How much does income affect acceptance and credit limit?

[Anonymous]

I just applied for a CapitalOne Quicksilver card and got a message saying they'd get back to me within 5-7 days with the result. Since the ad I got in the mail said approval in 60 seconds, that makes me a bit nervous.  So my question is this: to what extent does the applicant's (my) income affect acceptance and credit line? I'd like to get one of the 5k limit Visa Signature cards, but I'm not sure if they'll count my income as high enough. 

Credit scores are 800 across the board for FICO 8. My specialty FICO scores range from 784 to 832. 11 years average age of accounts, no credit inquiries listed. So I shouldn't have any problems on the credit front.

However, I'm not rich. I listed yearly income of 31k, and I've currently got one credit card with 1k limit. I also have a ton of student loan debt. But I'm on the Income-Based Repayment plan, which means my debt to income ratio is fine on a monthly basis (as I understand it). Is my income going to hurt my chances of getting the card or the credit line?

[Anonymous]

Welcome to MyFico

31K is sufficient income to get the card you applied for.  While income level does play a role in establishing your credit limit its not the biggest factor.  Certainly CC companies require a minimum amount of income but there are plenty of people here that have incomes lower than yours and have sizable credit card limits.  Good luck.

[Anonymous]

---

@Anonymous wrote:

Welcome to MyFico

31K is sufficient income to get the card you applied for.  While income level does play a role in establishing your credit limit its not the biggest factor.  Certainly CC companies require a minimum amount of income but there are plenty of people here that have incomes lower than yours and have sizable credit card limits.  Good luck.

---

+1 Good luck!

[Anonymous]

So far, MyFICO has confirmed that Capital One checked my Equifax credit report, but nothing else.  I also just called their application status line and they didn't recognize my social security number after I typed it in, so either I entered incorrect information or it's still in process of being looked at. 

[Anonymous]

800s score with only 1 card with 1000 limit?

[Anonymous]

Yup. I got that card 7 or 8 years ago when my score was in the lower 700s and I was in grad school, so practically no income. Credit limit was initially 500, but they bumped it up to 1000 at some point on their own. It's an Amazon card through Chase, and I pretty much only use it for Amazon purchases.

I use cards attached to my bank account most often, but after reading up on how it can benefit people with good credit to have a couple good credit cards, I decided to apply for the Quicksilver.  

[UncleB]

OP, if you don't hear something from them soon you might want to call and talk to a 'human'.

I say this because with your stats, the approval shouldn't have been a problem, and generally the only time I've seen Capital One not give an instant decision (either way) was when there was an ID problem (requiring verification), somebody applied for two accounts the same day (again, verification) or if the reported income was higher than "usual" (in which case they usually give a really nice CL upon proof of the high income). 

I've also read of this when somebody accidentally put their monthly income instead of their annual income.

In any case, if you don't hear something soon you might want to inquire further. 

[SecretAzure]

---

@Anonymous wrote:

Yup. I got that card 7 or 8 years ago when my score was in the lower 700s and I was in grad school, so practically no income. Credit limit was initially 500, but they bumped it up to 1000 at some point on their own. It's an Amazon card through Chase, and I pretty much only use it for Amazon purchases.

I use cards attached to my bank account most often, but after reading up on how it can benefit people with good credit to have a couple good credit cards, I decided to apply for the Quicksilver.  

---

So you'll most likely get this card but I strongly recommend applying for 1 more card. Something with rotating categories or bonus cashback for spend in certain categories that you spend in often.

I'd look at Amex Blue Cash Preferred (Or Blue Cash Everyday if you want no annual fee), Chase Freedom (I love this card, especially around Christmas time), or the many others that give you % back when used at certain places.

[Anonymous]

@UncleB, I took your advice and talked to a real person, and I'm glad I did!  Seems my application got lost in their system somehow and they didn't have it on record anywhere (not by searching for my name, phone number, or social security number). So the guy on the other end of the line walked me through an application that way and this time I got a response back within a minute, saying I'm approved with a 10k limit.   Thank you for the suggestion!

[CYBERSAM]

Congrats!

Now try to get couple of more cards, like Discover or AMEX.

Is best not to put all your eggs in one basket