topic Re: Breaking the Capital One CLI barriers... in Credit Cards

Breaking the Capital One CLI barriers...

MT64 — Mon, 24 Apr 2023 13:28:56 GMT

I've got two Capital One cards I've had for quite a long time, 1 for about 10 years and another for about 5. Both are under $1k and have been denied CLI in the past for the same various reasons everyone else gets denied for.

While I know it's stated that you should only ask for a CLI once every 6 months (even Capital One states this as you try to apply for a CLI), it appears you can actually ask for one every single month (is it like this with any others?). Has anyone successfully tried being ultra aggressive with CLI requests with Capital One on a monthly basis and if so, how long did it finally take before they finally approved you of a CLI?

I was considering closing these acounts down but knowing that the QS can grow quite massively, I'd like to see how far and quickly I can increase it's growth if I'm constantly asking, though I can't be the first person who has tried this tactic.

Anyone with any success doing it this way? If so, how long did it take you and at what wall did you finally hit? Thanks!

Re: Breaking the Capital One CLI barriers...

Horseshoez — Mon, 24 Apr 2023 13:47:52 GMT

My situation isn't an apples-to-apples comparison so not sure if it will help or not.

In April of 2020 I opened a CapOne secured card with their (then) max limit of $1,000; that limit ended up being unworkable as a daily driver so I closed it after less than 7 weeks. I figured CapOne would hate me for closing that card so soon after opening it; much to my surprise they sent me a pre-approval E-Mail for a Quicksilver card six months after I closed the secured card. I bit and applied, and was instantly approved for a $3,000 unsecured card; that card has since grown to more that double that limit.

I told you that to tell you this; in your shoes I would apply for a Product Change to a higher level card, and failing that, close the newer of your two CapOne cards, wait a month or so, and apply for another one of their cards.

Re: Breaking the Capital One CLI barriers...

Adkins — Mon, 24 Apr 2023 13:47:59 GMT

I've asked for a CLI on my capital one card nearly every month since I've had it, except for at the very beginning when I was promised a CLI after six months. I still haven't gotten an increase because this card is in a bucket and it's not going to grow. You can ask for a CLI whenever, but you can only get a CLI every six months.

Re: Breaking the Capital One CLI barriers...

MT64 — Mon, 24 Apr 2023 13:54:14 GMT

@Horseshoez wrote:
My situation isn't an apples-to-apples comparison so not sure if it will help or not.

In April of 2020 I opened a CapOne secured card with their (then) max limit of $1,000; that limit ended up being unworkable as a daily driver so I closed it after less than 7 weeks. I figured CapOne would hate me for closing that card so soon after opening it; much to my surprise they sent me a pre-approval E-Mail for a Quicksilver card six months after I closed the secured card. I bit and applied, and was instantly approved for a $3,000 unsecured card; that card has since grown to more that double that limit.

I told you that to tell you this; in your shoes I would apply for a Product Change to a higher level card, and failing that, close the newer of your two CapOne cards, wait a month or so, and apply for another one of their cards.

Good to know. I did recently upgrade from the Platinum to the QuickSilver, just haven't asked for a CLI yet. It's a $500 card. Waiting for dust to settling next month and then start asking.

Re: Breaking the Capital One CLI barriers...

Brian_Earl_Spilner — Mon, 24 Apr 2023 14:33:00 GMT

The chance of the card growing is slim due to cap1s use of asset backed securities. Once your card is packaged it typically stays in that "bucket". Hence the term around here. It would have to be repackaged to have the growth and limits you see. The only way to really see any growth is to spend on that card. I spent triple my limit on mine every month for 3 months before they gave me increases. I abandoned it though because I got cards with better rewards. I'll probably close mine soon and apply again in the future.

Re: Breaking the Capital One CLI barriers...

MT64 — Mon, 24 Apr 2023 14:49:18 GMT

@Brian_Earl_Spilner wrote:
The chance of the card growing is slim due to cap1s use of asset backed securities. Once your card is packaged it typically stays in that "bucket". Hence the term around here. It would have to be repackaged to have the growth and limits you see. The only way to really see any growth is to spend on that card. I spent triple my limit on mine every month for 3 months before they gave me increases. I abandoned it though because I got cards with better rewards. I'll probably close mine soon and apply again in the future.

It remains grandfathered bucketed even when a product change/upgrade occurs? That would seem to be against the purpose of upgrading altogether really, silly small cash rewards aside if you actually use the card enough.

Re: Breaking the Capital One CLI barriers...

