topic Re: Thoughts on these 2% cards in Credit Cards

Thoughts on these 2% cards

credit8502020 — Mon, 12 Jul 2021 21:04:04 GMT

Hi All,

I'm preparing to get a 2% "everything" card this week before my student loans hit my Credit Report.

I've narrowed my cards down to the following:

PenFed 2% CB Visa

- Member since late Feb 2021

- 2 Savings Accounts

Can anyone chime in about the top things that matter most lately to PenFed for their credit cards?

FNBO 2% CB Visa

- Is a profile more favorable if there is a banking relationship already?

Fidelity 2%

-Which bureau they pull?

-Con (Connected to Brokerage Account. I don't have one with Fidelity yet.)

-Do you think I have a better chance of obtaining a strong limit since I already have an Elan Max Card?

Ideally I want the 2% card that is more likely to give the highest limit.

Here are a few details regarding my other most recent credit cards.

NFCU Cash Rewards $22,000 - 9/2020

NFCU Plat $25,000 - 1/2021

Elan - $20,000 - 1/2021

Inquiries:

EXP - 0 Inq

EQ - 1 Inq

TU - 2 Inq

I had planned to wait to apply for my next card, but I know my $18,000 student loan that will post soon will negatively impact my changes of getting a higher limit. It has already posted on my TU report, so I'm looking to apply before it posts to EQ or EXP.

@Aim_High I know you're a fan of PenFed's card. Do you gather that they provide "generous" SLs? Have you had automatic CLIs or have you had to request them?

Re: Thoughts on these 2% cards

Aim_High — Tue, 13 Jul 2021 21:30:02 GMT

@credit8502020 wrote: I'm preparing to get a 2% "everything" card this week ...
@Aim_High I know you're a fan of PenFed's card. Do you gather that they provide "generous" SLs? Have you had automatic CLIs or have you had to request them?

@credit8502020, Yes I think the Power Cash Rewards is the best overall 2% card, although I am a veteran so no banking deposit account is needed for me to get the full 2% rewards. Still, I elected to open some deposit accounts with PenFed since they have good products. (Non-vets just have to have a checking account with either $500 daily balance or $500 monthly DD to get the full 2% while also waiving the checking account monthly fee.) Among other things, I like their no-minimum redemption, relatively low APRs (mine is at 9.99% which is lower than best advertised), and low fees.

PenFeds SLs can be pretty generous but SLs may vary based on profile. I was approved after some other credit-seeking and still got $15K. And that was on the same day I opened my deposit accounts. I've seen approvals up to $25K. Even lower end approvals seem to often get $5K to $10K. PenFed can be finicky though. Some of our forums members have not been very successful with them, but if they like your profile they roll out the welcome mat.

CLI requests initiated by you are always hard pull unfortunately. However, they have a record of offering additional credit, usually in the form of an additional card. Also of note is that they have a limit of $50K TCL per customer and $25K per card. They previously allowed $50K on one card but started changing that policy last year. A few of us were able to get in under the wire but not sure that is still possible. So you may be capped at $25K. If you don't get the full $25K on approval, it could be possible after six months at the first opportunity for CLI. Mine was raised to $25K at six months and is $41.7K now.

I believe the PSECU (Pennsylvania State Employees CU) Founders Card has limits up to $30K and we've seen approvals at MAX limit.

I believe that for the right profile, getting $25K SLs on the Fidelity card is not unusual. Certainly $12K to $15K is attainable for a good profile. I would imagine it could grow well with heavier usage, but not sure how high.

If you want a really high limit 2% card, have you considered the Navy FCU Flagship Rewards? If you combine your other two card limits with the approval, it can go to $80K on that single card!

FNBO is a great little bank. I think you can get a pretty good approval out of them without a banking relationship.

To see which CRB will be pulled, suggest you check @credit_is_crack's master thread:
https://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/General-Credit-Topics/The-quot-Which-Banks-Pull-Which-Report-For-Apps-quot-list/m-p/5542910

Hope this helps and good luck!

Re: Thoughts on these 2% cards

Anonymous — Tue, 13 Jul 2021 10:27:55 GMT

@credit8502020 wrote:
Hi All,
I'm preparing to get a 2% "everything" card this week before my student loans hit my Credit Report.

I've narrowed my cards down to the following:

PenFed 2% CB Visa
- Member since late Feb 2021
- 2 Savings Accounts
Can anyone chime in about the top things that matter most lately to PenFed for their credit cards?

FNBO 2% CB Visa
- Is a profile more favorable if there is a banking relationship already?

Fidelity 2%
-Which bureau they pull?
-Con (Connected to Brokerage Account. I don't have one with Fidelity yet.)
-Do you think I have a better chance of obtaining a strong limit since I already have an Elan Max Card?

Ideally I want the 2% card that is more likely to give the highest limit.

