topic Re: How many Synchrony cards can you get ? in Credit Card Applications

How many Synchrony cards can you get ?

stinastina — Wed, 10 Jul 2019 08:14:02 GMT

I have 2 already but I really want more - Amazon Store, At Home, Home Goods, Lowes and Chevron. How far apart do I need to app ?

Re: How many Synchrony cards can you get ?

AverageJoesCredit — Wed, 10 Jul 2019 11:58:56 GMT

No true limit but definetly tske your time in apping. They dont like multiple apps so close, could result in Blue envelope. They arent Comenity who can shut down all cards but i would space them out st least 6 months. If your scores and profile are good, going for 2 at once might not be a bad idea but remember Sync loves TU so multiple hps they will see subsequent applications.

Re: How many Synchrony cards can you get ?

Anonymous — Wed, 10 Jul 2019 12:03:24 GMT

Last year I apped for Lowe’s in June and apped for Amazon, Walmart and CareCredit in July on the same day. I currently have 7 Synch cards with Walmart switching to Capital One and I think I’m going up close Marvel soon.

Re: How many Synchrony cards can you get ?

Anonymous — Wed, 10 Jul 2019 13:55:58 GMT

Last year I added 1 in June (Care Credit), 1 in July (Walmart), 1 in August (JCP), 1 in September (Lowe's). All get moderate spend & have grown nicely.

Joe's suggestion of caution is not necessarily contradicted by my results -- I was probably very lucky.

Re: How many Synchrony cards can you get ?

Anonymous — Wed, 10 Jul 2019 14:04:35 GMT

Just make sure that your spend justifies the taking on of a store card. Many people end up picking up a ton of store cards and they're only using them for (say) $50-$100/mo, which may only be yielding a buck or two more in rewards compared to using a different [non-store] card.

Re: How many Synchrony cards can you get ?

Anonymous — Wed, 10 Jul 2019 14:25:24 GMT

Before you apply for a bunch of store cards you should ask yourself the purpose of doing so. Are you going to get value out of these cards since you are able to afford to spend a lot at each of these places? If you don't usually spend a lot of money at these places but still go every now and then consider the fact that people tend to spend more money when using store cards. If you can afford it and you spend a lot of money at these places I say go for it, but you should definitely apply for the store card you shop at most and prioritizing your applying based on the amounts you spend. I have the Amazon Prime card, it is the only store card I will ever acquire and the only reason I applied in the first place is because I get a lot of value out of it.

Re: How many Synchrony cards can you get ?

Anonymous — Wed, 10 Jul 2019 14:45:59 GMT

As long as your total Sync exposure doesn’t hit $100K, they don’t seem to care much.

Spacing apps is always advisable though. I wouldn’t app for more than two of their cards at a time to be safe. There’s no sense risking getting your accounts shut down. Get them when you can really utilize them.

Re: How many Synchrony cards can you get ?

stinastina — Wed, 10 Jul 2019 14:48:03 GMT

Thanks, everyone, for your wisdom. I am closing on my first house on Monday and need quite a few things. I only have 2 mortgage inquiries on my reports (except 1 Overstock hp for a cli earlier this year) in the past year. I will take it slow. I haven't even asked Navy for a cli in over a year because I was afraid of the hps.

Re: How many Synchrony cards can you get ?

FinStar — Wed, 10 Jul 2019 14:58:31 GMT

Congrats on the new home OP. Before you app, wait until it's funded and you have the keys.

And, as some have mentioned upthread, I would focus on quality versus quantity. This way, no app remorse, less dings on your profile (i.e. short AAoA) and only end up with cards you'd be able to quantify decent value/rewards.

Re: How many Synchrony cards can you get ?

Anonymous — Wed, 10 Jul 2019 17:01:31 GMT

@stinastina wrote:
I have 2 already but I really want more - Amazon Store, At Home, Home Goods, Lowes and Chevron. How far apart do I need to app ?

