Hopefully this ends in an approval for you. Keep us updated
Dang sorry to hear Dave. And people wonder if they should give lenders access to view our checking accounts to help serve credit card needs, smh
@DaveInAZ wrote:Oh, they know who I am. Letter came today, one of the strangest and annoying denials I've ever received:
We are unable to offer you a credit card account for the following reasons:
- Low total balance in your Wells Fargo checking account over the last 9 months.
- The balance in your Wells Fargo checking account has not increased enough times in the past year.
My response: I've only had a WF checking account since Feb., so yes it probably hasn't increased to your satisfaction in the past year. I only have it for your $250 new account bonus, so it only gets a partial payroll direct deposit, just over your $500/mo. bonus requirement, and then quickly sweep it out. My primary checking pays me 1.6% interest while you pay nothing, and I have to be careful with the account to avoid the fees you love to charge. My primary savings pays 2.6% interest while yours pays .05%, and charges a monthly fee is I don't keep a balance to your satisfaction. So no, not much motivation to keep funds in my WF account, instead I look forward to closing it when the bonus hits, and you can keep your stupid credit card, there are many others out there, many of them much better.
WF was always big on "relationship" bank, meaning you have to be a customer they think is giving them adequate business in their opinion to get one of their credit cards. They targeted me with a mailer with code, so I thought they might have changed since they drove their reputation into the toilet. I guess not . . . .
I'm playing catch-up here (thus the late reply) but I'm sorry to hear about this denial, @DaveInAZ. I would be annoyed, too.
I've always assumed (based on my own experience mostly) that deposits could help an approval, but I honestly never thought about a modest balance being a deterrent to getting approved. 
It begs the question if you would have been better off to have applied while not having a deposit account relationship at all (which assuming no negative history is counter-intuitive).
Thanks for following up with us on the outcome, and like you say there are plenty of other options. 
@UncleB wrote:
@DaveInAZ wrote:Oh, they know who I am. Letter came today, one of the strangest and annoying denials I've ever received:
We are unable to offer you a credit card account for the following reasons:
- Low total balance in your Wells Fargo checking account over the last 9 months.
- The balance in your Wells Fargo checking account has not increased enough times in the past year.
My response: I've only had a WF checking account since Feb., so yes it probably hasn't increased to your satisfaction in the past year. I only have it for your $250 new account bonus, so it only gets a partial payroll direct deposit, just over your $500/mo. bonus requirement, and then quickly sweep it out. My primary checking pays me 1.6% interest while you pay nothing, and I have to be careful with the account to avoid the fees you love to charge. My primary savings pays 2.6% interest while yours pays .05%, and charges a monthly fee is I don't keep a balance to your satisfaction. So no, not much motivation to keep funds in my WF account, instead I look forward to closing it when the bonus hits, and you can keep your stupid credit card, there are many others out there, many of them much better.
WF was always big on "relationship" bank, meaning you have to be a customer they think is giving them adequate business in their opinion to get one of their credit cards. They targeted me with a mailer with code, so I thought they might have changed since they drove their reputation into the toilet. I guess not . . . .I'm playing catch-up here (thus the late reply) but I'm sorry to hear about this denial, @DaveInAZ. I would be annoyed, too.
I've always assumed (based on my own experience mostly) that deposits could help an approval, but I honestly never thought about a modest balance being a deterrent to getting approved.
Thanks for following up with us on the outcome, and like you say there are plenty of other options.
This is really an eye-opener because it never dawned on me that a low balance in a checking account would be a deterrent for anything, especially a credit card.
The only time I have a large balance on my checking acct—3-4 days max—is when my payroll check is direct deposited, which I immediately transfer funds to pay my mortgage, condo fee, and CCs, and transfer money to savings or other investment accounts, like you @DaveInAZ that earns more interest. I keep less than $100 in checking for incidentals since everything else is charged to my CCs for rewards.
That decline letter you received is ridiculous at best considering their despicable relationship with its customers.
It makes me wonder though if other banks look at low checking or savings acct balances as inferior.
@AverageJoesCredit wrote:
Dang sorry to hear Dave. And people wonder if they should give lenders access to view our checking accounts to help serve credit card needs, smh
Exactly! SMH indeed.