topic Re: Suntrust Credit Card in Credit Cards

Suntrust Credit Card

Anonymous — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 16:25:56 GMT

Hello, forum community who I read constantly but have only finally just now joined!

So, I am working on fixing my credit, and am actually rolling along pretty smoothly, save for one burr in the sock.

I'm going to be opening one more line of credit. Now that Cap 1 owns Orchard Bank, I have 3 Cap 1 cards (the first two were opened within months of each other, after the ultimately incorrect advice from a customer service agent that they'd combine the limits) with low balances, and in spite of flawless payment history and good debt utilization, the limits aren't moving. They're basically useless cards, but they're good credit history, so I try to use them for dinners/happy hours/splurges. Anyway, the bank I use (Suntrust) keeps spamming me when I log on that I am "approved" or "eligible" or whatever- I forget the terminology- for one of their credit cards (the middle-tier rewards card). They have a good balance transfer option, and no interest for a year, and a recent promotion has put me in position to pay down all of my remaining debt over the next couple of paychecks. So, I will be paying down all but my Chase card, waiting another week or two for everything to update with the bureaus, and then applying for the Suntrust card (late April).

So, does anyone around here have a credit card from Suntrust? It seems like a decent card. I'm wondering which credit agency they pull from (my scores are within a few points of each other on Equifax and Transunion, and 25 points lower [see aforementioned burr-in-the-sock] on Experian). If they pull from Experian, I'd just assume bypass that offer, and just finish paying off the Chase card directly, interest included, while waiting for an opportunity for a higher CL later.

Thanks for any responses!

Re: Suntrust Credit Card

Anonymous — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 16:28:34 GMT

welcome to the forums.

i dont believe i have seen suntrust cards discussed much on here.

Re: Suntrust Credit Card

Anonymous — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 16:36:17 GMT

Welcome to the forum

I dont think they are that big of a lender.I would personally wouldnt apply with a uknown lender like that

I just dont know much about them

Re: Suntrust Credit Card

Anonymous — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 16:32:12 GMT

Thanks all for the welcomes!

Yes, they're a pretty gigantic bank, but it seems somewhat of an unknown in the credit card arena (I imagine they're trying to grow that aspect of the business to keep up with bank/creditor mergers like ING-Capital One, etc).

With reference to avoiding them as an unknown quantity, do you say this as in you've never heard of Suntrust Bank, or do you mean that a big bank like that might be a terrible credit card option?

Re: Suntrust Credit Card

distantarray — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 16:37:15 GMT

Suntrust is a regional bank not a national bank, and their customer service is ranked worst in the entire country. I would stay away, unless you like Delta skymiles then you should just get the Suntrust skymiles debit card. Besides that I say get the hell away lol they're the worst in mortgages too I'm on contract with a Suntrust owned property and it's been 7 months and they're still dragging their feet.

Nothing in the market beats Amex, Chase, PenFED cards, nothing else comes even close for rewards. and NFCU and USAA for limits and low APR's. What makes you like anything in the Suntrust's line up?

Re: Suntrust Credit Card

Anonymous — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 16:37:40 GMT

Wow Distant...That bad hmm

Now i heard something about them

Re: Suntrust Credit Card

webhopper — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 16:40:20 GMT

So far, the card terms and rewards seem good, but I'm not seeing good reviews here on MyFico or on the web for this card because the points are not a 1 point per dollar of reward conversion.. They are worth less.

http://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Credit-Cards/Pissed-off-at-Suntrust-Bank/td-p/902712

http://creditcardforum.com/blog/suntrust-credit-card-application-a-bad-idea/

What are your current FICO scores? If you are interested in a credit card, there are tons of good options out there, and we may be able to help with a bit more information.

What is your current spending pattern?

Do you like the ability to pay over time, or would you be comfortable paying the balance in full for each statement?

What type of rewards do you value most? Travel Rewards, Cash Back, Redeem for Merchandise or Amazon Pay with Points?

What banks do you have cards with presently, what banks do you use for other financial products such as savings, checking, mortgage, car loans, etc??

Re: Suntrust Credit Card

Anonymous — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 16:41:41 GMT

Oh man. I had a couple of CDs at Suntrust that when they matured, I just dumped into a money market account and attached checking account, and have loved them so much, I closed my other (Wells Fargo/ING) accounts and consolidated everything to Suntrust. Their customer service has been awesome for me! Not surprised to hear that they're ranked worst though- they're so overkill-helpful with everything, that "making up for a bad reputation" would go a long way in explaining their eagerness to please.

Anyway, I think I'll still at least consider the prospect, so if anyone does happen along and know what credit agency they pull from, I'd be appreciative.