Amazon Store - sure it's easier than Chase but, you're only able to use it at Amazon and Whole Foods.. If you're a prime member you get the same 5% discount/rebate with the Chase version

At Home, Home Goods, - while there's not a specific "retail" card for covering furnishings a long term option would be a better idea

Lowes - 5% discount is appealing but, you can get 5% off with other cards as a rotating category or everyday through their portal

Chevron - There are plenty of 5% gas cards out there that aren't going to be restricted to a single brand.

As others have suggested either way spacing the apps out is important but, looking at the bigger picture is more important. If these are only going to be used for the first couple of months of having the new house then it's not the best use of new accounts. Do some homework on things before you pick up a ton of new accounts and lock yourself out of better quality options due to churning rules.

When you know you're going to be spending a significant amount of money on things it's usually better to pick up a bonus like CSP where the net bonus would be at least $505.... you would need to spend 10K at Lowes to get that kind of payback.

Re: How many Synchrony cards can you get ?

AverageJoesCredit — Wed, 10 Jul 2019 17:45:50 GMT

Its been said the Sync max exposure for most non Finstarians is about 100k. Just because thats the max doesnt mean its all that easy to obtain. Eventually your income will capwhat Sync is willing to provide. I should know

Re: How many Synchrony cards can you get ?

stinastina — Wed, 10 Jul 2019 18:50:48 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
@stinastina wrote:
I have 2 already but I really want more - Amazon Store, At Home, Home Goods, Lowes and Chevron. How far apart do I need to app ?
Amazon Store - sure it's easier than Chase but, you're only able to use it at Amazon and Whole Foods.. If you're a prime member you get the same 5% discount/rebate with the Chase version

At Home, Home Goods, - while there's not a specific "retail" card for covering furnishings a long term option would be a better idea

Lowes - 5% discount is appealing but, you can get 5% off with other cards as a rotating category or everyday through their portal

Chevron - There are plenty of 5% gas cards out there that aren't going to be restricted to a single brand.

As others have suggested either way spacing the apps out is important but, looking at the bigger picture is more important. If these are only going to be used for the first couple of months of having the new house then it's not the best use of new accounts. Do some homework on things before you pick up a ton of new accounts and lock yourself out of better quality options due to churning rules.

When you know you're going to be spending a significant amount of money on things it's usually better to pick up a bonus like CSP where the net bonus would be at least $505.... you would need to spend 10K at Lowes to get that kind of payback.

I'm a prime member and have been for several years now. I'm not eligible for Chase because of the 5/24 rule.

I love At Home and Home Goods. I believe the Home Goods card can also be used at TJ Maxx and Ross and I love those stores, too.

At the moment I need a dryer, garage door opener and a riding mower. Not to mention future paint, flooring, plants, etc., etc. I thought about Home Depot but I don't know how bankruptcy friendly they are since it's a Citi card.

And the reason I wanted Chevron is because I drive an old van for work and unless I use Techron, it gives me problems starting.

I'm going to try Amazon and At Home on Monday. The rest I will try 1 or 2 in a few months.

Re: How many Synchrony cards can you get ?

Anonymous — Wed, 10 Jul 2019 18:59:13 GMT

@stinastina wrote:
I'm a prime member and have been for several years now. I'm not eligible for Chase because of the 5/24 rule.

I love At Home and Home Goods. I believe the Home Goods card can also be used at TJ Maxx and Ross and I love those stores, too.

At the moment I need a dryer, garage door opener and a riding mower. Not to mention future paint, flooring, plants, etc., etc. I thought about Home Depot but I don't know how bankruptcy friendly they are since it's a Citi card.

And the reason I wanted Chevron is because I drive an old van for work and unless I use Techron, it gives me problems starting.

I'm going to try Amazon and At Home on Monday. The rest I will try 1 or 2 in a few months.

I'm happy as you seem to have done your homework and have valid reasons.

