topic Re: First post, first spree, first steps in Credit Cards

First post, first spree, first steps

Anonymous — Sun, 10 Mar 2013 21:53:17 GMT

Hey all, and my apologies in advance for the massive post!

I'm a 23 year old from Colorado, about to graduate college, and didn't really know a whole lot about credit cards or building credit until very recently.

First got added to my mother's CapOne Best Buy store card with a 4k limit back in August 2011 so I could buy a tablet for school with interest free financing. Current balance on this is around $1,000, still interest free, and will be paid off within two months (most of it is my mother's stuff).

After a while, I applied for the GECRB Amazon Store card to buy a computer and pay for some textbooks interest free, in January 2012. Started with low limit (maybe $300?) but it was automatically increased to $1,900 not too long after. Current balance on this is about $1600, but still interest free for a while. This will hopefully be paid off by the end of this summer, which will be before the no interest promotion ends.

Those were my only two experiences with credit cards until recently. I started learning a little about credit scores, and felt the need to try to open some more accounts to build history with different lenders. Also, I got a job in Houston next year and wanted to make sure my credit would be okay to get approved for renting an apartment, utilities, etc., so I (perhaps foolishly) decided to go on an application spree.

1/25/13

Applied for Chase Slate, immediately approved with $300 CL, activated February 27th

3/7/13

Applied Cap One Platinum, immediately approved with $300 CL

Applied Citi Forward (student version), immediately approved with $2,000 CL

3/9/13

Applied Discover It, immediately approved with ? CL

Applied AMEX BCE and Blue, BCE denied, blue unsure (weird things happening with their application status site)

Applied Barclaycard Arrival (No AF version) and Barclaycard rewards, arrival immediately denied, rewards 7-10 days decision

3/10/13

Applied Citi TY Preferred, immediately denied

Applied BoA Travel Rewards, given 30 days message, checked status 30 minutes later and changed to approved with ? CL

Requested CLI for Amazon card online, immediately approved for new limit of $2350 (increase of $450)

I wasn't really aware of how multiple inquiries could be damaging to a credit score until doing more reading around here this afternoon, and now realized I may have made a mistake in applying for as many lines as I did. I was mainly trying to establish a relationship with all the major lenders, but that probably wasn't the wisest choice.

I use Mint Credit Monitor to check my credit scores and reports, so I'm not really sure if these are FICO or FAKO scores, but according to Mint my scores are:

Ex: 668 as of 3/5/13, Eq: 643 as of 2/4/13, TU: 693 as of 2/4/13

So, I suppose I am here to approach you lords and ladies of credit knowledge to ask, how much did I screw myself? Also, any general advice for me? I've read a lot about 'gardening' on here, which I think means to stop applying for new lines and attend to existing lines. Is that correct?

Cheers and thanks in advance!

Re: First post, first spree, first steps

chnceit — Sun, 10 Mar 2013 21:55:42 GMT

Welcome to forums and congrats on your approvals! Since you are headed in the right direction so take a stop in the garden to let your cards grow! Too much apps in a short period is not good.

Re: First post, first spree, first steps

LS2982 — Sun, 10 Mar 2013 22:39:07 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
Hey all, and my apologies in advance for the massive post!

I'm a 23 year old from Colorado, about to graduate college, and didn't really know a whole lot about credit cards or building credit until very recently.

First got added to my mother's CapOne Best Buy store card with a 4k limit back in August 2011 so I could buy a tablet for school with interest free financing. Current balance on this is around $1,000, still interest free, and will be paid off within two months (most of it is my mother's stuff).

After a while, I applied for the GECRB Amazon Store card to buy a computer and pay for some textbooks interest free, in January 2012. Started with low limit (maybe $300?) but it was automatically increased to $1,900 not too long after. Current balance on this is about $1600, but still interest free for a while. This will hopefully be paid off by the end of this summer, which will be before the no interest promotion ends.

Those were my only two experiences with credit cards until recently. I started learning a little about credit scores, and felt the need to try to open some more accounts to build history with different lenders. Also, I got a job in Houston next year and wanted to make sure my credit would be okay to get approved for renting an apartment, utilities, etc., so I (perhaps foolishly) decided to go on an application spree.

