Chase Freedom - why was I not instantly declined?

[Anonymous]

My credit is not good right now and hasn't been since 2009.  I started rebuilding last Oct and my scores / reports have already improved a lot.  I am less than a year away from having clean reports.  I am headed to the garden for at least 12 months,  so I am not concerned with inquiries right now.  I applied for the Chase Freedom yesterday, ONLY because I wanted to see what their decline reason was and if it included "past history".  

Background: I had an old CO with Chase from 2009 that they never tried to collect on.  It fell off my reports a few years ago, and, only through a recent public records search did I see that they actually filed a judgement against me in 2010.  I never got served this judgment and it has never shown up on my reports that I know of. I only recently started pulling them again so maybe it was there at some point but I know I never knew about it prior to a few months ago  My address is incorrect by one digit on the judgement itself so maybe that's why. Also, my account, and this judgement, would have been included in the recent lawsuit that Chase lost (in part for illegally filing jugements without following normal collection efforts) so they can never collect on this account again as a result of the lawsuit.  I know this does not mean mean I don't still owe it. 

ANYWAY, I submitted the app yesterday, expecting an instant decline. Actually, I expected the website to start laughing at me but that didn't happen.  I had also heard that some lenders, if you are on their blacklist, won't even pull a credit report. They will just instantly decline you.  Maybe that applies more to BK, which I don't have.   I got the 7-10 day message.  Now, it's a day later and the app status automated line states the my application is still under review. I also got a notice from CCT that they pulled my Experian report. Seriously, what is there to review??  My credit is awful, my Exp score is 614 right now and I have multiple baddies reporting. Everything that is still reporting is paid but not everything has updated yet to show that, not that it would matter to Chase.

To be clear, I do NOT expect an approval, nor am I calling to recon or anything like that, but I am shocked it was not instantly declined. I've submitted several applications lately, a few approved, most declined.  All the declines have been instant. I have to be flagged in their system as blacklister for sure. I am not going to seriously apply for at least 2 years, well after my reports will be clean.  

Anyone have any insight in to why they didn't instantly decline me, give my current status and my past CO with them?  Just curious / baffled, especially given how tough Chase is. Also, is this in any way a good sign for the future, that they may let me back in eventually?   Thanks!!

[Creditaddict]

I would not suggest in the future applying for credit that you feel you have no chance of being approved for just to prove to yourself you will be declined... you are burning inquiries that you can use in the future once you resolve some of the negatives and let some of the new accounts age positive.

However, Chase has been very lenient and giving lately so you just never know... let it ride and don't call.

[Anonymous]

I still don't understand this mentality of "don't call Chase".

I think the only reason I was approved is because I called the backdoor number and inquired if there was anything I could do to facilitate the application process after receiving the 7-10 days message for both Freedom and CSP. They opened the application and immediately said "this is a matter for the verification department"...I was transferred to verification and they simply needed to send a text message verifying my phone number. After that "congratulation you're approved..."

But maybe I just prefer to not leave my chances up to the potential for a computer to let me sneak through the cracks.

My TU is almost entirely clear - 1 collection account 2 years old that I'm challenging. My EX has several baddies (all but one from 09-10) that are also being challenged. Overall everything is improving massively, much like OP, and my score wasn't that much higher at 640 when I was approved.

My utilization was pretty high as well...but that will take a nose dive with the new credit limits and a couple recent CLIs.

However, OP, Creditaddict is right - that you shouldn't apply just to prove something to yourself or for any other reason than you think you have a chance AND the card is beneficial to you.

Chase has a prequal link and the results are supposedly pretty reliable. So does Amex.

Try to avoid blind apping until you're in a much better position.

[Creditaddict]

That don't call Chase applies to talking to Lundgren you can call into verification and if it's with them then you're done like in your case but messed of us have found better success if it is over in lending to let it go through the process without interruptions..:. Certainly if declined then I would get involved and try to recon at least once!

