topic Synchrony/Venmo Exposure question.. in Credit Cards

Synchrony/Venmo Exposure question..

Wavester64 — Mon, 14 Oct 2024 20:36:53 GMT

Was wondering, would a lot of exposure already with Synchrony stop me from getting a Venmo CC?

I currently have 3 "Synchrony" cards:

PC RICHARDS ($20K)
LOWE'S ($25K) [ZERO Balance]
VERIZON ($20K) [ZERO Balance]

I just got the $200 SUB offer for Venmo and I was thinking of getting this card for the SUB and to use for Costco, BJs, Walmart, etc, but I was thinking with $65K of credit with them already (all in good standing) would they extend me even more credit with a Venmo card?

I wouldn't have even giving it a 2nd thought, but the last 2 times I tried for a CLI on Verizon (and at the time HEAVY usage and PIF each month) they declined me with the response "...The requested amount exceeds the limits set by our credit policy.." which makes me think I have reached their limit.

Your thoughts?

Re: Synchrony/Venmo Exposure question..

GZG — Mon, 14 Oct 2024 21:00:18 GMT

@Wavester64 wrote:
Was wondering, would a lot of exposure already with Synchrony stop me from getting aVenmoo CC?

I currently have 3 "Synchrony" cards:

PCRICHARDSS (20KK)
LOWE'S (25KK) [ZERO Balance]
VERIZONN (20KK) [ZERO Balance]
I just got the $200 SUB offer forVenmoo and I was thinking of getting this card for the SUB and to use for Costco,BJss,Walmartt, etc, but I was thinking with 65KK of credit with them already (all in good standing) would they extend me even more credit with aVenmoo card?

I wouldn't have even giving it a2ndd thought, but the last 2 times I tried for aCLII on Verizon (and at the time HEAVY usage andPIFF each month) they declined me with the response "...The requested amount exceeds the limits set by our credit policy.." which makes me think I have reached their limit.

Your thoughts?

you're inching closer to the range where you'll randomly and unceremoniously get all of your synchrony accounts closed for having too much unused credit from them

the question you should ask is 'will synchrony shut my accounts down after I get approved' and not 'will they approve me'

if you're putting somewhat regular use on your limits, I would be less afraid of a shutdown, but if they're sitting at $0, unless you plan to actually use the venmo card for the 3% category and not just the $200 SUB, I would probably look elsewhere

just depends how sad you'll be if synch shuts you down and closes your cards and if you want to keep poking the synchrony bear

Re: Synchrony/Venmo Exposure question..

coldfusion — Tue, 15 Oct 2024 13:50:49 GMT

@GZG wrote:
you're inching closer to the range where you'll randomly and unceremoniously get all of your synchrony accounts closed for having too much unused credit from them

the question you should ask is 'will synchrony shut my accounts down after I get approved' and not 'will they approve me'

if you're putting somewhat regular use on your limits, I would be less afraid of a shutdown, but if they're sitting at $0, unless you plan to actually use the venmo card for the 3% category and not just the $200 SUB, I would probably look elsewhere

just depends how sad you'll be if synch shuts you down and closes your cards and if you want to keep poking the synchrony bear

^^^^ this

Emperically it appears that another risk factor is tied to what Synchrony sees as recent credit-seeking behavior such as already having recent CLIs on existing Synchrony cards or new accounts from other issuers reporting.

When there is AA taken a common theme is to get an approval, get and successfully use the new Synchrony card, and then several weeks later discover without any prior warning that all of your Synchrony cards have been closed.

Re: Synchrony/Venmo Exposure question..

visionsdivine — Tue, 15 Oct 2024 15:34:09 GMT

I've been fine with a lot of Synchony so far.

$10k PayPal MC. $6k PayPal Credit. $20K CareCredit. $7k Ebay Mastercard.

But rather than let most of them sit at zero, I charge at least one thing a month to them and pay them off. No account closures or limit cuts within the last two years of this setup.

Re: Synchrony/Venmo Exposure question..

CreditPoor — Tue, 15 Oct 2024 15:45:14 GMT

Synchrony is turning more into Amex in some ways. They don't like idle cards or once a month small transactions on big limits. They want to see use of cards with occasional balance to get some interest off you and payments that are 5 times the minimum.

Re: Synchrony/Venmo Exposure question..

SouthJamaica — Tue, 15 Oct 2024 17:58:35 GMT

@Wavester64 wrote:
Was wondering, would a lot of exposure already with Synchrony stop me from getting a Venmo CC?

I currently have 3 "Synchrony" cards:

PC RICHARDS ($20K)
LOWE'S ($25K) [ZERO Balance]
VERIZON ($20K) [ZERO Balance]
I just got the $200 SUB offer for Venmo and I was thinking of getting this card for the SUB and to use for Costco, BJs, Walmart, etc, but I was thinking with $65K of credit with them already (all in good standing) would they extend me even more credit with a Venmo card?

I wouldn't have even giving it a 2nd thought, but the last 2 times I tried for a CLI on Verizon (and at the time HEAVY usage and PIF each month) they declined me with the response "...The requested amount exceeds the limits set by our credit policy.." which makes me think I have reached their limit.

Your thoughts?

I agree with what's been said so far. I think you would likely be approved. But they are notorious for taking customers whose accounts have been managed impeccably, and closing all their accounts if there are large lightly used credit limits.

My theory as to why they would do such a self destructive thing is that it's an easy and quick way of window dressing their quarterly financial statements. How? : It's a fast (not to mention stupid) way of reducing loan loss reserves, which are a charge against earnings.

Re: Synchrony/Venmo Exposure question..

UncleB — Wed, 16 Oct 2024 00:56:37 GMT

Good advice so far; I was at $60k a couple of years ago when I added the Venmo Visa which brought me to $73k.

