cancel
Showing results for 
Search instead for 
Did you mean: 

CITI Premier Decline CITI DC approved

tag
Ph0XeLua
Established Member

CITI Premier Decline CITI DC approved

Hi All,

 

My first time posting, so apologized if I'm stating a dumb question. I have been following myFico for the last 5 years since my BK. I've taken a lot of good advice from this forum, and needless to say, I appreciate everyone's comments. The good news is that, I am currently in a good position. Credit Karma has my TU=725, EQ=772 (796 2 months ago before last CC approval). Wells Fargo = 776, Citi = 803 (822, 2 months ago).

 

I've been luck enough to rebuild my credit with 7 cards totalling 90K in credit limit. I always pay off my balance every month even before the statment gets processed. I have good income, 100K+, low rent, and 1 auto loan 8k.

 

Long story short, I applied for the Citi TY Premier card today and was declined. I already have a Citi DC for atleast 2 years with a 14.5K limit and their app shows me with a very high FICO score.  Needless to say , I was pretty shocked when I got declined. I tried to do a recon and spoke with a CSR the first time, who tried to rerun my app thru the system. She didn't tell me why I my app was declined, other than there was something on my EX report and told me to call them. She refused to transfer me to an EO (Supervisor/Underwriter). I tried calling again 15 mins later and got a different CSR that was a lot nicer and went through the same song and dance, but she told me it was because of my BK. She even transferred me to an EO, who repeated the same reason. I tried to state my case and even asked if they could split the credit limit on my CITI DC card, but with no luck. Her response was stone code.

 

At this point, i'm not sure if the decline was because I made a newbie mistake of applying for a another card too soon. I had just been approved for an HSBC Advance credit card with 18k limit 2 months prior, hence the score was dinged a bit. Typically I'd wait 6 months, but seeing as I want to get a Peloton to workout for the rest of the pandemic, I wanted to take advantage of the sign on bonus as well as the cash back rewards for this card. The only other thing I can think of is that I stopped using this card for the last 6 months (minimum transactions) because I was building up my usage for the Wells AMEX Propel. I also closed my checking and savings acocunt with Citi, and moved my assets to HSBC to build up my credit with them.

 

Appreciate if anyone can provide guidance on my next step.

     - Should I bother reapplying for Citi after 10/60/90 days? or should I wait for the BK to drop off the report?

     - Should I apply with another credit card company at this time, or go back to gardening?

    - Or try upgrading the HSBC Advance to a the HSBC Premier World?



Message 1 of 8
7 REPLIES 7
mrcraft
Valued Contributor

Re: CITI Premier Decline CITI DC approved

I thought Citi was like Chase in that they would automatically decline applications with BK showing, but you did get your DC card though.  My CH13 BK will fall off my reports next year, so I plan to apply for Chase and Citi cards only after that time.



Message 2 of 8
Loquat
Moderator Emeritus

Re: CITI Premier Decline CITI DC approved

Citi can be very picky. I was one who was able to get in with them with a BK on file but there are a lot more folks who didn't than those like myself who did.

Also, if they cited BK as the reason I wouldn't burn another round of HPs as the answer is probably going to be the same.

I would suggest waiting to the BK falls off and move on to other players in the meantime.

And I'll also say that it's a rough time to be seeking credit unless one has a strong profile and no visible blemishes as unemployment is on the rise and there's a good chance that defaults will as well.

Just stay the course as you have and you'll get there. Give Citi another shot when the economy is a bit better an that BK falls off and you'll probably be golden.
Message 3 of 8
Ph0XeLua
Established Member

Re: CITI Premier Decline CITI DC approved

Chase and BOA are the only ones I really burned on the BK, so i'm hesitant to apply with them. I've always had a good track record with Citi in the past, so I assume that's how I got the approval. The same thing with AMEX, although I got back in through Wells Fargo Propel, because I do a lot of banking with WF. (Side question: Would this help me in applying for a better AMEX card in the future?)

 

I read on another thread that Citi auto disqualifies if you've applied for a new card within a 6 month period. I was hoping this was the case and then reply again or at least for the Citi Costco VISA card because I have a membership.

 

I'm also thinking about becoming an AU for my wif's Chase Sapphire Reserve, but don't really want to pay the additional annual fee because we can't travel anywhere. Would paying the annual fee be a good starting point to get my foot back in the door with Chase?



Message 4 of 8
KLEXH25
Valued Contributor

Re: CITI Premier Decline CITI DC approved

I'm pretty sure I've read a few similar stories lately of Citi denying apps and CLI for people with BKs (despite already having one of their cards). It may be a result of them tightening up and reducing approvals. 

Second, the WF Propel card is not associated with American Express except that it uses their payment network. Since it's a Wells Fargo backed card, it won't improve your chances with AMEX.

 

I also want to note that the WF score is EX9 (not 8), Citi offers EQ Bankcard* 8 (different from standard 8 score), and Credit Karma scores should be disregarded. 

*Scale of 250-900



Message 5 of 8
KLEXH25
Valued Contributor

Re: CITI Premier Decline CITI DC approved

Oh, and if you burned Chase in your BK, I don't think being an AU will help your chances of getting back in. Others can chime in there, but I would save your money for now. Chase has a long memory and has denied better profiles (especially these days).



Message 6 of 8
Aim_High
Super Contributor

Re: CITI Premier Decline CITI DC approved

@Ph0XeLua wrote:

The same thing with AMEX, although I got back in through Wells Fargo Propel, because I do a lot of banking with WF. (Side question: Would this help me in applying for a better AMEX card in the future?)

 


@KLEXH25 wrote: ... the WF Propel card is not associated with American Express except that it uses their payment network. Since it's a Wells Fargo backed card, it won't improve your chances with AMEX.

This is a common misunderstanding @Ph0XeLua.  AMEX is unique in that it is both an issuer of credit cards and that it allows its' financial processing network to be used by other lenders.  No one else does what AMEX does in that respect. (Visa or Mastercard are processing networks that don't issue cards themselves.  Discover Bank issues cards which uses its' own independent processing network but it doesn't allow other lenders to issue Discover cards.)   So 'burning' AMEX in the past only affects future AMEX approvals on cards issued directly by them, such as the Platinum - Gold- Green Charge cards, Blue Cash cards, Cash Magnet, Delta, Hilton, or Marriott cards, etc.  It has no bearing on getting approved for cards issued by other lenders that simply run on the AMEX network, including the Navy Federal More Rewards, the Wells Fargo Propel, the USAA Everyday Cash Back, the Macy's Star Rewards, or any of dozens other similar cards. 


Business Cards


Length of Credit > 40 years; Total Credit Limits >$850K
Top Lender TCL - Chase 156.4 - BofA 99.7 - AMEX 95.0 - CITI 94.5 - NFCU 80.0
AoOA > 30 years (Jun 1993); AoYA (Aug 2023)
* Hover cursor over cards to see name & CL, or press & hold on mobile app.
Message 7 of 8
Ph0XeLua
Established Member

Re: CITI Premier Decline CITI DC approved

@Aim_High @KLEXH25 

 

Thank you both! Really insightful info you both gave. I'll use it in deciding my next card. I'll probably go back to gardening for now and reapply once a couple of my old hits drop off.



Message 8 of 8
Advertiser Disclosure: The offers that appear on this site are from third party advertisers from whom FICO receives compensation.