Brian_Earl_Spilner — Mon, 24 Apr 2023 16:20:37 GMT

@MT64 wrote:
@Brian_Earl_Spilner wrote:
The chance of the card growing is slim due to cap1s use of asset backed securities. Once your card is packaged it typically stays in that "bucket". Hence the term around here. It would have to be repackaged to have the growth and limits you see. The only way to really see any growth is to spend on that card. I spent triple my limit on mine every month for 3 months before they gave me increases. I abandoned it though because I got cards with better rewards. I'll probably close mine soon and apply again in the future.
It remains grandfathered bucketed even when a product change/upgrade occurs? That would seem to be against the purpose of upgrading altogether really, silly small cash rewards aside if you actually use the card enough.

All you're doing is changing the rewards. It would have no impact.

Re: Breaking the Capital One CLI barriers...

Legally_Speaking2512 — Mon, 24 Apr 2023 17:18:20 GMT

@MT64 wrote:
I've got two Capital One cards I've had for quite a long time, 1 for about 10 years and another for about 5. Both are under $1k and have been denied CLI in the past for the same various reasons everyone else gets denied for.

While I know it's stated that you should only ask for a CLI once every 6 months (even Capital One states this as you try to apply for a CLI), it appears you can actually ask for one every single month (is it like this with any others?). Has anyone successfully tried being ultra aggressive with CLI requests with Capital One on a monthly basis and if so, how long did it finally take before they finally approved you of a CLI?

I was considering closing these acounts down but knowing that the QS can grow quite massively, I'd like to see how far and quickly I can increase it's growth if I'm constantly asking, though I can't be the first person who has tried this tactic.

Anyone with any success doing it this way? If so, how long did it take you and at what wall did you finally hit? Thanks!

I got aggressive with them for a while and I've had a couple CLI's through them - one CLI on my Capital One Walmart card, One on my Quicksilver card, and one on my Menards card. But they were measly increases of no more than $100-$200 dollars. Which don't get me wrong, I'm more than willing to take them as it helps pad my utilization but still... I've never had a payment as much as one day late and quite often I am a good week early on payments

Re: Breaking the Capital One CLI barriers...

Aim_High — Mon, 24 Apr 2023 18:02:51 GMT

I agree with the above advice that it's unlikely for a bucketed card to grow much if any, @MT64. But Capital One might approve you for another unbucketed card which would be a more likely way to get higher limits with them.

I've always said that Capital One requires both six months intervals between CLI as well as moderate-to-heavy spend. However, apparently neither one of these is a 100% hard-and-fast rule even though they are the normal requirements. I got some recent $1K CLIs on my Quicksilver card without significant spend and also as short as 3-4 months in-between CLIs. See >this approval thread< and the other linked threads. This does seem to be the exception, but I wanted to point out that it can happen sometimes.

With any of the lenders where you can request a SP CLI with an automated account link, it doesn't seem to hurt anything by asking as often as you like. On some of my accounts, I've asked multiple times per month, experimenting whether it matters if there is a balance on the account, prior to statement close, after statement close, or after making payment. The only impact for me has been to receive denial letters stating why my request for more credit was not approved. Sometimes, I would get an approval just a few weeks later.

All lower-limit Capital One cards are *not* bucketed! I started with a small $1K limit in 2009 on a Platinum card. It frustrated me since I got it use for a BT offer but the low limit was effectively useless. I sockdrawered it and later PC'd it to a Quicksilver. With regular use, it eventually grew to a $30K limit card as shown in my links above and other postings, so a 30x CLI.

Re: Breaking the Capital One CLI barriers...

FireMedic1 — Mon, 24 Apr 2023 19:15:49 GMT

Yes @Aim_High some do break thru. Just like myself and getting a Auto CLI with AMEX with a BK. 99% of the time it doesnt happen. The approval to a higher tier is slim. The reason RIP is below. I had to do the buckets per say and prove myself. Then in a year I got all 3 at 10g's a piece. Training wheel cards let say. We used to say a lot was get the starter card. Then go for the prime card. Higher SL's. But many didnt due to the triple pull. I didnt care. I was rebuilding. Had to go with it. Theres exceptions in any case. But the majority didnt or wont get the break out of the bucket arena. Older cards from 15-20 yrs ago are almost the same. Like you you busted out. Some with 20 yr old cards cant even get a $100 CLI. We'll never know why. Just scratch our heads and go ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Re: Breaking the Capital One CLI barriers...