Nothing bad has happened (so far) but I knew when I applied that it was possible I'd lose my other Synch cards, and I still chose to throw the dice.

Synchrony can be unpredictable, especially for those of us with multiple cards and/or higher credit lines. I'd love to have the Paypal MC (I should have added that instead of the Venmo card) but I continue to sit on my hands, since at this point I value my current cards more than maybe having the Paypal MC. I might change my mind at some point (I went back-and-forth on the Venmo card for a while) but that's where I am now.

TL;DR - It really depends on how much you value your current Synchrony cards. My two oldest credit lines are Synchrony cards, so I tend to value mine quite a bit for that reason.

Re: Synchrony/Venmo Exposure question..

Wavester64 — Wed, 16 Oct 2024 15:27:10 GMT

@UncleB wrote:
Good advice so far; I was at $60k a couple of years ago when I added the Venmo Visa which brought me to $73k.

Nothing bad has happened (so far) but I knew when I applied that it was possible I'd lose my other Synch cards, and I still chose to throw the dice.

Synchrony can be unpredictable, especially for those of us with multiple cards and/or higher credit lines. I'd love to have the Paypal MC (I should have added that instead of the Venmo card) but I continue to sit on my hands, since at this point I value my current cards more than maybe having the Paypal MC. I might change my mind at some point (I went back-and-forth on the Venmo card for a while) but that's where I am now.

TL;DR - It really depends on how much you value your current Synchrony cards. My two oldest credit lines are Synchrony cards, so I tend to value mine quite a bit for that reason.

Thank you @UncleB and *everyone else* for your input

I decided to take the plunge for the sub and to use it for Costco's, BJs and Walmart.

*Approved* $13K SL.

Lets see how it goes. So far everthing with Synchrony has gone smooth over the years.

The one card if they take away I wouldn't be crying the blues would be the Lowes Card.

The others I use often, but PIF, unless its PC Richards and I am paying off some electronics they offered free financing on

Re: Synchrony/Venmo Exposure question..

UncleB — Wed, 16 Oct 2024 20:42:13 GMT

@Wavester64 wrote:
@UncleB wrote:
Good advice so far; I was at $60k a couple of years ago when I added the Venmo Visa which brought me to $73k.

Nothing bad has happened (so far) but I knew when I applied that it was possible I'd lose my other Synch cards, and I still chose to throw the dice.

Synchrony can be unpredictable, especially for those of us with multiple cards and/or higher credit lines. I'd love to have the Paypal MC (I should have added that instead of the Venmo card) but I continue to sit on my hands, since at this point I value my current cards more than maybe having the Paypal MC. I might change my mind at some point (I went back-and-forth on the Venmo card for a while) but that's where I am now.

TL;DR - It really depends on how much you value your current Synchrony cards. My two oldest credit lines are Synchrony cards, so I tend to value mine quite a bit for that reason.
Thank you @UncleB and *everyone else* for your input

I decided to take the plunge for the sub and to use it for Costco's, BJs and Walmart.
*Approved* $13K SL.
Lets see how it goes. So far everthing with Synchrony has gone smooth over the years.
The one card if they take away I wouldn't be crying the blues would be the Lowes Card.
The others I use often, but PIF, unless its PC Richards and I am paying off some electronics they offered free financing on

Whoo-hoo, @Wavester64! We're Venmo twins!

That's a strong approval. As long as your existing Synch cards aren't all brand-new (I get the impression this isn't the case) you should be fine. While Synch shutdowns get a lot of attention around here (and rightfully so) the folks who don't have any issues tend to go under the radar.

Enjoy that SUB! (I'm jealous; there was no SUB when I applied, LOL.)

Re: Synchrony/Venmo Exposure question..

Wavester64 — Thu, 17 Oct 2024 14:00:37 GMT

@UncleB wrote:
@Wavester64 wrote:
@UncleB wrote:
Good advice so far; I was at $60k a couple of years ago when I added the Venmo Visa which brought me to $73k.

Nothing bad has happened (so far) but I knew when I applied that it was possible I'd lose my other Synch cards, and I still chose to throw the dice.

Synchrony can be unpredictable, especially for those of us with multiple cards and/or higher credit lines. I'd love to have the Paypal MC (I should have added that instead of the Venmo card) but I continue to sit on my hands, since at this point I value my current cards more than maybe having the Paypal MC. I might change my mind at some point (I went back-and-forth on the Venmo card for a while) but that's where I am now.

TL;DR - It really depends on how much you value your current Synchrony cards. My two oldest credit lines are Synchrony cards, so I tend to value mine quite a bit for that reason.
Thank you @UncleB and *everyone else* for your input

I decided to take the plunge for the sub and to use it for Costco's, BJs and Walmart.
*Approved* $13K SL.
Lets see how it goes. So far everthing with Synchrony has gone smooth over the years.
The one card if they take away I wouldn't be crying the blues would be the Lowes Card.
The others I use often, but PIF, unless its PC Richards and I am paying off some electronics they offered free financing on
Whoo-hoo, @Wavester64! We're Venmo twins!

That's a strong approval. As long as your existing Synch cards aren't all brand-new (I get the impression this isn't the case) you should be fine. While Synch shutdowns get a lot of attention around here (and rightfully so) the folks who don't have any issues tend to go under the radar.

Enjoy that SUB! (I'm jealous; there was no SUB when I applied, LOL.)

Thanks @UncleB

Re: Synchrony/Venmo Exposure question..

janderson126 — Fri, 31 Jan 2025 18:28:57 GMT

Congrats on the Venmo card

I have it as well and its been a great card!

I hope you are enjoying the card