[Anonymous]

I'm rebuilding right now so every app I submit is a crapshoot. I don't have tons of inq but I'm also not concerned with them right now. They are impossible to avoid while rebuilding and I'm not applying for anything else for at least a year. I also knew Chase would pull my EXP report which only has 3 inquiries in the last 8 months.

I wasn't so much trying to prove I'd get declined as I was curious to see if "past history" would factor into their decision. I wanted to get some kind of an idea of whether I am on their their blacklist or not. It's not like I can just call them up & ask so I figured an app would give me an insight as to how they viewed me.

Getting back in with Chase is very important to me but I don't see it happening for at least 2 years, especially with the new 5/24 thing. If this application happens to be approved, it would be a genuine miracle .

[Creditaddict]

Everyone is always concerned about 5/24 rule but that only applies to 3 chase cards... Co-branded are far easier to get approved for anyway!!! Chase has 16 different cards at this time j believe for personal!

[Loquat]

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@Anonymous wrote:

My credit is not good right now and hasn't been since 2009.  I started rebuilding last Oct and my scores / reports have already improved a lot.  I am less than a year away from having clean reports.  I am headed to the garden for at least 12 months,  so I am not concerned with inquiries right now.  I applied for the Chase Freedom yesterday, ONLY because I wanted to see what their decline reason was and if it included "past history".  

Background: I had an old CO with Chase from 2009 that they never tried to collect on.  It fell off my reports a few years ago, and, only through a recent public records search did I see that they actually filed a judgement against me in 2010.  I never got served this judgment and it has never shown up on my reports that I know of. I only recently started pulling them again so maybe it was there at some point but I know I never knew about it prior to a few months ago  My address is incorrect by one digit on the judgement itself so maybe that's why. Also, my account, and this judgement, would have been included in the recent lawsuit that Chase lost (in part for illegally filing jugements without following normal collection efforts) so they can never collect on this account again as a result of the lawsuit.  I know this does not mean mean I don't still owe it. 

ANYWAY, I submitted the app yesterday, expecting an instant decline. Actually, I expected the website to start laughing at me but that didn't happen.  I had also heard that some lenders, if you are on their blacklist, won't even pull a credit report. They will just instantly decline you.  Maybe that applies more to BK, which I don't have.   I got the 7-10 day message.  Now, it's a day later and the app status automated line states the my application is still under review. I also got a notice from CCT that they pulled my Experian report. Seriously, what is there to review??  My credit is awful, my Exp score is 614 right now and I have multiple baddies reporting. Everything that is still reporting is paid but not everything has updated yet to show that, not that it would matter to Chase.

To be clear, I do NOT expect an approval, nor am I calling to recon or anything like that, but I am shocked it was not instantly declined. I've submitted several applications lately, a few approved, most declined.  All the declines have been instant. I have to be flagged in their system as blacklister for sure. I am not going to seriously apply for at least 2 years, well after my reports will be clean.  

Anyone have any insight in to why they didn't instantly decline me, give my current status and my past CO with them?  Just curious / baffled, especially given how tough Chase is. Also, is this in any way a good sign for the future, that they may let me back in eventually?   Thanks!!

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I'm still trying to wrap my head around why you applied for a card that you expected an instant decline on?

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I still don't understand this mentality of "don't call Chase".

I think the only reason I was approved is because I called the backdoor number and inquired if there was anything I could do to facilitate the application process after receiving the 7-10 days message for both Freedom and CSP. They opened the application and immediately said "this is a matter for the verification department"...I was transferred to verification and they simply needed to send a text message verifying my phone number. After that "congratulation you're approved..."

But maybe I just prefer to not leave my chances up to the potential for a computer to let me sneak through the cracks.

My TU is almost entirely clear - 1 collection account 2 years old that I'm challenging. My EX has several baddies (all but one from 09-10) that are also being challenged. Overall everything is improving massively, much like OP, and my score wasn't that much higher at 640 when I was approved.

