Considering new card after closing on home

[Anonymous]

Hi myFICO,

I am interested in applying for a new card, one that I can use in lieu of my debit card for all my usual expenses, and one that does not have an annual fee.

I used to have outstanding credit, but everything went to hell in 2008 and my mother lost a lot. She used my cards as well as her own and ended up filing bankruptcy. I myself saw a huge drop in my score, which was around 530 as recently as 2014. Since then, I got CreditOne and Capital One Quicksilver and raised my score to somewhere around 636. I still have charge-offs which will drop off in january 2019. Through it all my mother and I managed to get some money stocked away and we will be closing on a house tomorrow morning! FHA loan. I am beyond excited and I'm wondering what's next?

If you were in my shoes, what card would you get next? I am interested in dropping the two I have (one at a time) as they have annual fees. One is paid off and the other will be within a few weeks. I understand that I would not see a hit in my score if I close an account without owing money, as it would not affect my utilization percent....is this accurate? Does anyone have any idea how the FHA loan will immediately affect my score?

Thank you for any advice and I look forward to being a member here!

[Anonymous]

The Discover card with 5% categories is super popular, you also get DOUBLE cash back the first year, so even non-category spending is 2% cash back!

Also, Citi DC is popular -- 1% cash back when you charge something, 1% cash back when you pay it off, 2% total.

[stellar]

You should be able to PC your Capone card into one with no AF at some point.  Worth keeping imo.

[Anonymous]

are these cards attainable with my current score?

also, i didnt realize i can product change. how do i go about that process? chat and request?

[Anonymous]

We recently had our Platinum upgraded to the QS.  I just opened up a chat window and asked if there were any offers available for our account.  

[Anonymous]

Yes, try to upgrade your cards to ones with no annual fees & keep them open for now. Without more info on your credit file it's hard to give suggestions to which cards you would have better chance of approval. If you're a member of any credit unions maybe try one of their unsecured cards.

[Anonymous]

any recommendations with Chase?

[CreditInspired]

Welcome dcgm and congratulations to you and your mom for pulling yourself up by your bootstraps and purchasing a home. You have received good advice. IMO, I would go to the prequalify sites for the card(s) you're interested in and take it from there. If the mortgage is your only installment loan, you will more than likely see a nice bump in your scores.

[MrDisco99]

It might be good to wait until your mortgage reports to the CRAs, usually after 1 or 2 payments.  Your scores may get a bump from that.

Also, see if you can get the annual fee dropped or convert your accounts to different products rather than closing them.  Closing old accounts will ding your scores.

Welcome, and congrats on the house!

[Anonymous]

Credit one is the card that should eventually be dropped. I would wait until 1 month before the af is set to hit and after you have acquired one or two new cards.

I changed my QS1 to a QS with no af after 2 years of perfect payment history via chat. If you've had it a year it's worth trying for a cli then pc'ing to QS.

Chase Freedom Unlimited may be a good card to try. My wife had a similar profile and received a $5k sl. YMMV.

Discover is a great card. They gave my wife a sl of $800.

If you can join NFCU (must have 1st degree relative or granparent who is at least eligible to join if you were never in military) then they are a great choice. They gave the DW a $24k sl.

Also check with you local bank/credit union. If you have a relationship already it helps.

We have fairly high income so that helped my wife. My MIL's income is much more modest and she recently got a new Chase Slate for $5k and cli's totaling $3700 on her other cards. She has excellent credit, though.

These forums are a great place for advice and learning in general. Use the search function to find info about cards, ways to improve your score, etc;.... There's a forum on rebuilding that may be of help.

Remember if you burned someone before they may or may not forgive, no matter what your credit report shows or doesn't show.  

I began using this site 2+ years ago and have learned a lot and still learning. There are some far wiser and more knowledgeable than myself. Listen when they speak.

Find cards that fit your life and offer something you want (good sl, bonus, and so on). That way you'll want to hang on to them and they'll benefit you. Follow some basic rules and you'll be turning down offers in no time instead of them turning you down. Good luck!