CLI denials from US Bank and BofA

[Curious_George2]

I generally try to get one CLI per month, across my portfolio of cards.

I planned to try my US Bank Cash+ this month. The card was issued in May, and my understanding from these forums is they generally require six full calendar months to pass before considering a CLI. June through November were those months for me, so I thought I might have a chance now that it's December. The card's SL of $10k is adequate for the $500 - $1k of monthly spend I give it, but I would prefer a higher limit. 

I am not willing to take an HP for a CLI, so I left all my reports frozen before making the request. I called in and asked if there were any CLI offers available. The rep didn't answer that question directly, but instead she acted like I had asked to submit a CLI request. I rolled with it, hoping I would be one of the lucky people who get the SP treatment. At the end of the call, she said I would have their answer in 7-10 days, so that didn't bode well. Within seconds, I received a notice from CreditKarma that US Bank had attempted to HP my TU. So no dice. I expect a letter asking me to unfreeze my reports. I will disregard that and let this request wither on the vine. I guess technically that's not a denial, but in my mind it's a denial. Maybe I will try again in a month or two. 

Plan B was to try my luck with BofA. I'm at $80k of total exposure with them across two cards. I don't need more, so I haven't requested any CLIs from them in almost a year. Just for fun, I wanted to see if I could get to $99.9k, which is their cap for mortals like me. (I'm not one of the high rollers who can blow past that.)

I decided to submit the request on my BankAmericard, which has a $30k limit. This card is usually sockdrawered, but I've been using it lately. Non-use has not been an obstacle to me getting generous CLIs on this card before. 

I considered requesting a new CL of $49.9k, but typed in $50k instead. I was very confident I wouldn't get that full amount, but assumed they would counter with something lower. Clicked the submit button. Wheel of death spun for a bit. 7-10 day message popped up. Not what I expected, but not shocking. This was late at night, so perhaps their system kicked my request to manual review. That probably is what happened, because the next morning I got an email saying my request was denied. I'm a little surprised they didn't counter, but I can't complain about being "stuck" at a $30k limit on a card I rarely use. 

So I'm 0-for-2 this month. Denial never feels good, but these requests were just for fun, so no big deal. 

I wonder what would happen if I tried to get to $99.9k by requesting a CLI on my other, much more heavily used BofA card? Will I accept the risk of going 0-for-3? 🧐😂

[simplynoir]

I would go ahead and ask for a CLI on your other BofA. Only thing you would have to worry about other than a denial would be is due to being at max exposure would them shifting some credit from your Americard to the CR to accommodate your request

[FinStar]

You can always try the others to see if there is any juice left, depending when you last made any CLI requests -- on CCs like AmEx, NFCU or Citi.

At some point you're going to reach ceiling on CLIs based on your income and other factors, but since you mentioned you're doing it "just for fun", then there should be no shock or disappointment if they don't wanna play 🤷‍♂️ At least you tried.

What did the BoA email/denial letter state?

[Red1Blue]

For US Bank you can request CLI on their portal and it is usually a SP. 

[FinStar]

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@Red1Blue wrote:

For US Bank you can request CLI on their portal and it is usually a SP. 

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Whether the request would've been submitted via the app, desktop or phone, the outcome would've been the same for the OP.

[Anonymous]

Don't take it personally. I am with both BofA and US Bank. They are both ok but nothing special. Do you have a Citi card? if not I would suggest you get one. In my opinion they are way superior in the CC business.

Thanks

Mark

[FinStar]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Don't take it personally. I am with both BofA and US Bank. They are both ok but nothing special. Do you have a Citi card? if not I would suggest you get one. In my opinion they are way superior in the CC business.

Thanks

Mark

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@Anonymous -- if you look at the OPs signature, they already have Citi CCs

[Anonymous]

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@FinStar wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

Don't take it personally. I am with both BofA and US Bank. They are both ok but nothing special. Do you have a Citi card? if not I would suggest you get one. In my opinion they are way superior in the CC business.

Thanks

Mark

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@Anonymous -- if you look at the OPs signature, they already have Citi CCs

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oh ok, I never look at those things they are too small to make out what they are hehehe, anyway, maybe he can go for a CLI on his existing Citi cards? Now that I look he has some fantastic cards so maybe just bump some up.

Thanks

Mark

[4sallypat]

Don't feel bad, I was denied CLI on my USB Flexperks after 5 years trying every year.

Then I apped for the Business triple cash and denied with a stellar credit (just closed escrow).

Called the recon line and they said wait for the letters.

What a bunch of un-empowered reps!

I told them I am tired of paying 5 years of AF on my personal to get nothing and cancelled my account.

Great feeling to cut up that card!

BofA I cut up a long time ago - will never do business with them ever.

[Curious_George2]

Thanks for all the supportive posts! I'm not actually upset; just sharing results in case they're helpful to anyone. In my view, the salient points are these:

• There has been a fair amount of discussion about US Bank's mysterious CLI process. From what I can gather, their choice of HP or SP seems pretty random. Freezes are a useful tool to manage the risk. 
• Despite the advice one sometimes sees, to shoot the moon with BofA and expect a counter, perhaps some excessive requests get manual review and the human being on the other end decides: "Nah, you're good."