Opinions on next credit move

[Anonymous]

Hello all, I've been stalking the forum for a while now trying to plan out a good credit future for myself. I have an annual income of $48k/yr for the past two years, and it will drop to 35k/yr when I move to college next month. I turned 18 about 3 days ago and applied for a Discover It Chrome For Students card to no avail - insufficient history. They did however offer a card with a joint applicant. The next day, I talked to a local banker who i have a close relationship with at my workplace, and he was able to approve me instantly for a $1,000 signature loan. The next day, I went in to wells fargo to set up a checking and savings account I put $5000 in checking and $3500 in savings as the initial deposit, and the banker recommended I apply for the Wells Fargo Student Credit Card. Denied due to too many inq. I then asked for a secured card and got approved - put a $3000 deposit on it and should be seeing that soon. I called the wells fargo EO for recon and talked to a very nice lady who took a liking to me, and said that she talked to underwriting and would still be denied, but that she was going to do some deep digging for me because she remembered when she was in my shoes. Gave me her name and direct phone number and told me she would call me back in a couple days.

So in total, I have

$3000 secured Wells Fargo Card that I plan to keep under 5% UTL

$1000 loan that I will make the scheduled payments on

$5,500 Direct Unsubsidized student loan that I will be paying of in full after two payments

and the two other cards are denials that may very well turn into approvals.

I feel that I have a fairly strong variety of credit, and with the low utilization and high limit, I should be in good shape. Does everyone agree, or should i add/drop any types of credit?

What cards have fairly high approval rates, and are forgiving of short credit histories? (preferably with high CL)

I know for a fact that I am very self-controlled and can hadle high credit limits without going bonkers. I'm going to school for investment banking. I'm the financially responsible one of the family. My mum and dad have poor credit - both have bankruptcies. Dad has 9 in collections and UTL of 101% and hasnt made a payment in months. My mom is in better shape - she had no history after her bankruptcy and I helped her get a $300 Credit one card, and $2000 Cap1. I brought her up 30 pts and by making my dad pay off his collections and pay off his ccs, he's come up some too. I'm really looking for high limits so I can keep my utilization low, and feel my income warrants it. So where do I go from here? how long should it take - provided I fllow my plan - to get to the high 7's? and how long should I wait to apply for a Citi Forward card or Barclay due to the inquiries?

Any help is much appreciated. TIA.

[juggalo9er]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Hello all, I've been stalking the forum for a while now trying to plan out a good credit future for myself. I have an annual income of $48k/yr for the past two years, and it will drop to 35k/yr when I move to college next month. I turned 18 about 3 days ago and applied for a Discover It Chrome For Students card to no avail - insufficient history. They did however offer a card with a joint applicant. The next day, I talked to a local banker who i have a close relationship with at my workplace, and he was able to approve me instantly for a $1,000 signature loan. The next day, I went in to wells fargo to set up a checking and savings account I put $5000 in checking and $3500 in savings as the initial deposit, and the banker recommended I apply for the Wells Fargo Student Credit Card. Denied due to too many inq. I then asked for a secured card and got approved - put a $3000 deposit on it and should be seeing that soon. I called the wells fargo EO for recon and talked to a very nice lady who took a liking to me, and said that she talked to underwriting and would still be denied, but that she was going to do some deep digging for me because she remembered when she was in my shoes. Gave me her name and direct phone number and told me she would call me back in a couple days.

So in total, I have

$3000 secured Wells Fargo Card that I plan to keep under 5% UTL

$1000 loan that I will make the scheduled payments on

$5,500 Direct Unsubsidized student loan that I will be paying of in full after two payments

and the two other cards are denials that may very well turn into approvals.

I feel that I have a fairly strong variety of credit, and with the low utilization and high limit, I should be in good shape. Does everyone agree, or should i add/drop any types of credit?

What cards have fairly high approval rates, and are forgiving of short credit histories? (preferably with high CL)

I know for a fact that I am very self-controlled and can hadle high credit limits without going bonkers. I'm going to school for investment banking. I'm the financially responsible one of the family. My mum and dad have poor credit - both have bankruptcies. Dad has 9 in collections and UTL of 101% and hasnt made a payment in months. My mom is in better shape - she had no history after her bankruptcy and I helped her get a $300 Credit one card, and $2000 Cap1. I brought her up 30 pts and by making my dad pay off his collections and pay off his ccs, he's come up some too. I'm really looking for high limits so I can keep my utilization low, and feel my income warrants it. So where do I go from here? how long should it take - provided I fllow my plan - to get to the high 7's? and how long should I wait to apply for a Citi Forward card or Barclay due to the inquiries?

Any help is much appreciated. TIA.

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app for nothing for 1 year from date of last application then app for barclay rewards for average credit or capone....i dislike capones triple pull but they are easy approval

[Creditaddict]

I would wait 6 months until you generate a fico score and then you should be good for discover, citi, and wells... barclay probably 1 year.

[destine2grow]

I also say wait at least 6 months. For Barclay you might want to wait a year. Barclay is inquiry sensitive. You sound very responsible and I commend you on helping your parents.

[Revelate]

Welcome to the forums!

You have cash, see about getting a BOFA secured card and sit on your hands for a year as recommended, then establish whatever else you want after that.  The BOFA card is pretty much the best starter card you can get currently, and you should have no trouble qualifying for it if inquiries are your only issue.  2 cards + 2 installment loans, hard to do any better than that from an initial building perspective (because you have time and don't need to be playing reindeer games yet with balance reporting, can do that after you pickup better cards after a year), you're doing excellently!

[hizzaah]

I'm 22 and just started getting myself together credit wise this year. I wish I had been at your point when I was 18! As others mentioned, you're off to a great start. All you need now is time!

[Anonymous]

Thanks for all the replies everyone. That's very reassuring. Got a call from the Wells Fargo exec today saying I was still declined but they review for graduation twice a year. I'll just have to go that route. Where do you guys think my shore would fall in about 6 months? And would it be a good or bad idea to pay off the student loan early?