Aim_High — Mon, 24 Apr 2023 19:37:57 GMT

@FireMedic1 wrote:
Yes @Aim_High some do break thru. Just like myself and getting a Auto CLI with AMEX with a BK. 99% of the time it doesnt happen. The approval to a higher tier is slim. The reason RIP is below. I had to do the buckets per say and prove myself. Then in a year I got all 3 at 10g's a piece. Training wheel cards let say. We used to say a lot was get the starter card. Then go for the prime card. Higher SL's. But many didnt due to the triple pull. I didnt care. I was rebuilding. Had to go with it. Theres exceptions in any case. But the majority didnt or wont get the break out of the bucket arena. Older cards from 15-20 yrs ago are almost the same. Like you you busted out. Some with 20 yr old cards cant even get a $100 CLI. We'll never know why. Just scratch our heads and go ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Yes, I think my case was not the norm, @FireMedic1, but just pointing out the possibility. In my case, I'm pretty sure my card wasn't bucketed even though it was a very low limit. This was very much an atypical approval for me and really caught me off guard. I was carrying some debts at that time and my FICO scores were suppressed, but I didn't have BK or any serious derogatories. My other cards were in the $5K to $15K range at that time, I believe, and I had a 20+ year credit history. Bottom line: I think cards that are truly 'bucketed' may never grow. But low SL doesn't always mean a card is bucketed either. Just not synonymous, IMO. It's great that you recognized the value of the "starter cards" since they serve a valuable purpose.

Re: Breaking the Capital One CLI barriers...

nytokyobred79 — Tue, 25 Apr 2023 00:23:46 GMT

@Aim_High wrote:
@FireMedic1 wrote:
Yes @Aim_High some do break thru. Just like myself and getting a Auto CLI with AMEX with a BK. 99% of the time it doesnt happen. The approval to a higher tier is slim. The reason RIP is below. I had to do the buckets per say and prove myself. Then in a year I got all 3 at 10g's a piece. Training wheel cards let say. We used to say a lot was get the starter card. Then go for the prime card. Higher SL's. But many didnt due to the triple pull. I didnt care. I was rebuilding. Had to go with it. Theres exceptions in any case. But the majority didnt or wont get the break out of the bucket arena. Older cards from 15-20 yrs ago are almost the same. Like you you busted out. Some with 20 yr old cards cant even get a $100 CLI. We'll never know why. Just scratch our heads and go ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Yes, I think my case was not the norm, @FireMedic1, but just pointing out the possibility. In my case, I'm pretty sure my card wasn't bucketed even though it was a very low limit. This was very much an atypical approval for me and really caught me off guard. I was carrying some debts at that time and my FICO scores were suppressed, but I didn't have BK or any serious derogatories. My other cards were in the $5K to $15K range at that time, I believe, and I had a 20+ year credit history. Bottom line: I think cards that are truly 'bucketed' may never grow. But low SL doesn't always mean a card is bucketed either. Just not synonymous, IMO. It's great that you recognized the value of the "starter cards" since they serve a valuable purpose.

Just adding to what you mentioned around some occasional breakthroughs- I was approved for the Venture Rewards last August and after some very moderate spend, about 1.5 months later(end of Sept), I requested a cli for science. I was partially approved for 1K although I requested 5K at the time. Then I maybe put about a total of 10% spend of TCL on card for next 4 months and I was able to get another 4K via online request. Since then, I've hit the cli button monthly for science but the denial code has been you've recently had a cli increase xxxx. I do understand it's profile dependent and also whether the card is bucketed or not. But just wanted to share that Cap 1 occasionally loosens things up.

Re: Breaking the Capital One CLI barriers...

OmarGB9 — Tue, 25 Apr 2023 02:49:45 GMT

@nytokyobred79 wrote:
@Aim_High wrote:
@FireMedic1 wrote:
Yes @Aim_High some do break thru. Just like myself and getting a Auto CLI with AMEX with a BK. 99% of the time it doesnt happen. The approval to a higher tier is slim. The reason RIP is below. I had to do the buckets per say and prove myself. Then in a year I got all 3 at 10g's a piece. Training wheel cards let say. We used to say a lot was get the starter card. Then go for the prime card. Higher SL's. But many didnt due to the triple pull. I didnt care. I was rebuilding. Had to go with it. Theres exceptions in any case. But the majority didnt or wont get the break out of the bucket arena. Older cards from 15-20 yrs ago are almost the same. Like you you busted out. Some with 20 yr old cards cant even get a $100 CLI. We'll never know why. Just scratch our heads and go ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Yes, I think my case was not the norm, @FireMedic1, but just pointing out the possibility. In my case, I'm pretty sure my card wasn't bucketed even though it was a very low limit. This was very much an atypical approval for me and really caught me off guard. I was carrying some debts at that time and my FICO scores were suppressed, but I didn't have BK or any serious derogatories. My other cards were in the $5K to $15K range at that time, I believe, and I had a 20+ year credit history. Bottom line: I think cards that are truly 'bucketed' may never grow. But low SL doesn't always mean a card is bucketed either. Just not synonymous, IMO. It's great that you recognized the value of the "starter cards" since they serve a valuable purpose.
Just adding to what you mentioned around some occasional breakthroughs- I was approved for the Venture Rewards last August and after some very moderate spend, about 1.5 months later(end of Sept), I requested a cli for science. I was partially approved for 1K although I requested 5K at the time. Then I maybe put about a total of 10% spend of TCL on card for next 4 months and I was able to get another 4K via online request. Since then, I've hit the cli button monthly for science but the denial code has been you've recently had a cli increase xxxx. I do understand it's profile dependent and also whether the card is bucketed or not. But just wanted to share that Cap 1 occasionally loosens things up.