Re: Suntrust Credit Card

webhopper — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 16:44:26 GMT

Based on Whogavemecredit.com, they pull Equifax. but there are only two examples, both declined with low scores, so who really knows.

Re: Suntrust Credit Card

Anonymous — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 16:45:12 GMT

@webhopper wrote:
So far, the card terms and rewards seem good, but I'm not seeing good reviews here on MyFico or on the web for this card because the points are not a 1 point per dollar of reward conversion.. They are worth less.

http://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Credit-Cards/Pissed-off-at-Suntrust-Bank/td-p/902712

http://creditcardforum.com/blog/suntrust-credit-card-application-a-bad-idea/

What are your current FICO scores? If you are interested in a credit card, there are tons of good options out there, and we may be able to help with a bit more information.

What is your current spending pattern?

Do you like the ability to pay over time, or would you be comfortable paying the balance in full for each statement?

What type of rewards do you value most? Travel Rewards, Cash Back, Redeem for Merchandise or Amazon Pay with Points?

What banks do you have cards with presently, what banks do you use for other financial products such as savings, checking, mortgage, car loans, etc??

+1 Webhopper as always wise on this forum

Re: Suntrust Credit Card

webhopper — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 16:48:04 GMT

By the way, Welcome to the MyFico Forum!

The forum members are generally very helpful, so never be afraid to ask questions.

Re: Suntrust Credit Card

RyVision — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 16:52:23 GMT

I have to agree with Distant on advice about getting with better known cards. I've read little about Suntrust but Distant's opinion of them sounds familiar. Plus if i remember correctly, they are conservative as well, meaning they may deny you even more readily than AMEX.

One thing you can count on, if they were great to get in with, they'd be talked about on this forum like NFCU or others Distant mentioned. They're not, so that's one extra indicator to take into consideration.

Re: Suntrust Credit Card

Epcot — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 16:54:32 GMT

I have been with Suntrust since the 90's and had a FIA credit card, but it was converted to Suntrust Bank several years back. I have had only positive experiences with Suntrust as a whole and like them.

As for the credit card, it's just a credit card. Nothing special and no great rewards. Just a nice interest rate. I would only consider them if you are banking with them and want to grow your relationship. Otherwise there are several better options for a credit card.

Re: Suntrust Credit Card

Anonymous — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 16:55:06 GMT

@RyVision wrote:

I have to agree with Distant on advice about getting with better known cards. I've read little about Suntrust but Distant's opinion of them sounds familiar. Plus if i remember correctly, they are conservative as well, meaning they may deny you even more readily than AMEX.

One thing you can count on, if they were great to get in with, they'd be talked about on this forum like NFCU or others Distant mentioned. They're not, so that's one extra indicator to take into consideration.

Re: Suntrust Credit Card

sccredit — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 16:57:08 GMT

I dealt with SunTrust a few years ago on the business side of things and they were great. I have never had any of their personal cards but based on my experience with them i wouldn't hesitate to apply. Remeber, everything with credit has to work for you.

Re: Suntrust Credit Card

RyVision — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 17:08:31 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
Oh man. I had a couple of CDs at Suntrust that when they matured, I just dumped into a money market account and attached checking account, and have loved them so much, I closed my other (Wells Fargo/ING) accounts and consolidated everything to Suntrust. Their customer service has been awesome for me! Not surprised to hear that they're ranked worst though- they're so overkill-helpful with everything, that "making up for a bad reputation" would go a long way in explaining their eagerness to please.

Anyway, I think I'll still at least consider the prospect, so if anyone does happen along and know what credit agency they pull from, I'd be appreciative.

If you already have that deep of a banking relationship with them, perhaps you just gave your own review? It's not unusual for a bank to treat their loyal customers with many products better and with more attention than someone just looking for a CC or other lending product. If you're local, that may be a big key as well. Have you spoke with a personal banker at your branch about the offer and sought their opinion?

I'm sure very few people on this forum (or others) would have a local branch or multiple product dealings with them.

Re: Suntrust Credit Card

webhopper — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 17:12:20 GMT

@RyVision wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
Oh man. I had a couple of CDs at Suntrust that when they matured, I just dumped into a money market account and attached checking account, and have loved them so much, I closed my other (Wells Fargo/ING) accounts and consolidated everything to Suntrust. Their customer service has been awesome for me! Not surprised to hear that they're ranked worst though- they're so overkill-helpful with everything, that "making up for a bad reputation" would go a long way in explaining their eagerness to please.

