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Question about Increasing Credit Line

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mrgoodfox
Established Member

Question about Increasing Credit Line

I have a few questions about increasing my credit card limit that I was hoping someone here could help me...

 

1) does applying for a credit increase trigger a hard credit check?

2) I have $6500 on a $7500 credit card but I've paid all my bills on time. How are my chances of getting a credit increase?

3) (other than paying a big portion of the credit card off) what are some steps I can take to increase my chances of getting the increase?

4) What is a reasonable amount to ask for the increase?

 

Thanks 

Always act with confidence, no matter how little right you have to it.
Message 1 of 9
8 REPLIES 8
azguy13
Senior Contributor

Re: Question about Increasing Credit Line


@mrgoodfox wrote:

I have a few questions about increasing my credit card limit that I was hoping someone here could help me...

 

1) does applying for a credit increase trigger a hard credit check?

2) I have $6500 on a $7500 credit card but I've paid all my bills on time. How are my chances of getting a credit increase?

3) (other than paying a big portion of the credit card off) what are some steps I can take to increase my chances of getting the increase?

4) What is a reasonable amount to ask for the increase?

 

Thanks 


1) Depends on the Lender. Cap1 will most always be a Soft Pull while Chase will most always be a Hard Pull

2.)That comes out to 86% utilization on that card. Your chances of a CLI increases while dealing with a lender like Discover. Which card is it?

3.) The best chances of a CLI results from you actually using the card. You are more likely to get a CLI if you use the card a lot. Think about it, if you were a lender, would you extend more credit to someone who doesnt use it anyways?

4.) This all depends on your limit now and which lender you are dealing with. For example, Amex grants 3X CLIs on a regular basis. 

 

So, my questions to help you more are these;

 

1.) How many open credit cards do you have?

2.) What cards are they?

3.) What are the limits of each cards and what do you owe on each of them?

4.) How long have they been open?

 

Your overall credit profile needs to be taken into consideration. When I say that, I mean your score, AAoA, any baddies, and your DTI (debt to income ratio)

 

Message 2 of 9
mrgoodfox
Established Member

Re: Question about Increasing Credit Line

I have two open credit cards. One $7500 and one $500. The $500 one is with Capital One and not eligible for any increase (it was a student credit card from a long time ago. Capital One says that card is not eligible for any increases). The $7500 is with BOA.

 

2) The BOA card is a travel point card.

3) The $500 one has been open for 6 years or so. The $7500 one for 9 months.

Always act with confidence, no matter how little right you have to it.
Message 3 of 9
Kenny
Moderator Emeritus

Re: Question about Increasing Credit Line

BoA is usually a HP, however, I think they are good with credit limit increases -- or at least they have been. Have you established a history of having a large balance, but you pay a large portion of it off each month? Or has this balance eventually increased and you've been paying a little above the minimum? Your utilization overall is high and isn't doing your credit score any favors. Do you have any baddies on your profile? Do you have any sort of idea where your scores are?

I would message Cap1 on Facebook and ask them to reevaluate your card.. maybe PC to Quicksilver and raise the credit limit. Sometimes, it takes the EO to put the card on a different track and make it eligible for CLIs. (This will not be a HP no matter what.)
Message 4 of 9
mrgoodfox
Established Member

Re: Question about Increasing Credit Line

Ive been making $1000 a month (or more) payments a month. I use the card all the time. 

 

 

Always act with confidence, no matter how little right you have to it.
Message 5 of 9
azguy13
Senior Contributor

Re: Question about Increasing Credit Line


@mrgoodfox wrote:

Ive been making $1000 a month (or more) payments a month. I use the card all the time. 

 

 


I would ask Cap1 for a PC to the Quicksilver and go from there. Sadly, when it comes to Cap1, they do not care if someone closes a card or not so that threat while asking for a CLI does not work. 

 

With the Cap1 $500 CL, that still puts you in the high 70s for utilization. I can tell you now that it is really hurting your score. I would suggest paying off a good bit of the BOA card and then requesting the CLI, but be prepared to take the HP. 

 

Depending on your scores, you may also want to app for another card just for overall utilization purposes (if the PC to QS and CLI does not happen)

Message 6 of 9
Kenny
Moderator Emeritus

Re: Question about Increasing Credit Line


@azguy13 wrote:

@mrgoodfox wrote:

Ive been making $1000 a month (or more) payments a month. I use the card all the time. 

 

 


I would ask Cap1 for a PC to the Quicksilver and go from there. Sadly, when it comes to Cap1, they do not care if someone closes a card or not so that threat while asking for a CLI does not work. 

 

With the Cap1 $500 CL, that still puts you in the high 70s for utilization. I can tell you now that it is really hurting your score. I would suggest paying off a good bit of the BOA card and then requesting the CLI, but be prepared to take the HP. 

 

Depending on your scores, you may also want to app for another card just for overall utilization purposes (if the PC to QS and CLI does not happen)


I agree, 100%. HP isn't the concern at this time. The HP should actually increase your score more than hurt at this point. 

Message 7 of 9
watch44
Frequent Contributor

Re: Question about Increasing Credit Line

It's going to be hard to get a CLI with maxed out utilization imo. Do you know your FICO right now? 

 

I'll second trying to open another tradeline, preferably with a CU. NFCU if eligible, or DCU, Alliant, NASA, to list off a few of the more popular ones, or local cu's. 

 

Try to maximize your score before applying tho. Pay as much as you can just before the statement cuts on your BOA card and wait for the lower util to report. 

 

And if you don't have one already, create a Credit Karma account to get free weekly TU report monitoring. 

  (Hover over pics for details) 
FICO:  TU 731 (05/14/14)   EX 749 (04/24/14)   EQ 684 (02/05/14)   Goal 700
FAKO:  TU 761 (05/20/14)   EX 761 (05/20/14)   EQ 743 (05/20/14)
Message 8 of 9
takeshi74
Senior Contributor

Re: Question about Increasing Credit Line


@mrgoodfox wrote:

1) does applying for a credit increase trigger a hard credit check?


Depends on the creditor.

 


@mrgoodfox wrote:

2) I have $6500 on a $7500 credit card but I've paid all my bills on time. How are my chances of getting a credit increase? 


Probably poor.  The usual factors in assessing your credit apply:

http://www.myfico.com/crediteducation/whatsinyourscore.aspx

 

Utilization plays a significant role (it's the 30% slice in the pie above).  6500 / 7500 = 87% which is extremely high (almost maxed) and odds aren't going to be very good.  Keep in mind that 30% is the generally recommended max for utilization.

 


@mrgoodfox wrote:

3) (other than paying a big portion of the credit card off) what are some steps I can take to increase my chances of getting the increase?


Impossible for us to even begin to answer this.  What's your credit like?  Again, the usual factors apply.  The biggest slices are payment history and utilization.  If your payment history is good (sounds likely if you've been paying on time) then utilization is what you need to focus on.  Working on other minor factors isn't going to yield a significant improvement.

 


@mrgoodfox wrote:

4) What is a reasonable amount to ask for the increase?


Again, we can't even begin to answer without knowing your credit.  Credit varies and, in turn, reasonable amounts vary as well.  It's not really up to us.  It's your creditor's underwriting criteria that determine what is reasonable and we don't know that information.

 

However, we can make an educated guess that with 87% utilization that you're not likely to get any amount approved.

Message 9 of 9
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