My utilization was pretty high as well...but that will take a nose dive with the new credit limits and a couple recent CLIs.

However, OP, Creditaddict is right - that you shouldn't apply just to prove something to yourself or for any other reason than you think you have a chance AND the card is beneficial to you.

Chase has a prequal link and the results are supposedly pretty reliable. So does Amex.

Try to avoid blind apping until you're in a much better position.

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You didn't get approved because you called in.  Now in your case it may have sped up the approval but calling in was not what led to the approval.  The reason we say not to call in is because there is ample evidence here and on other sites that since since Chase implemented the 5/24 rule they have been much more strict on approving applications overall and more aggressive in reviewing one's credit file.  By not calling in people have avoided the questions and been approved.  There also have been lots of reports of people calling in and talking to the lending department and being declined as a result.  Prior to this we always encouraged people to call in if they didn't get an immediate approval.

[Creditaddict]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

I still don't understand this mentality of "don't call Chase".

I think the only reason I was approved is because I called the backdoor number and inquired if there was anything I could do to facilitate the application process after receiving the 7-10 days message for both Freedom and CSP. They opened the application and immediately said "this is a matter for the verification department"...I was transferred to verification and they simply needed to send a text message verifying my phone number. After that "congratulation you're approved..."

But maybe I just prefer to not leave my chances up to the potential for a computer to let me sneak through the cracks.

My TU is almost entirely clear - 1 collection account 2 years old that I'm challenging. My EX has several baddies (all but one from 09-10) that are also being challenged. Overall everything is improving massively, much like OP, and my score wasn't that much higher at 640 when I was approved.

My utilization was pretty high as well...but that will take a nose dive with the new credit limits and a couple recent CLIs.

However, OP, Creditaddict is right - that you shouldn't apply just to prove something to yourself or for any other reason than you think you have a chance AND the card is beneficial to you.

Chase has a prequal link and the results are supposedly pretty reliable. So does Amex.

Try to avoid blind apping until you're in a much better position.

---

You didn't get approved because you called in.  Now in your case it may have sped up the approval but calling in was not what led to the approval.  The reason we say not to call in is because there is ample evidence here and on other sites that since since Chase implemented the 5/24 rule they have been much more strict on approving applications overall and more aggressive in reviewing one's credit file.  By not calling in people have avoided the questions and been approved.  There also have been lots of reports of people calling in and talking to the lending department and being declined as a result.  Prior to this we always encouraged people to call in if they didn't get an immediate approval.

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+1 and AGAIN don't confuse LENDING with VERIFICATION... If you call to verification or need to be transferred to verification, your app is already approved... that is verification only... if you go to lending or speak to lending, they are going to do a manual review on the spot and if everything is not great it's going to depend on the type of underwriter you get!

[Anonymous]

I'm sure my perception of why I was approved is wrong...but opnions are like buttholes haha...and I like to think that calling in and being friendly still counts for something...

The majority of what Ive read around here says don't call. And most on here are more experienced with the credit game than I.

So in calling lending...I couldve risked being denied if the system didnt auto approve me?

What are the odds of getting approved automatically but the same app not getting approved when reviewed by a manual UW? If there isn't really a difference than calling in wouldn't make a difference in approval odds.

If not approved automatically...whats chase's process? Would it end up reviewed by a human at some point?

Isn't there a distinct chance that recently...the people calling in and getting denied would've been denied regardless of whether they called in?

I can see the 5/24 thing and maybe that flies under the computer's radar...and if Chase's process of eventual review doesn't involve a manual review...then I guess it would make sense to not call in...but I would've figured if you arent approved immediately...someone lays eyes on the thing at some point...in which case how would the scrutiny be any different than if you called in and asked.

But I guess I can see with Chase's "7-10 day", "2 week", and "30 day messages"...that maybe playing it safe could be beneficial depending on how they do review apps.