Anyway, I think I'll still at least consider the prospect, so if anyone does happen along and know what credit agency they pull from, I'd be appreciative.
If you already have that deep of a banking relationship with them, perhaps you just gave your own review? It's not unusual for a bank to treat their loyal customers with many products better and with more attention than someone just looking for a CC or other lending product. If you're local, that may be a big key as well. Have you spoke with a personal banker at your branch about the offer and sought their opinion?

I'm sure very few people on this forum (or others) would have a local branch or multiple product dealings with them.

I agree with RyVision, especially after hearing positive reviews about SunTrust from other forum members. Loyal customers always get the best offers.

Re: Suntrust Credit Card

thom02099 — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 17:14:10 GMT

@webhopper wrote:
Based on Whogavemecredit.com, they pull Equifax. but there are only two examples, both declined with low scores, so who really knows.

Do a Google search on "credit pulls database" for the site of which we may not speak...substantially more entries there, and the bulk are EQ inquiries.

Re: Suntrust Credit Card

Anonymous — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 17:16:21 GMT

OMG so many responses. I look away for two minutes and I'm swimming in replies.

Spending patterns are very sporadic, though I landed a consulting contract two months ago and last month got a bump, and so am presently reveling in a salary more than twice as high as anything I've made in my life. Its too bad there's no tithe option at the credit agencies, to score myself some extra points.

Anyway, presently I don't have a huge need for credit, but I'm in an optimal position to do as much as I can to improve my credit situation. My interest is more in financing occasional large purchases (for instance, going to be buying a new computer in the next few month or two, and could pay cash- and realize that it would be cheaper to do it that way- but find it would be a great opportunity to cultivate my credit a little more if I can put it on a card).

Equifax is showing me at 630

TransUnion is showing me at 624

Experian is showing me at 594

I have a couple of cards, all with low limits and relatively high balances.

I've recently actually been considering throwing 2k or something like that at a secured line of credit, just to get that larger credit limit into the mix, but I'm not sure exactly how that works.

I've lived my life generally as a poor artist/designer, and so am a whiz at getting by on a shoestring budget, and like I said, don't really need credit, but its so interesting to me and its become a sort of infectious challenge, to see how much repair/how quickly/what I can get it to/etc. I have intermittently paid attention to it over the last few years, starting in mid 2011- applied for a credit card, watched my scores, got distracted with other things, plodded along, got renewed interest in my credit scores, added a new credit card, rinse, repeat.

I have:

2x Capital One (500 CL's)

Orchard Bank (now Capital One) (400 CL)

Amazon Chase (400 CL)

Target (200 CL)

Walmart (300 CL)

Mostly young (AAoA is 1.5 years), oldest is 3.2 years.

I've always just lived off of my income, which I prided myself on, but now that I have substantially more income, I figure I may as well ride the wave.

(P.S. I am not making "a ton" of money- just, relatively speaking, a lot more than I ever have before).

1 - 2 derogatory items depending on what report you're looking at, for a bad debt from a very bad phase in my life years ago

one derogatory item is the original debt

the other is the subsequent collection agency

the debt is past the SOL

I've even offered to pay the collection agency's ridiculously marked-up balance if they'd simply agree to remove their own information (not original creditor- just their own) from my credit report, but as yet they will not

Those two marks aren't moving anytime soon, unless the CA has a change of tune regarding my stipulation

Also have "late payments" from Toyota Financial- told me one thousand times that my grace period was 29 days from my due date (basically, up until the day before my next payment was due) so I always paid "on time", often taking advantage of the grace period, as freelance design does not often come with predictable paychecks- but years later (got the loan in 2006), I see that I have 11 late payments (30-day late). I contacted them back in 2011, inquired, explained the situation, and I even filed a dispute, did everything I could- I was told that I had this grace period multiple times, and never heard anything from them about a late payment, never knew there was an issue until years later when I finally paid attention to my credit for the first time in my life. So, that will persist also.

Anyway, I'm planning to pay about 600 per pay check (paid on 15th and 30th of each month) on cards, forgoing any savings and retaining only grocery money, rent money, etc, and knocking my utilization down to 0 by late april or early may.

I am imagining once I have a zero debt-utilization ratio, I'll hit a ceiling about 20 points higher than where I am right now, and then be stuck there, only moving slowly towards fall-off date for the derogatory stuff and/or AAoA slowly increases. But, any input/suggestions here are welcome.

All I really want/need is one card that will give me a decent limit, and the rest of my cards can go into my sock drawer (except the Amazon card, because I like running up cashback and then just spending it to pay down its own balance).

Re: Suntrust Credit Card

Anonymous — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 17:17:24 GMT

Well, as far as I can see, Suntrust only offers their credit cards to their current banking/loan customers, so I imagine this is part of their relative obscurity on this matter.