Pick and chose with those scores and history. What will be the best for the 2 of you that will get used to benefit your spending. What do you 2 want? CB or a card that can be used for travel for vaca's.
@FireMedic1 wrote:Pick and chose with those scores and history. What will be the best for the 2 of you that will get used to benefit your spending. What do you 2 want? CB or a card that can be used for travel for vaca's.
Thanks, @FireMedic1 ! I'm a bit blown away by his scores - they seem to be in outer space compared to mine so I don't even know where to start. We know we want either cash back or similar (I don't know what other options there are, i"ll have to investigate). We don't travel much or eat at restaurants. All our money is on the dog and home improvements 
Thanks again. I've heard of people with thinner files but high scores being rejected so we will poke around the forum to see what we can do and try and aim for the middle one - don't want to bite off more than we can chew!
@Hoben02 wrote:Here you can try this tool
http://www.creditcardtuneup.com
Thank you for this! I will definitely check it out
@cws-21 wrote:It's difficult to provide you with recommendations for potential cards for your husband without knowing what he wants out of the card and what your (or his or both) spending is like. Also, I wouldn't necessarily be counting on the "When the $20k in studnet loan forgiveness finally goes through" as it looks like it might not.
You are absolutely right. I was trying to get all the info the post but also trying to understand what info is most important. I'm going to sit and read some more in the group - esp the pinned posts - to learn a bit more before tackling this project.
I agree with you on the student loans - they look like they are not going through (or on hold for a while longer). I mentioned the loans b/c *if* the loans go through, it would take his 9 or so FedLoans payments down to 4. If it's not approved, the balances are low enough that many of the lower ones can be paid off quickly - so we still have less reporting by the summer of next year.
I must have forgotten to mention but we are looking ofr CB - we don't travel, rarely eat in restaurants (so miles and restaurant rewards wouldn't be helpful), we do home repairs and spend money on our dog's vet bills. Nothing exciting!
Thanks for the input - I'll start researchign and then go from there
@JM761 wrote:You are absolutely right. I was trying to get all the info the post but also trying to understand what info is most important. I'm going to sit and read some more in the group - esp the pinned posts - to learn a bit more before tackling this project.
I agree with you on the student loans - they look like they are not going through (or on hold for a while longer). I mentioned the loans b/c *if* the loans go through, it would take his 9 or so FedLoans payments down to 4. If it's not approved, the balances are low enough that many of the lower ones can be paid off quickly - so we still have less reporting by the summer of next year.
I must have forgotten to mention but we are looking ofr CB - we don't travel, rarely eat in restaurants (so miles and restaurant rewards wouldn't be helpful), we do home repairs and spend money on our dog's vet bills. Nothing exciting!
Thanks for the input - I'll start researchign and then go from there
You're welcome. You will likely get more recommendations after you do some research and provide more information. Without that additional information, I would seriously consider a 2% cash back on everything card like the Citi Double Cash or Wells Fargo Active Cash. Another good option would be the Citi Custom Cash that earns 5% cash back on your husband's highest spend category that can change each month. He could earn 5% cash back on groceries one month, 5% cash back on home improvement stores another month, 5% cash back on gas a different month, and so on. If he is willing to get two cards, I would even consider getting the Double Cash and the Custom Cash. He would get 5% on his highest spending category each month and 2% cash back on everything else. What also would be nice is the two cards, since they are both issued by Citi, would have one log in and you can pool the points earned into one account that would make cash back redemptions easier and quicker.
@JM761 wrote:He doesn't post on here but he sees how much this group has helped me so he asked me to ask you all for guidance.
We are credit newbs. That being said, I can't believe, with how little he knows about credit, how he has a score of: 830+ across the 3Bs. His Fico8 last month was EQ: 835, TU: 834, EX: 845.
He has 1 credit card and a mortgage. He also has a zillion small federal loans that are reporting regularly and with on-time payments, that must be why the score is so high because, from what I've learning the group, his file is thin.
That being said, we know he needs another card. His current card is a Chase, CL: $11,200, utilization <1-2% every month, opened about 16 years ago. Never late.
So, that being said: what cash back/rewards card would be best for him. When the $20k in studnet loan forgiveness finally goes through, he will knock out a few of the smaller loans and we don't want his score to drop.
Any suggestions on where to go first? With my card (I posted a little while ago about my options), I know the issue is my score has derogatories and limits myoptions. With his, it feels like too many options.
Also, we need to apply for a HELOC or similar loan for a roof in a few months. We aren't sure how much a new card would affect that.
any guidance is appreciated!
IMHO it is not great to apply for a credit card with a HELOC application coming up so soon. It's best to have no inquiries or new accounts in 12 months prior to any mortgage application. But with his super-high scores it might not matter.
As to the kind of card for which he should apply, that would depend on what he wants to use it for, and what benefits he would like from the card.
@JM761 wrote:
@cws-21 wrote:It's difficult to provide you with recommendations for potential cards for your husband without knowing what he wants out of the card and what your (or his or both) spending is like. Also, I wouldn't necessarily be counting on the "When the $20k in studnet loan forgiveness finally goes through" as it looks like it might not.
You are absolutely right. I was trying to get all the info the post but also trying to understand what info is most important. I'm going to sit and read some more in the group - esp the pinned posts - to learn a bit more before tackling this project.
I agree with you on the student loans - they look like they are not going through (or on hold for a while longer). I mentioned the loans b/c *if* the loans go through, it would take his 9 or so FedLoans payments down to 4. If it's not approved, the balances are low enough that many of the lower ones can be paid off quickly - so we still have less reporting by the summer of next year.
I must have forgotten to mention but we are looking ofr CB - we don't travel, rarely eat in restaurants (so miles and restaurant rewards wouldn't be helpful), we do home repairs and spend money on our dog's vet bills. Nothing exciting!
Thanks for the input - I'll start researchign and then go from there
OK now that I know about his spend and preference for cash rewards, I would suggest:
-Citi Double Cash or Citi Custom Cash
-Elan Max Cash Preferred (available from many regional banks) or its sister card, US Bank Cash Plus
-PenFed Power Cash Rewards