1/25/13
Applied for Chase Slate, immediately approved with $300 CL, activated February 27th

3/7/13
Applied Cap One Platinum, immediately approved with $300 CL
Applied Citi Forward (student version), immediately approved with $2,000 CL

3/9/13
Applied Discover It, immediately approved with ? CL
Applied AMEX BCE and Blue, BCE denied, blue unsure (weird things happening with their application status site)
Applied Barclaycard Arrival (No AF version) and Barclaycard rewards, arrival immediately denied, rewards 7-10 days decision

3/10/13
Applied Citi TY Preferred, immediately denied
Applied BoA Travel Rewards, given 30 days message, checked status 30 minutes later and changed to approved with ? CL
Requested CLI for Amazon card online, immediately approved for new limit of $2350 (increase of $450)

I wasn't really aware of how multiple inquiries could be damaging to a credit score until doing more reading around here this afternoon, and now realized I may have made a mistake in applying for as many lines as I did. I was mainly trying to establish a relationship with all the major lenders, but that probably wasn't the wisest choice.

I use Mint Credit Monitor to check my credit scores and reports, so I'm not really sure if these are FICO or FAKO scores, but according to Mint my scores are:
Ex: 668 as of 3/5/13, Eq: 643 as of 2/4/13, TU: 693 as of 2/4/13

So, I suppose I am here to approach you lords and ladies of credit knowledge to ask, how much did I screw myself? Also, any general advice for me? I've read a lot about 'gardening' on here, which I think means to stop applying for new lines and attend to existing lines. Is that correct?

Cheers and thanks in advance!

Welcome to the forums!!!

The Mint scores are FAKO. You can get your FICO EQ / TU scores here. EX FICO's are not available for purchase.

I would suggest joining the Garden Club here and not applying for anything else for 1 year. Let your new cards gain positive history and your recent INQ's age.

Re: First post, first spree, first steps

zerobacan — Sun, 10 Mar 2013 22:54:05 GMT

STOP!!!!!!!!!

i made the big mistake of continuing apping after i got rejected, the result, 18 inqs, that will not go away til 18 23 more months.

you got a really good starting point array of cards, keep them and let them grow. your credit is very good for rent an apt.

Re: First post, first spree, first steps

Anonymous — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 00:05:52 GMT

So take away message so far is I haven't totally buggered myself just yet, and no new applications for twelve months or so? Better than expected! Thanks for the help. Looks like I'll be hanging around here more often!

Re: First post, first spree, first steps

Anonymous — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 00:14:07 GMT

You did not do any lasting damage, but like others have said stop applying for anything else. You will be sitting great in a year. The far bigger issue is running high balances compared to your credit limits, both overall, and on any individual card. Having a 1600 balance with a 1900 limit will do more damage most likley than the inquiries. Keep to your plan of paying things down and keep your running balances under 10% if you can. Dont feel like you have to go charging up a bunch of stuff on all your new cards. Use them for a smalk purchase every three months or so to keep them active, and pay them off each month. You are in good shape but now is the time to let things settle for a year or so. Good luck in Houston. I did a year there, and got out and moved to the DFW area as soon as i could. Houston was just way to big and sprawling for me, but was fun for the year i was there. Great clubs and restaurants.

Re: First post, first spree, first steps

webhopper — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 00:14:32 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
So take away message so far is I haven't totally buggered myself just yet, and no new applications for twelve months or so? Better than expected! Thanks for the help. Looks like I'll be hanging around here more often!

You haven't totally screwed yourself, just let your new accounts age, also try to pay down or pay off those things that you got with 0% interest... and just keep in mind that just because you have credit cards, you're still making the same amount of money so be careful and don't overspend.

Join the garden club!

Re: First post, first spree, first steps

Anonymous — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 04:37:36 GMT

@webhopper wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
So take away message so far is I haven't totally buggered myself just yet, and no new applications for twelve months or so? Better than expected! Thanks for the help. Looks like I'll be hanging around here more often!
You haven't totally screwed yourself, just let your new accounts age, also try to pay down or pay off those things that you got with 0% interest... and just keep in mind that just because you have credit cards, you're still making the same amount of money so be careful and don't overspend.
Join the garden club!

