topic Re: Quest Credit Line Increase but Still No Pre-approvals From Chase. :-) in Credit Cards

Quest Credit Line Increase but Still No Pre-approvals From Chase. :-)

ThomasJNewton — Mon, 01 Jan 2024 20:32:38 GMT

I currently have two cards in my own name:

NFCU Cash Rewards card that is 8 years, 11 months old with a credit line of $30,000 and reported balance of ~$19,000 (should report somewhere between $0 and ~$8,000 depending on when a new charge hits).
Chase United Quest card that was issued in May with a limit of $14,500 and a reported balance of $0.

Today I logged in to check if one of my United refunds had posted, and I noticed that I had received (an unsolicted) credit line increase of $4,500, but no pre-approval for Chase Sapphire Preferred/Reseve (or anything else). :-)

It is my understanding that having a third card in my own name would help my overall profile. There are 4 cards that currently interest me for various different reasons:

AppleCard (might want to get this before it changes to another platform) - I buy a lot of Apple gear and have had really good experiances as an Authorized user on my B/F's account.
Chase Sapphire Reserve (I understand the benefit of CSP's signup bonus that would requre a year with a CSP before product changing to CSR) - trip insurance and travel benefits.
Capital One Venture X - lounge access when not flying United and for authorized users.
Vantage West - 5% at CostCo.

My scores are all in the low 700's but I expect they will all jump back up when the NFCU card reports its new balance. I have only one inquiry (Experian), and no derogatory marks (they were all 800+ before the new card dropped my AAoA and the unfortunate timing of two purchases caused two cards to report high balances).

My questions are:

Should I wait until I have had my Quest card for a 1 year before applying for another card or is that not an issue?
If I want to get all 4 cards, is the an optimum order to get them?
Is there an advantage to having a second Chase card before getting something else, or am I better off with a different issuer for my third card?
Anything else I should be considering? (Great completely open ended question.....) :-)

Re: Quest Credit Line Increase but Still No Pre-approvals From Chase. :-)

JoeRockhead — Tue, 02 Jan 2024 14:30:04 GMT

Just my opinion but I think what is holding you back with the Chase pre-approvals (with the CSR and CSP) would be a combination of the high balance on the NFCU card, and your scores. Waiting for that to report the lower balance will help. Also, keep in mind that for the Reserve they generally like to see scores at, or near the neighborhood of 750+ and a profile that can support a minimum $10k approval. The Preferred is a little less stringent but would suggest having scores 720+ for a minimum $5k approval.

I'd recommend waiting to see what the lower UTI does for your scores before going for anything else. If your scores put you into range for a Chase card I'd go for that one first, followed by perhaps a second card (maybe the Apple card since it would suit your spend) around the same time. Then do nothing else for 4 to 6 months allowing the dust to settle, and scores to rebound before going for any other cards.

Re: Quest Credit Line Increase but Still No Pre-approvals From Chase. :-)

Horseshoez — Tue, 02 Jan 2024 14:50:51 GMT

From my perspective, the Chase pre-approval web page is not terribly predective of what you can actually get approved for. Just over a year ago I checked the pre-approval page and the only thing which popped up was a savings account; I went into the branch later that day to open both checking and savings, and the associate told me I was also pre-approved for a number of their credit cards. I opted for the CSP and was approved on the spot with a starting limit of $11,700.

Re: Quest Credit Line Increase but Still No Pre-approvals From Chase. :-)

SouthJamaica — Tue, 02 Jan 2024 16:52:50 GMT

Should I wait until I have had my Quest card for a 1 year before applying for another card or is that not an issue?Not an issue
If I want to get all 4 cards, is the an optimum order to get them?Just get one at a time. Don't rush. Go for the card you want the most.
Is there an advantage to having a second Chase card before getting something else, or am I better off with a different issuer for my third card?IMHO better to have a different issuer for third card. Best to diversify. Vantage West is excellent.
Anything else I should be considering?Not that I can think of.

Re: Quest Credit Line Increase but Still No Pre-approvals From Chase. :-)

ThomasJNewton — Fri, 05 Jan 2024 20:37:37 GMT

@JoeRockhead wrote:
Just my opinion but I think what is holding you back with the Chase pre-approvals (with the CSR and CSP) would be a combination of the high balance on the NFCU card, and your scores.

I would agree if I had ever received a pre-approval from Chase. :-) Prior to receiving a pre-approval from United for my quest card, my score was just around 800, with AZEO (although with only one card in my name - my NFCU - and that showed a $0 balance).

Waiting for that to report the lower balance will help. Also, keep in mind that for the Reserve they generally like to see scores at, or near the neighborhood of 750+ and a profile that can support a minimum $10k approval. The Preferred is a little less stringent but would suggest having scores 720+ for a minimum $5k approval.

I would not start with a Reserve as it gives a much lower signup bonus. Instead, I would try for a Preferred card and after a year, product change to a Reserve.

I'd recommend waiting to see what the lower UTI does for your scores before going for anything else. If your scores put you into range for a Chase card I'd go for that one first, followed by perhaps a second card (maybe the Apple card since it would suit your spend) around the same time. Then do nothing else for 4 to 6 months allowing the dust to settle, and scores to rebound before going for any other cards.

I do not plan to do anything until my score is above 750 at a minimum, so that is not a problem. The thing I like about getting the Apple Card first, is that I would know for sure I was approved for it and what credit line I was issued before taking a credit hit with a new card. :-)

Thanks for the information.

Re: Quest Credit Line Increase but Still No Pre-approvals From Chase. :-)

ThomasJNewton — Fri, 05 Jan 2024 20:37:03 GMT

@SouthJamaica wrote:

Should I wait until I have had my Quest card for a 1 year before applying for another card or is that not an issue?Not an issue

Cool. That is good to know.

If I want to get all 4 cards, is the an optimum order to get them?Just get one at a time. Don't rush. Go for the card you want the most.

That was my plan. Once I had 3-4 cards in my own name, with my average age of accounts being a bit better, it becomes a bit easier.

Is there an advantage to having a second Chase card before getting something else, or am I better off with a different issuer for my third card?IMHO better to have a different issuer for third card. Best to diversify. Vantage West is excellent.

Thanks for the help