Here are a few details regarding my other most recent credit cards.
NFCU Cash Rewards $22,000 - 9/2020
NFCU Plat $25,000 - 1/2021
Elan - $20,000 - 1/2021

Inquiries:
EXP - 0 Inq
EQ - 1 Inq
TU - 2 Inq

I had planned to wait to apply for my next card, but I know my $18,000 student loan that will post soon will negatively impact my changes of getting a higher limit. It has already posted on my TU report, so I'm looking to apply before it posts to EQ or EXP.

@Aim_High I know you're a fan of PenFed's card. Do you gather that they provide "generous" SLs? Have you had automatic CLIs or have you had to request them?

For me, Elan pulled TU when I applied for the Fidelity Rewards Visa in March 2021. 20K SL. I already had the Cash+ when I applied. If you don't see yourself using Fidelity for investments, you could open up a cash management account. This account has many of the features of a free checking account (e.g. bill pay, FDIC insurance, ACH transfer service, debit card). The cash management account makes for a pretty good hub account for transferring between financial institutions, although transfer speeds aren't the fastest. Also, the Fidelity Rewards comes with a $150 SUB when conditions are met.

I've read on myFICO that Fidelity may offer 3% cash back periods for existing card members when minimum spends are met. I haven't received this offer, but my card is fairly new.

Re: Thoughts on these 2% cards

credit8502020 — Wed, 14 Jul 2021 23:53:44 GMT

@Aim_High wrote:
@credit8502020 wrote: I'm preparing to get a 2% "everything" card this week ...
@Aim_High I know you're a fan of PenFed's card. Do you gather that they provide "generous" SLs? Have you had automatic CLIs or have you had to request them?
@credit8502020, Yes I think the Power Cash Rewards is the best overall 2% card, although I am a veteran so no banking deposit account is needed for me to get the full 2% rewards. Still, I elected to open some deposit accounts with PenFed since they have good products. (Non-vets just have to have a checking account with either $500 daily balance or $500 monthly DD to get the full 2% while also waiving the checking account monthly fee.) Among other things, I like their no-minimum redemption, relatively low APRs (mine is at 9.99% which is lower than best advertised), and low fees.

PenFeds SLs can be pretty generous but SLs may vary based on profile. I was approved after some other credit-seeking and still got $15K. And that was on the same day I opened my deposit accounts. I've seen approvals up to $25K. Even lower end approvals seem to often get $5K to $10K. PenFed can be finicky though. Some of our forums members have not been very successful with them, but if they like your profile they roll out the welcome mat.

CLI requests initiated by you are always hard pull unfortunately. However, they have a record of offering additional credit, usually in the form of an additional card. Also of note is that they have a limit of $50K TCL per customer and $25K per card. They previously allowed $50K on one card but started changing that policy last year. A few of us were able to get in under the wire but not sure that is still possible. So you may be capped at $25K. If you don't get the full $25K on approval, it could be possible after six months at the first opportunity for CLI. Mine was raised to $25K at six months and is $41.7K now.

I believe the PSECU (Pennsylvania State Employees CU) Founders Card has limits up to $30K and we've seen approvals at MAX limit.

I believe that for the right profile, getting $25K SLs on the Fidelity card is not unusual. Certainly $12K to $15K is attainable for a good profile. I would imagine it could grow well with heavier usage, but not sure how high.

If you want a really high limit 2% card, have you considered the Navy FCU Flagship Rewards? If you combine your other two card limits with the approval, it can go to $80K on that single card!

FNBO is a great little bank. I think you can get a pretty good approval out of them without a banking relationship.

To see which CRB will be pulled, suggest you check @credit_is_crack's master thread:
https://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/General-Credit-Topics/The-quot-Which-Banks-Pull-Which-Report-For-Apps-quot-list/m-p/5542910

Hope this helps and good luck!

@Aim_High Thank you for going into detail. I moved forward and applied for the PenFed's Power Cash Rewards Card. Thank God I was approved for $15k! Was yours raised to $25k after you requested it or automatically? Also, about how much would you say you put on the card consistently and then right before you actually received the CLI?

I hadn't really thought much about Navy FCU Flagship Rewards. Is the points system as good as the Cash Back percentage? This is something that I had not looked into yet. I'm just looking for higher limits in preparation for tuition and other expenses I'll need to make and also to build business credit and an overall stronger profile in preparation for building relationships with financial institutions.

Re: Thoughts on these 2% cards

credit8502020 — Wed, 14 Jul 2021 23:55:56 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
@credit8502020 wrote:
Hi All,
I'm preparing to get a 2% "everything" card this week before my student loans hit my Credit Report.

I've narrowed my cards down to the following:

PenFed 2% CB Visa
- Member since late Feb 2021
- 2 Savings Accounts
Can anyone chime in about the top things that matter most lately to PenFed for their credit cards?

FNBO 2% CB Visa
- Is a profile more favorable if there is a banking relationship already?

