@Debt-is-a-Scam wrote:Hey, guys so just a few questions regarding Credit limits and increases.
Currently my cards and limits are:
Cap 1 Kohl's Rewards Visa $3,000
Credit Union card # 1 $10,000
Credit Union card # 2 $10,000
Amex Blue Business Cash $15,000
Wells Fargo Active Cash $18,000
Amex Blue Cash Everyday $20,000
Total balances at the moment totaling about $11,000. That's about 18% utilization in personal debt.
A fairly diverse set up at the moment. As of yet, Since I have higher limits on the Amex and Wells Fargo cards, I'm pretty convinced that my credit union cards could potentially approve me for some generous increases as well. Though the catch is they would have to do 2 separate hard inquiries in order to do "A whole new application" as they put it.
My questions are:
Why must they do hard pulls without even being able to say what their policy is concerning how much revolving credit they are able to provide?
Is acquiring a couple hard pulls even really that big of a deal if looking to apply for anything else in the future such as CLI's, product changes, new loans etc.?
I don't even really need the extra credit as much as I had in the past, is that also a factor when they make these decisions? Of course they can't even know these things. I'm pretty sure the Kohl's card is capped out at the 3k unfortunately, but at least they are able to just tell you this instead of having people endlessly requesting CLI's.
But if I am able to do a product change on that one, would they typically raise the limit closer to the $20,000 mark in order to be consistent with my other cards?
Thanks.
I would be more concerned about carrying 11k in debt to high interest rate CC's than any hard pull. If you are, your doing it wrong.
Awesome, smart!!!
@Debt-is-a-Scam wrote:Hey, guys so just a few questions regarding Credit limits and increases.
Currently my cards and limits are:
Cap 1 Kohl's Rewards Visa $3,000
Credit Union card # 1 $10,000
Credit Union card # 2 $10,000
Amex Blue Business Cash $15,000
Wells Fargo Active Cash $18,000
Amex Blue Cash Everyday $20,000
Total balances at the moment totaling about $11,000. That's about 18% utilization in personal debt.
A fairly diverse set up at the moment. As of yet, Since I have higher limits on the Amex and Wells Fargo cards, I'm pretty convinced that my credit union cards could potentially approve me for some generous increases as well. Though the catch is they would have to do 2 separate hard inquiries in order to do "A whole new application" as they put it.
My questions are:
Why must they do hard pulls without even being able to say what their policy is concerning how much revolving credit they are able to provide?
Is acquiring a couple hard pulls even really that big of a deal if looking to apply for anything else in the future such as CLI's, product changes, new loans etc.?
I don't even really need the extra credit as much as I had in the past, is that also a factor when they make these decisions? Of course they can't even know these things. I'm pretty sure the Kohl's card is capped out at the 3k unfortunately, but at least they are able to just tell you this instead of having people endlessly requesting CLI's.
But if I am able to do a product change on that one, would they typically raise the limit closer to the $20,000 mark in order to be consistent with my other cards?
Thanks.
Generally speaking, a couple of hard pulls is only minor. Each one usually has a minimal effect on FICO and stops affecting FICO after 12 months. We have members who say "NEVER a hard pull for CLI!!" We have members will take HPs without a thought. We have others who will take them if they need the credit. Soft pulls are awesome, but I've been willing to take occasional hard pulls to grow my limits. Some lenders insist upon it. Their playground; their rules. In your case, if you don't need the credit right now, I'd evaluate whether that HP is worth it as opposed to using it for a new account in the future. We have some members who have logged well into two digit HPs per bureau, but I normally strive to keep mine under about 5 per bureau. Above that, I feel like I might start to alarm my existing lenders. The hard one for me is my EX, since almost all my lenders prefer to pull that one in my state.
It's not a huge deal, but it's often kind of wasteful?
If a lender gives you a low-ish limit, there's probably some algorhithmic reason for it. Asking extra hard for more CL often just doesn't do much. On the other hand, a new card often comes with new/different benefits and rewards, and comes from a new lender who hopefully isn't as stingy. Sure, you don't know if they'll be stingy or not...but you do know the current lender was.
In the end, inquiries only really come up before big loans like a mortgage, HELOC, or car loan. I wouldn't stress about it. If the card is a few years old, maybe their updated profile of you will lead them to give a bigger limit after all.
@salt_water_swimming wrote:It's not a huge deal, but it's often kind of wasteful? If a lender gives you a low-ish limit, there's probably some algorhithmic reason for it. Asking extra hard for more CL often just doesn't do much.
This may be true in some cases, @salt_water_swimming, but I know of other cases where it's not wasteful. Some lenders may have a "low-ish limit" for the maximum starting limit for that card as an internal policy limitation, and then only give further CLIs after a hard pull. In those cases, the starting limit wasn't based on profile but was based instead on their lending policy. The ONLY way you'll ever get more is to take the hard pull, even if other profile factors warrant a higher limit. Even heavy usage or positive changes to profile won't matter. I've had large increases sometimes when authorizing a hard pull, sometimes $10 to $25K additional. So yes, there may be cases where you take the HP unnecessarily and get nothing, which I've also done. It's a risk, but can be successful in some circumstances.
