topic Re: Maximizing Discover CLI in Credit Card Applications

Maximizing Discover CLI

Anonymous — Sat, 11 Jan 2020 18:42:42 GMT

Hello,

I was recently approved for the Discover IT card and am wondering how best to maximize my future CLI chances/amount.

My initial limit was $750. Would it be advisable to use that 750 and pay it down to $0 1-2 times a month? Essentially using it for all my purchases (bills, groceries etc) and making sure it reports under 10% utilization at statement close. Or is simply making sure utilization reports low my only concern?

My income/debt would easily support any CLI, I am just not sure what behaviors would look best to Discover. If there is a handy posting going over these things feel free to direct me there.

Re: Maximizing Discover CLI

Nomad3 — Sat, 11 Jan 2020 18:58:15 GMT

Its been said disco likes it when they are your main card. So report lower balances on other cards. I'm letting my new disco report about 25% on statement cut, but for the first month I used 111% of my limit paying down multiple times to not exceed limit. And of course PIF.

I probably won't be cycling the limit every month, Dec is a high spend month. But I plan to put about 75-80% through it regularly and continue to let 25% post on statement and then PIF.

This is the strategy I'm using, lots of people have mixed results with disco

Re: Maximizing Discover CLI

Anonymous — Sat, 11 Jan 2020 19:23:04 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
Hello, ... Would it be advisable to use that 750 and pay it down to $0 1-2 times a month? Essentially using it for all my purchases (bills, groceries etc ...

Hello.

Your plan should work as well as any other. Spend regularly & pay quickly is a sound approach to let a lender know you are there.

That said, exact Discover methodology is a tough nut to crack. There is no consensus "formula." But you can read many tales of success in the Approval Forum and then decide for yourself. Just search: Discover CLI.

Anecdotally, I went 12 months with zero CLIs. Then I received a healthy CLI in 3 straight months. Neither my spend pattern, nor my scores, changed significantly. In other words, ask often.

Re: Maximizing Discover CLI

AverageJoesCredit — Sun, 12 Jan 2020 15:00:42 GMT

Dont worry sbout percentages, just use your card and pay it on time. K.I.S.S method. There is no one true way to appease the Disco gods but by using it and paying on time, you will appease the #1 and #2 credit rules and feeding a Disco monster is better than starving one

Re: Maximizing Discover CLI

M_Smart007 — Sun, 12 Jan 2020 16:04:17 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
Hello,

I was recently approved for the Discover IT card and am wondering how best to maximize my future CLI chances/amount.

My initial limit was $750. Would it be advisable to use that 750 and pay it down to $0 1-2 times a month? Essentially using it for all my purchases (bills, groceries etc) and making sure it reports under 10% utilization at statement close. Or is simply making sure utilization reports low my only concern?

My income/debt would easily support any CLI, I am just not sure what behaviors would look best to Discover. If there is a handy posting going over these things feel free to direct me there.

@Anonymous Welcome To myFICO Forums!

My suggestion is to just use the card as you normally would.

No magic potion for CLI's. Some report being able to get one after 3rd statement. ..But that is kinda rare.

You can always hit the CLI button any time .. as it is a SP on your report.

Re: Maximizing Discover CLI

rockstar53 — Sun, 12 Jan 2020 17:37:37 GMT

I would suggest waiting to ask for an initial increase after using for 6 months - and then from there you can technically ask every 30 days if you find Disco does not want to give any increases initially. They do not have a consistent method as for me, I received a small increase after one year on first card, added a second account after year one then by year two consistently got more increases every 6 months before combining cards and limits where I now sit at $27k

Re: Maximizing Discover CLI

Anonymous — Sun, 12 Jan 2020 18:17:11 GMT

@rockstar53 wrote:
... from there you can technically ask every 30 days ...

You can "technically" ask much more often than that.

Re: Maximizing Discover CLI

Anonymous — Sun, 12 Jan 2020 18:20:42 GMT

Thank you for all the responses everyone. I plan on just using the card as often as possible and paying in full 1-2 times a month and seeing how it goes.

Re: Maximizing Discover CLI

Anonymous — Sun, 12 Jan 2020 22:09:02 GMT

I'm in the same boat, I was just approved. I read one forum where someone got one at 61, than again at 91. I may try 61 but I'll be sure to use 75% of it and PIF before due date.

Re: Maximizing Discover CLI

Anonymous — Tue, 14 Jan 2020 07:49:37 GMT

I got an auto CLI at three months. I didn't ask for it. Was approved for a SL of $800 (on a 630-something FICO if I recall) and I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED that card. It was my best "real" credit card at the time. (I had a secured Green Dot with a limit of $200 and some store cards too.) And I was so grateful to Disco. (Still am!) I swear I think I sent in payment a few times a week. I'm not sure how much money I put through it in a month, but at least over $1000.

My limit, at about 11 months in, is at $2400. I asked for CLIs twice after that initial auto-one and got accepted each time (for smallish amounts but I'm not complaining). The CLIs would probably would be higher if my income were more. I don't use it as much as I used to (since I got in with Navy) but it gets its fair share of usage and always will.

My advice is to pay a lot of attention to it and pay faithfully. Then the CLIs will happen when they happen.