@Green456 wrote:
So this fall it will be 1 year since opening PenFed Access America Checking, High Yield Savings account. I want to apply for their CC later this year or early next year. I do not like PF for their poorly implemented mobile app and non free checking and I would prefer to do checking with US Bank which is better in both aspects. I am willing to keep my $500 in checking account with PF if it helps me get their credit cards. Otherwise I see no reason to keep my checking with them.
Long story short. Does having Access America Checking improve my chances of getting CC with PenFed?
All of that activity has cost me 3 HPs and No PenFed credit cards! 
@AverageJoesCredit wrote:
Most times what one has in their checking or savings, especially on Navy side bears no weight on credit card approvals , limits or denials. In my humble opinion, length of relationship with Penfed means nothing to them. If you dont somehow meet their lending criteria that satisfies whatever they are looking for, you could have 6 months or 16 years and it wont matter. Only way to find out where one stands with PF is to apply and find out
@AverageJoesCredit nailed it. None of the stuff in the middle matters. It's all about meeting their criteria (whatever that is) at time of app....nothing more, nothing less.
@Loquat wrote:
@AverageJoesCredit wrote:
Most times what one has in their checking or savings, especially on Navy side bears no weight on credit card approvals , limits or denials. In my humble opinion, length of relationship with Penfed means nothing to them. If you dont somehow meet their lending criteria that satisfies whatever they are looking for, you could have 6 months or 16 years and it wont matter. Only way to find out where one stands with PF is to apply and find out@AverageJoesCredit nailed it. None of the stuff in the middle matters. It's all about meeting their criteria (whatever that is) at time of app....nothing more, nothing less.
Any thoughts on how I got declined with a higher FICO, more income, less debt, less credit (over $100k), less inquiries, and lower utilization than I did 9-12 months later then when I got approved for $15k instantly? The ONLY thing better with my credit was the fact that I had been with PenFed longer than the previous app.
@Shooting-For-800 wrote:
@Loquat wrote:
@AverageJoesCredit wrote:
Most times what one has in their checking or savings, especially on Navy side bears no weight on credit card approvals , limits or denials. In my humble opinion, length of relationship with Penfed means nothing to them. If you dont somehow meet their lending criteria that satisfies whatever they are looking for, you could have 6 months or 16 years and it wont matter. Only way to find out where one stands with PF is to apply and find out@AverageJoesCredit nailed it. None of the stuff in the middle matters. It's all about meeting their criteria (whatever that is) at time of app....nothing more, nothing less.
Any thoughts on how I got declined with a higher FICO, more income, less debt, less credit (over $100k), less inquiries, and lower utilization than I did 9-12 months later then when I got approved for $15k instantly? The ONLY thing better with my credit was the fact that I had been with PenFed longer than the previous app.
@Shooting-For-800 It's all out a lenders risk tolerence. Their underwriting standards could have been more laxed when you applied. I know when I started with them a few years ago...the getting was good and they pretty much gave me what I asked for whenver I asked for it.
Times have changed and lenders adjust their risk tolerance as they see the need. What they want in a cutomer today may not be the same tomorrow. With the tweaking of software algorithm they can modify their approval (and in your case, denial) criteria on a moments notice. Trying to figure out what someone did today versus what one would do tomorrow is anyones guess.
PenFed was very conservative, then for some reason they felt a change of heart and it worked out extremely well for a lot of us. They then returned to what seems like their old self. Maybe them laxing their underwriting standards was a test...and probably one in which the results were something they didn't care for because they are back to their old "business as usual" approval model.
I have a checking account with PenFed for about 14 months. Average daily balance of around $5-6K. A lot of small check deposits from my business between $50-150 per checks. Once the balances get to about $10K, I initiate a $4K transfer to my high yield savings account from another bank.
The reason I am doing all this is in hope to see if a banking relationship helps with credit card approval odds. And I can tell you it absolutely has no bearing on the approval odds. I get denied for having late payments within the past 2 years on the CR. There is no if no but when call for recon. It's a flat out denial with 730 scores for me.
Last year I opened a Pen Fed account ( savings and Checking )also applied for a refinace car loan and a CC i was denined for the credit card approved for 6% on the refi i was filling out the paper work when DCU called me back and offered me 4% so i called pen fed and cancled the loan..... i left 500 in checking for about 8 months and finally got tired of it just sitting there so i closed checking and only left savings.... After seeing some pre approval for CC on other sites i decided to do a appspree pen fed account about a year old was approved for 12k limit CC 1.5% cash back i reopened the checking for the 2% ... Navy only approved me for a 1k card I use them for my main banking now but giving them a year if i dont get a higher limit going to move all my main banking to pen fed
Not at all. I joined in March 2019, and took advantage of the HP they did during the joining process to app for a Pathfinder Rewards card. I was instantly approved with a SL of $10,000.