Venture cards that start as Ventures aren't bucketed. It's only their starter cards (Platinum, Secured, Quicksilver).

Re: Breaking the Capital One CLI barriers...

Kforce — Tue, 25 Apr 2023 03:31:30 GMT

A few do, most don't, why bother ???

By the time you can & deserve higher CL's better cards are available for a single hard pull.

Re: Breaking the Capital One CLI barriers...

SweetCreditObsession — Tue, 25 Apr 2023 04:09:59 GMT

@Adkins wrote:
I've asked for a CLI on my capital one card nearly every month since I've had it, except for at the very beginning when I was promised a CLI after six months. I still haven't gotten an increase because this card is in a bucket and it's not going to grow. You can ask for a CLI whenever, but you can only get a CLI every six months.

Thank you for pointing out the bucket and its impact on growth.

OP - if you open a new card, it's likely to grow.

Re: Breaking the Capital One CLI barriers...

Brian_Earl_Spilner — Tue, 25 Apr 2023 07:04:13 GMT

@Aim_High wrote:
I agree with the above advice that it's unlikely for a bucketed card to grow much if any, @MT64.   But Capital One might approve you for another unbucketed card which would be a more likely way to get higher limits with them.

I've always said that Capital One requires both six months intervals between CLI as well as moderate-to-heavy spend. However, apparently neither one of these is a 100% hard-and-fast rule even though they are the normal requirements. I got some recent $1K CLIs on my Quicksilver card without significant spend and also as short as 3-4 months in-between CLIs.    See >this approval thread< and the other linked threads.   This does seem to be the exception, but I wanted to point out that it can happen sometimes.

With any of the lenders where you can request a SP CLI with an automated account link, it doesn't seem to hurt anything by asking as often as you like. On some of my accounts, I've asked multiple times per month, experimenting whether it matters if there is a balance on the account, prior to statement close, after statement close, or after making payment.   The only impact for me has been to receive denial letters stating why my request for more credit was not approved. Sometimes, I would get an approval just a few weeks later.

All lower-limit Capital One cards are *not* bucketed! I started with a small $1K limit in 2009 on a Platinum card. It frustrated me since I got it use for a BT offer but the low limit was effectively useless. I sockdrawered it and later PC'd it to a Quicksilver. With regular use, it eventually grew to a $30K limit card as shown in my links above and other postings, so a 30x CLI.

Correct. A lower starting limit is not indicative of a bucketed card. It's quite possible to start with a $300 limit card and grow it to 5 figures. It just depends on how your card is packaged for ABS.

Re: Breaking the Capital One CLI barriers...

keeno1970 — Tue, 25 Apr 2023 18:25:10 GMT

I've had my QS card a few years now. It started out at $750 CL. I've never asked once for a CLI. And it's up to $5,000. They give me CLI's on a regular basis. And sometimes I don't even realize they have.

Re: Breaking the Capital One CLI barriers...

Legally_Speaking2512 — Wed, 26 Apr 2023 17:43:00 GMT

See I would love if they did that with me. I've had my Capital One Walmart card for almost 2 years and only have a $550 credit limit and I think I've gotten one or two CLI's but like I said before they've been measly increases. Maybe I should stop asking them LOL🤣🤣

Re: Breaking the Capital One CLI barriers...

Legally_Speaking2512 — Wed, 26 Apr 2023 17:45:35 GMT

I agree with the sentiment of opening a new card and its growth.

OP: have you tried their pre-qualification tool on their website? Now even if you pre-qualified doesn't mean you're guaranteed but I will say every time I have pre-qualified for one of their cards - I was approved when I applied.

Re: Breaking the Capital One CLI barriers...

keeno1970 — Wed, 26 Apr 2023 20:28:54 GMT

The Quicksilver card is the only personal credit card I have. But MY washer and dryer were on their last leg. So I went to Lowes to buy two new ones. The salesman asked me if I wanted to apply for a Lowes card. 5% off of anything when you use the card. I said I'll pass and just pay cash. But after a few minutes I changed my mind and applied. Approved on 2 seconds for $4,000 starting limit. And since it was my first time using the card they gave me 20% off the washer and dryer. Did not expect that. But it's a charge card. So you have to pay it off in 30 days.