Fidelity 2%
-Which bureau they pull?
-Con (Connected to Brokerage Account. I don't have one with Fidelity yet.)
-Do you think I have a better chance of obtaining a strong limit since I already have an Elan Max Card?

Ideally I want the 2% card that is more likely to give the highest limit.

Here are a few details regarding my other most recent credit cards.
NFCU Cash Rewards $22,000 - 9/2020
NFCU Plat $25,000 - 1/2021
Elan - $20,000 - 1/2021

Inquiries:
EXP - 0 Inq
EQ - 1 Inq
TU - 2 Inq

I had planned to wait to apply for my next card, but I know my $18,000 student loan that will post soon will negatively impact my changes of getting a higher limit. It has already posted on my TU report, so I'm looking to apply before it posts to EQ or EXP.

@Aim_High I know you're a fan of PenFed's card. Do you gather that they provide "generous" SLs? Have you had automatic CLIs or have you had to request them?

For me, Elan pulled TU when I applied for the Fidelity Rewards Visa in March 2021. 20K SL. I already had the Cash+ when I applied. If you don't see yourself using Fidelity for investments, you could open up a cash management account. This account has many of the features of a free checking account (e.g. bill pay, FDIC insurance, ACH transfer service, debit card). The cash management account makes for a pretty good hub account for transferring between financial institutions, although transfer speeds aren't the fastest. Also, the Fidelity Rewards comes with a $150 SUB when conditions are met.

I've read on myFICO that Fidelity may offer 3% cash back periods for existing card members when minimum spends are met. I haven't received this offer, but my card is fairly new.

@Anonymous Thank you for sharing this information. I wasn't aware of the cash management account.

Re: Thoughts on these 2% cards

Aim_High — Thu, 15 Jul 2021 03:06:21 GMT

@credit8502020 wrote:

@Aim_High Thank you for going into detail. I moved forward and applied for the PenFed's Power Cash Rewards Card. Thank God I was approved for $15k! Was yours raised to $25k after you requested it or automatically? Also, about how much would you say you put on the card consistently and then right before you actually received the CLI?

I hadn't really thought much about Navy FCU Flagship Rewards. Is the points system as good as the Cash Back percentage? This is something that I had not looked into yet. I'm just looking for higher limits in preparation for tuition and other expenses I'll need to make and also to build business credit and an overall stronger profile in preparation for building relationships with financial institutions.

Awesome and congrats on a very nice PenFed Power Cash Rewards Visa, @credit8502020 ! I'm glad my details helped.

I got the $25K after six months by my request. It was a hard pull. A couple of weeks after that, PenFed offered me an additional $16.7K (soft pull) in the form of a new card or CLI to my PCR. I took the CLI but they balked at implementing it since it conflicted with their recent change in policy to cap each card limit at $25K. After a few months, I got it completed with new limit of $41.7K.

PenFed doesn't seem sensitive to high spend to get CLI. I'd have to look back at my records but I think monthly spend was in the low four figures, well below my starting CL. They seem more concerned with overall profile factors like credit score, income and debt-to-income. I never pumped up spending to use more of the limit.

The Navy Federal Flagship Rewards is basically a 2%+ card with historically a good SUB and a modest $49 AF. It earns 3% on travel and 2% on everything else. Points can be redeemed for cash back, gift cards, merchandise, or travel (such as airline tickets, hotels, rental cars, cruises.) Points are worth a penny a point. The current SUB is 40K points (cash value of $400 which pays the AF for 8 years.). And the current SUB also includes a year of free Amazon Prime membership. If you spend a lot on travel, it can outearn a 2% card even with the AF. There is a credit towards TSA Global Entry every 4 years ($100) which is an average value of $25, lowering the effective AF to $24 if you travel internationally. (TSA GE also includes TSA Pre-Check expedited security screening on domestic flights.) The minimum redemption on FSRs is a little high at $50. The FSRs includes travel accident insurance and cellphone insurance.

If you're willing and able to forgo your other Navy Federal cards, and if your profile supports the total limits, you can have your entire NFCU revolving credit line of $80K on a single Flagship Rewards by combining credit limits.

Re: Thoughts on these 2% cards

Anonymous — Thu, 15 Jul 2021 03:54:16 GMT

@Aim_High wrote:
. The current SUB is 40K points (cash value of $400 which pays the AF for 8 years.).

Just a personal view: I always try to discourage this type of thinking, as it sometimes encourages unnecessary card retention. Once you have the SUB, it's yours, and every renewal time, the question should be: do I want to continue paying the AF (vs, well, it's already been paid for the next X years!)

I understand that this view has some utility for helping people make the jump to AF cards which they want long term, but in general, the SUB is a bonus to keep, not a justification for future annual fees.

Re: Thoughts on these 2% cards

FinStar — Thu, 15 Jul 2021 04:07:07 GMT

As the OP has indicated they've been approved for the PenFed PCR credit card, this thread is now locked and closed to new messages. @credit8502020 - congrats on the approval.