topic Re: Need advice on combining (4) Chase cards in Credit Cards

Need advice on combining (4) Chase cards

Anonymous — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 15:27:12 GMT

Love the board, awesome advice I have read over the past 2 years - thanks to everyone.

My question is I have (4) Chase cards, all with crappy CL's and none (sans Amazon card) that have rewards etc.

I don't regularly use the cards because they have crappy CL's and even crappier APR's. I have plenty of other top notch/good rate cards that I use instead... These cards have been CLD over the past 5 years or so, mostly due to inactivity and 1 late in 2004, but no more CLD in the past 3 years. They have just been "socked" basically.

Here are the cards/info:

1) Card1: 2,400 CL, 24.24% APR, active since 5/1998

2) Card2: 1,650 CL, 27.24% APR, active since 11/1995

3) Card3: 4,500 CL, 12.24% APR, active since 10/2005 (Amazon card)

4) Card4: 3,000 CL, 12.24% APR, since 4/2008 (this was a WAMU conversion)

What does the sandbox here think I should do? Leave alone, or try to combine to a single card, combine to 2 cards? I hate having these low level crappy cards and put something on them occasionally being a strategy moving forward to keep them active etc.

If the recommendation is to try to combine, which number to call with higher level of success etc.? Back of a card, backdoor etc..

edit: Will they do a hard pull to combine cards? My scores arejust over 700 all (3) meant to add..

Thoughts?

Thanks RoBo

Message Edited by RoBoCoPP on 04-03-2009 08:24 AM

Message Edited by RoBoCoPP on 04-03-2009 08:27 AM

Re: Need advice on combining (4) Chase cards

Anonymous — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 19:45:55 GMT

I would suggest PC'ing your best card to Chase Freedom or other reward, then once done combine the higher apr CL's into it.

Message Edited by txjohn on 04-03-2009 12:45 PM

Re: Need advice on combining (4) Chase cards

Lyythine — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 02:58:01 GMT

At one point, I had 3 chase chards (student, British Airways Signature, and Freedom). My limits were as follows:

Student: 1200

British Airways Signature: No preset spending limit 5k (aka, they wont charge you if you go over 5k)

Freedom: 2400

I received the Signature Card last, and would use it for miles the most so I called the # on back of the card and asked if I could combine all cards into the British Airways card and make my limit 10k. She put me on hold for quite a while, came back and said that she could not combine the student card into the British Airways card, but I could combine the other one and she would still give me the 10k limit that I had asked for. Not sure if it was just that CSR of if had I done a PC on the student card, pehaps it would have been eliglbe... Anyway, to answer your question, in my case, they would combine the cards (at least 2 of them in my case) and increase my limit to what I had asked for.

Re: Need advice on combining (4) Chase cards

JJF — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 04:18:07 GMT

My wife and I have 3 different individual Chase cards. I noticed different and inconsistent logos on their webpage for our cards. Making a long story short, my wife called to ask what reward program was tied to what card. Chase volunteered information on combining CL on multiple cards into one card. Chase also is sending her info on adding a reward program to the card that does not have a reward program.

If you decide to consolidate accounts, I would make sure to keep the older cards (1995 and 1998). I would call Chase and ask them about your options.

Message Edited by JJF on 04-03-2009 09:18 PM

Re: Need advice on combining (4) Chase cards

Anonymous — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 14:43:06 GMT

I originally started out with he Washington Mutual Credit Card but now Washington Mutual is Chase. They said that when my credit card gets close to the expiration date then they will be sending me a new Chase Card. I am hoping in the process that I don't end up losing the credit card because WaMu used TransUnion which I have a 692 score on but my EQ and Exp are lower. I have other credit cards and trying to find out if there is a way I can do a balance transfer with them. I don't know who they use and what score you need. Any infor would be great.

Re: Need advice on combining (4) Chase cards

Anonymous — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 16:05:34 GMT

The TU score offered by WaMu (now Chase) is not offered anymore when Chase bought them out since Chase has a fee-based score available. Keep in mind that the TU score is a FAKO, not a FICO score and that is why it seemed higher than the other two scores you had (or the TU report possibly contained different reporting info than the other two or vice versa).

Re: Need advice on combining (4) Chase cards

haulingthescoreup — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 16:21:36 GMT

The TU score that was offered on the WaMu (and Providian) cars was not a FAKO. It was an "industry-enhanced" FICO score, a CC-enhanced score in this case, that attempts to predict creditor risk specifically for CC's. We called it a PFICO, "P" for Providian, which was bought back in the day by WaMu.

But you're correct; it didn't match regular FICO's well (it also had a higher top figure), and whatever Chase has is definitely a FAKO.

edit: where is my brain today...

Message Edited by haulingthescoreup on 04-04-2009 09:21 AM

Re: Need advice on combining (4) Chase cards

Anonymous — Sun, 05 Apr 2009 18:40:22 GMT

I filed for a bankrupcy in 2001 but it was dismissed because of an electric bill I think. Anyway I could not go bankrupt so we paid everything off and I still had the bankruptcy on my credit report because we filed. Anyway finally TU and Experian removed it but Equifax still has it listed. I don't know why there is such a difference between the TU and the EQ and Experian. My FICO scores in 3/2009 were EQ: 668; TU 678; Experian 640. Then in the beginning of April my EQ: 648 (because of credit card useage); TU 692 3/27/2009 and EXP 675 (FAKO) I got it from the Experian Site and was known as the Vantage Plus Score. Anyway I realize that I cannot use any of my credit cards any more, need to just pay them all down and off and I am sure once that is done my scores will rise. I thought maybe possible I could of done a Balance Transfer but that does not make any sense to me. I am planning on paying these off from June until December which should take me approximately 6 months to accomplish. I think this is a better idea for me and I think that is what I am going to go with. Ithanks.