Thanks for the advice! I'll definitely get amazon paid off before the interest hits, and will keep your other point in mind as well. Cheers!

Re: First post, first spree, first steps

myjourney — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 00:31:36 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
So take away message so far is I haven't totally buggered myself just yet, and no new applications for twelve months or so? Better than expected! Thanks for the help. Looks like I'll be hanging around here more often!

Welcome to the forum

Congrats on your up coming graduation!

You haven't done so bad

Pay off as you have planned the cards with balances

Keep your utilization reporting low <10%

Head over to the garden to age those tradelines you now have and congrats on the new Cards

Last but not least when the denial letters come see why you were rejected and ask questions here you just may be able to recon some since you have taken the HP already... Recon never hurts you

Good luck

Re: First post, first spree, first steps

Anonymous — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 04:37:26 GMT

@myjourney wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
So take away message so far is I haven't totally buggered myself just yet, and no new applications for twelve months or so? Better than expected! Thanks for the help. Looks like I'll be hanging around here more often!
Welcome to the forum
Congrats on your up coming graduation!
You haven't done so bad
Pay off as you have planned the cards with balances
Keep your utilization reporting low <10%
Head over to the garden to age those tradelines you now have and congrats on the new Cards
Last but not least when the denial letters come see why you were rejected and ask questions here you just may be able to recon some since you have taken the HP already... Recon never hurts you
Good luck

Thank you!

I plan on calling Barclay's tomorrow to recon, but I'm guessing Amex is probably a lost cause. May try to call anyway if I have some extra free time. I'll update if anything happens either way.

Re: First post, first spree, first steps

Anonymous — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 03:04:08 GMT

I would recon both. You have nothing to lose especially considering you already took the hp. Good luck

Re: First post, first spree, first steps

Anonymous — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 04:36:56 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
You did not do any lasting damage, but like others have said stop applying for anything else. You will be sitting great in a year. The far bigger issue is running high balances compared to your credit limits, both overall, and on any individual card. Having a 1600 balance with a 1900 limit will do more damage most likley than the inquiries. Keep to your plan of paying things down and keep your running balances under 10% if you can. Dont feel like you have to go charging up a bunch of stuff on all your new cards. Use them for a smalk purchase every three months or so to keep them active, and pay them off each month. You are in good shape but now is the time to let things settle for a year or so. Good luck in Houston. I did a year there, and got out and moved to the DFW area as soon as i could. Houston was just way to big and sprawling for me, but was fun for the year i was there. Great clubs and restaurants.

Sorry didn't see this one the first time, but I'm definitely excited for Houston! Haven't spent time in Texas other than San Antonio, but hoping to make it out to Austin and DFW for visits once I move.

Re: First post, first spree, first steps

Anonymous — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 04:37:06 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
I would recon both. You have nothing to lose especially considering you already took the hp. Good luck

Will do then. Thanks for the well wishes!

Re: First post, first spree, first steps

Anonymous — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 17:40:42 GMT

Just a little update, denied recon with both Barclay's and AmEx. Barclay's was helpful, but said I had too many inquiries and wanted to see some older accounts. AmEx never really got anywhere, but that's okay as I didn't want to risk another hard pull.

Officially off to the garden now! THanks for everyone's help!

Re: First post, first spree, first steps

BungalowMo — Mon, 15 Jul 2013 19:28:39 GMT

AMEX can be a tough nut to crack. They have certain criteria they like to see. Just an FYI: They always pull Experian. They may pull another along with it, but EX every time.

Income for at least 2 full years - they want to be sure you can hold a job & pay them back

*CLEAN report - they are picky about not having a bunch of late payments, no chargeoffs & a limited amount of new accounts & inq's.

*They can also be extremely forgiving. I have a US Dep of Ed acct that shows (on Experian) collection as of the day I paid it off. I went through their media review team & they saw things my way & approved me immediately! They do understand that there are 2 sides to every story.

Once you graduate & move & start work, work on at least 6 to 12 mos of timely student loan payments. When all the Inq's from this app spree are gone....then give it another try.

You have certainly come to the right place. Here...no matter how good or bad you look on paper, everyone wants to help you succeed. These folks have been everything from my collective sounding board when I'm ticked off...to my huge family of mentors when I needed advice.

We judge no one.