Big expenses though like the riding mower can still help hit those big spend bonus requirements. 5% off is enticing but, say it's a $3K mower, 5% is $150... you could easily go with BOA Cash Rewards and collect $200.

Gas cards from the likes of Sam's Club @ 5% or Duck's Unlimited, Costco and so on will work at the pumps for Chevron.

If you're going to spend the money anyway you might as well target some better options for payback is all I'm saying. Even for things like the dryer you could get another card that has a $500 MSR and collect another $100-$200 in cashback vs 5%.

Just take a look at this list that has current offers and weed out the ones from Chase and see what ideas come up....

https://www.bankcheckingsavings.com/best-credit-card-promotions/

Re: How many Synchrony cards can you get ?

stinastina — Wed, 10 Jul 2019 19:03:53 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
@stinastina wrote:
I'm a prime member and have been for several years now. I'm not eligible for Chase because of the 5/24 rule.

I love At Home and Home Goods. I believe the Home Goods card can also be used at TJ Maxx and Ross and I love those stores, too.

At the moment I need a dryer, garage door opener and a riding mower. Not to mention future paint, flooring, plants, etc., etc. I thought about Home Depot but I don't know how bankruptcy friendly they are since it's a Citi card.

And the reason I wanted Chevron is because I drive an old van for work and unless I use Techron, it gives me problems starting.

I'm going to try Amazon and At Home on Monday. The rest I will try 1 or 2 in a few months.
I'm happy as you seem to have done your homework and have valid reasons.

Big expenses though like the riding mower can still help hit those big spend bonus requirements. 5% off is enticing but, say it's a $3K mower, 5% is $150... you could easily go with BOA Cash Rewards and collect $200.

Gas cards from the likes of Sam's Club @ 5% or Duck's Unlimited, Costco and so on will work at the pumps for Chevron.

If you're going to spend the money anyway you might as well target some better options for payback is all I'm saying. Even for things like the dryer you could get another card that has a $500 MSR and collect another $100-$200 in cashback vs 5%.

Just take a look at this list that has current offers and weed out the ones from Chase and see what ideas come up....
https://www.bankcheckingsavings.com/best-credit-card-promotions/

I'm not eligible for BofA either because my Ch 7 is 3 years old.

I didn't know I could use Sam's gas card or Costco's anywhere. I will look into those. As long as they are not backed by Chase, Citi or Amex, I may be eligible.

Thanks for the link - let me go research !

Re: How many Synchrony cards can you get ?

Anonymous — Wed, 10 Jul 2019 19:54:13 GMT

@stinastina wrote:
I'm not eligible for BofA either because my Ch 7 is 3 years old.

I didn't know I could use Sam's gas card or Costco's anywhere. I will look into those. As long as they are not backed by Chase, Citi or Amex, I may be eligible.

Thanks for the link - let me go research !

Sam's is Synch - there's a MC version

Costco is Citi - there's the V version

3 yo BK can be overcome with some of them with a phone call. Don't let it deter you too much, just verify with a search here in approvals or pose the question about a particular card.

Some CU cards are going to be easier wiht the BK though but, the rewards won't be as high. The BK is probably some useful info to have as to exclude some of the options but, there's 1000's of cards out there to choose from and maybe consider Disco Miles for 3% back for the first year.

Re: How many Synchrony cards can you get ?

Shooting-For-800 — Wed, 10 Jul 2019 21:39:45 GMT

Lowes is a great card.

0% promos alone are worth getting the card if you need to make large purchases.

They just ran 24 months 0% for July 4th.

Hard to beat.

Re: How many Synchrony cards can you get ?

Anonymous — Wed, 10 Jul 2019 22:30:55 GMT

I recently applied for the SamsClub card thinking I would get the MasterCard version with my scores after doing hours of reading approvals on here but was only giving the store card. So I will try to grow it and hopefully with upgrade to the MC in the future. I wanted the 5% for gas.