Re: Need advice on combining (4) Chase cards

Anonymous — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 16:46:38 GMT

Thanks for the advice. To not lose the age on the 2 oldest acounts, I combined the (4) cards into (2) cards. Yeah they are on the crappy APR's, but I don't use them anyway.

They offered a Product Change to move the Amazon and the former WAMU card and the other 2 to a new product with 12.24% APR, but I would have lost 14 years and 10 years of aging from the 2 closed cards and I didn't really want to do that.

So I am left with 4 cards to 2 cards, kept the age, crappy APR (27.24%) but I believe since I don't use the cards anyway that is fine, or I can call later and try to get an APR adjustment OR try to do a product change later of the 2 cards into a single, better, rewards or lower APR card.

At any rate, thanks info this thread and everything else I have learned here

Re: Need advice on combining (4) Chase cards

Anonymous — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 16:49:11 GMT

Check the backdoor number posting for Chase. We added a WAMU to Freedom PC, but I think it would be a good number for you as well. Where countless people were being denied product changes, rewards, etc. this number had astounding success.

Re: Need advice on combining (4) Chase cards

Anonymous — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 17:21:36 GMT

Wasn't there a discussion yesterday about how Chase would not do a PC for a co-branded card like Amazon and Starbucks over to the Chase Freedom?

Also, if I remember, some stated that Chase will not turn a Visa into a MC and vice-versa.

Just an FYI.

Re: Need advice on combining (4) Chase cards

Anonymous — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 17:34:51 GMT

I had previously called said backdoor number to convert my "non-rewards" WAMU card to a Chase rewards (Freedom) and was told I was not eligible for a PC.

When I talked to Chase about the combine, they did offer to wrap all 4 into 1 rewards card (Freedom mentioned) or a low APR card. The reason I declined was to do that they wanted me to wrap them into my 2005 or 2008 aged cards (not the 1995 or 1998 which are just regular Visa cards).

And interesting thing happened when I did this "combine". They screwed it up...

Previous available credit:

card 1: 2,400

card 2: 4,500

card 3: 1,650

card 4: 3,000

Total line(s): $11,550

I asked for a (4) to (2) combine to the oldest aged cards which left me with:

Card 1: 6,150

Card 2: 5,400

total credit line, both cards: $11,550

Soooo I log onto the website today and it looks like this:

Card 1: (former 2,400) is now $5,400 (looks like they combined 1 and 4)

Card 2: (former 4,500) is still $4,500 (they didn't zero this one out or close)

Card 3: (former 1,650) is now $6,150 (looks like they combined card 2 and this card)

Card 4: (former 3,000) is now $100 (reduction in credit line from 3,000 to $100)

Total credit line is now: $16,150 (a $4600 increase) and NONE of the cards/accounts are closed.

They had advised yesterday on the phone the update would happen immediately and could be viewed/be active in 5 minutes. I logged in today and this is what I saw.

Wow score on for the good guys??? Looks like I just got the best of all worlds except the APR's on 2 cards still are the sux

Message Edited by RoBoCoPP on 04-15-2009 10:34 AM

Re: Need advice on combining (4) Chase cards

Anonymous — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 17:45:24 GMT

Well thanks for your advice on what happened to you. I did not want to apply for anything if I did not have too but I finally decided to apply to the credit union where I have an account. I wanted to take out one card with a 6000.00 limit and transfer the other 4 cards onto that and pay it off. The interest would of been 8.99% but they don't charge anything for balance transfers. Anyway I was not approved. They use Equifax and that is my lowest score. They did pull my credit to see if there was something they could do to change there minds but it did not work. I have a bankrupcy still on my report from 2001 even though I did not go bankrupt but I filed so therefore I had to take the hit for all these years. I also have student loans on my report that I am paying for my son and I have a car loan. I owe about 5300 in credit card bills. I had decided not to take any more student loans so my husband and I were just giving the money to my son for the last 3 months but we could not keep doing that so I did have to take another very small student loan. The funny thing is that I pay all of my bills each and every month. I have realized that I don't believe I am going to get anyone to help me with this credit card debt and therefore my son graduates in May and so in June I will just take all the money that we have left over and pay it on the credit cards. I guess in these tough economic times I can understand but it does not make any sense to me. If I can pay 600-700 a month in credit cards then why couldn't I pay the $180.00 a month that the balance transfers would cost and then use the rest of the money towards paying it down. I might have to pay interest but it would of made this much more manageable. I guess I am meant to get this paid off myself which I am sure I can do over the next 6-7 months. My cedit scores right now are: 648 Equifax; 693 Experian and 692 TransUnion. I am sure that they will go down because of the inquiry to get the credit card from the credit union. Oh well what can I do. Just have to do the best you can do. Any ideas from anyone would ve welcome.

Re: Need advice on combining (4) Chase cards

athensguy — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 18:36:55 GMT

You can swap to co-branded cards. I went from a regular Chase Platinum without rewards to a BP Visa. Then I changed the BP Visa to a signature card.

The primary problem with changing the card is that I have now have three listing for the same card on the Chase website, because the account number changed each time. The swaps reported correctly on my CRs.