CC suggestions? Initially thinking Chase or Capital One

[Anonymous]

As of today, [updated using creditcheck total] CS: TU- 673; EQ- 657; EX(FICO8)- 654.  I don't have anything in collections.  But EX shows one paid off derrogatory account from Cap1 that won't be removed for 6 years.  I have a Jareds card that has a 23% UT.  Avg account age is 5yrs 3 months.  3 Hard Inqs. last year.  2 yr old Car loan of $25,000. never missed a payment And Student loan that I started to pay back.  Income $55,000.  I was denied a Chase card and Cap1 one card last year, but was denied because of collections.  I paid all the collections off this past June.  My credit score jumped substantially from that.  And have 3 inquiries that will fall off around Nov 2018.

I check the prequalified for  Chase and got Freedom, Freedom Unlimited, and Slate.  As for Capital One it was thelatinum and the Quicksilver1.  

I'm inquiring the probability of me being approved with a  spending limit of over $500.  I checked the credit simulator on Experian and I notice that my credit score will increase depending on the limit.  I do not have any credit cards under my name.

My girlfriend said I should pay off the Jared Card completely prior to applying, how effective is paying off the Jared card in relation to applying for CC with a higher spending limit? 

I would love to get any opinions or suggestions on which one of these cards I should apply for?  Or is there one that I haven't thought of?  I would like to get a VISA card because I would want to travel internationally next year.

Thank you for any assistance you can give.

[HeavenOhio]

With only one card, you want it to report a balance of between $5 and 8.9% of its limit. That'll optimize your score. Allowing it to report a balance of zero will ding you.

The tricky part is that you generally shouldn't need to pay interest to show a positive balance. The balance should come from new charges. But this is a retail card from a jeweler, and you don't want to make an unnecessary purchase for the sake of a credit score. The safest bet might be to pay the card down to somewhere south of 8.9%, let that amount report, then pay it off after being approved for a new card.

Of the two banks you're considering, I'd say that Capital One is the much safer bet. The Platinum and QuicksilverOne have similar underwriting requirements. My personal recommendation is the Platinum. It doesn't have rewards like the QS1, but it also doesn't have an annual fee. Also, after a few months of history, it's much easier to product-change into a no-fee Quicksilver than the QS1 would be.

Also, I'd suggest getting your FICO scores from all three bureaus. You can do that by signing up for the $1 trial at CreditCheck Total and cancelling before the trial period is up.

[Anonymous]

I checked with Credit Check Total and it is EX: 654, TU: 672 EQ: 657.  Ouch Why does Credit Karma amp the score so much?  

[Anonymous]

Credit Karma doesn't use an actual FICO score. They use what's called a VantageScore. Often CK gives a higher score than what your actual FICO score is. I would pay attention to your actual FICO scores as most lenders don't use VantageScore.

[Anonymous]

The prequal at Chase should be good... I hope somebody else can chime in on that first though with the collection showing.

I highly recommend Discover since they probably won't pull Ex (But check the CPB for your state) and will give you CLI's as you grow.

[Anonymous]

What is CPB?
Does having a Chase banking account help out with the application?

[shoegal]

I would go for the Cap1 Platinum so that you can product change it later to Quicksilver (that's what I did), and Chase Freedom. Also, try Amex prequalify tool since there might be something there you can get too. Good luck with whatever cards you get!

[Anonymous]

I actually did do a prequalified on AMEX, if I remember correctly it was the Green, Blue Cash Everyday, and the Amex EveryDay.

Is there a benefit to the credit score to get multiple credit cards in the same month?  I noticed in browsing the forum that people do it, but I am worried that it might negatively effect my credit score.

[fltireguy]

Poster meant the Credit Pulls Database.   Google it

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@Anonymous wrote:

What is CPB?
Does having a Chase banking account help out with the application?

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[Anonymous]

IMO, if you are getting a fixed APR (as opposed to a range of APRs) on the Chase, I would go for it. Chase > Cap1, especially better than the Platinum or QS1, seriously!