wanna apply for cards that are way out of my league. Thanks again

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Check over this list of categories, and figure out how much you spend in each category each month. Then you should have a pretty good idea of what cards you want to target.

http://boardingarea.com/frequentmiler/2012/11/09/best-category-bonuses/

Consider the Sallie Mae World Mastercard, it gets overlooked since if you're just looking on Barclays web site you won't find it. It has small monthly spending caps, but it gives 5% on Grocery stores, 5% on Gas, and 5% on bookstores (like amazon.com or barnesand noble.com). So its a good start.

https://www.salliemae.com/landing/WorldCreditCard/

Personally I love the US Bank Cash+, but it can take a little work to get one (or two) of those. Its not all that difficult, you just have to be willing to jump through a few hoops and perhaps wait a few months before you can PC a US Bank card into a Cash+.

1 SallieMae and 2 Cash+ cards cover almost all of my spending categories at 5% each. So for me it was worth the wait.

[halos24]

Just wanted to say welcome, and good job on taking on your credit. I wish at your age I would of been this smart and responsible. I agree with others look at the cards and apply for the one which benefits you the most.

Good luck!

[creditdreamer240]

Well Ive been looking at cards for the past couple of days.and im thinking of applying for the chase freedom,discover it,and the sallie mae probly tomorrow.they would suite my need benefits wise,Is that a good order to apply?

Also i was looking through my credit card offers from the mail I also noticed I have 3 Citi diamond Prefered invitations should i apply for that also or swap it for one of the others on my list or wait on trying Citi or that card all together. Again thanks for any advice.

[parakleet]

You've got good cards that you're going for - I love my freedom and discover it. Is there a reason you want the Citi diamond? I would only app for cards that you need instead of relying solely on offers. Grant it, if you get an awesome targeted offer in the mail, that's another story. Good luck!