Learn me about Synchrony

[MrDisco99]

I just got new phones with a Verizon plan so naturally the Verizon Visa has made it onto my to do list.  This would the first Synchrony card I was actually interested in getting.

A few questions:

Who do they typically pull?  I've seen reports that they like to pull TU, but some have reported TU+EX?  Do they ever pull EQ?

Any "good credit" report items they may not like (X/24, recent pulls)?

How soon do they report?

How are they on starting limits?

I get the impression Sync cards are pretty easy to get, but they can be a bit trigger happy down the road.  Any general tips for getting along with them?

Pretty sure I'll app for this in the next couple months.  Just want to try to strategically time it around my other planned apps.  Thanks!

[rostrow416]

Synchrony has always pulled TU for me (store or credit card) and has pulled EX for credit cards only.  I'm in the northeast.

They report very quickly.  Like before you even get your card, it's already reporting.  I've found them to be good growers if your TU is good (they soft pull TU monthly and use that for your CLI requests).

[simplynoir]

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@MrDisco99 wrote:

I just got new phones with a Verizon plan so naturally the Verizon Visa has made it onto my to do list.  This would the first Synchrony card I was actually interested in getting.

A few questions:

Who do they typically pull?  I've seen reports that they like to pull TU, but some have reported TU+EX?  Do they ever pull EQ?

Primairly TU VS4.0, trending data gathered in this one so something to keep in mind depending on how your TU score looks like

Any "good credit" report items they may not like (X/24, recent pulls)?

Probably the big one like it is with a lot of the banks is any recent excessive credit seeking, pulls I haven't heard much of but that might have changed recently

How soon do they report?

Can be as soon as a few days, they can be pretty quick at times. Whether that's a good or bad thing is up to you

How are they on starting limits?

Depends. If you have no exposure with them it can be a good SL, if it's not to your liking the option of asking for more via Credit Solutions is there as well

I get the impression Sync cards are pretty easy to get, but they can be a bit trigger happy down the road.  Any general tips for getting along with them?

Not really. From all the information I remember reading on that massive Sync closure/CLD threads there is no one reason why they will CLD/close accounts. If you're already practicing good habits with your credit currently then I'd just operate as you usually would. No sense worrying about something that may or may not happen

Pretty sure I'll app for this in the next couple months.  Just want to try to strategically time it around my other planned apps.  Thanks!

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[FinStar]

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@MrDisco99 wrote:

I just got new phones with a Verizon plan so naturally the Verizon Visa has made it onto my to do list.  This would the first Synchrony card I was actually interested in getting.

A few questions:

Who do they typically pull?  I've seen reports that they like to pull TU, but some have reported TU+EX?  Do they ever pull EQ?  They can pull any of them, uncluding EQ. I've had EQ pulls on a couple of their CCs. Leave all your reports thawed if you want to avoid complications, including SageStream. Just remember, if any of them are locked, you'll have to reapply again. Never a guarantee on TU alone these days, plenty of threads discussing double-pulls.

Any "good credit" report items they may not like (X/24, recent pulls)?  Profile-dependent, but as long as you haven't been going on recent excessive apps, you should be ok.

How soon do they report? 24-72 hours, if approved.  Also, they can report off-cycle. So, if you practice any AZEO methods, this card can wreck it (for some profiles). If AZEO is low on your totem pole of concerns, then carry on with how it reports.

How are they on starting limits? They can start anywhere from $500. Decent profiles can see $5K (or higher). There are 2 versions, if you are approved below the $5K threshold, it will be Platinum Visa, not Signature -- if that matters to you.

I get the impression Sync cards are pretty easy to get, but they can be a bit trigger happy down the road.  Any general tips for getting along with them?  Don't gorge on too many of their cards, keep utilization in check, try to fly below the radar, don't go crazy on application sprees.

Pretty sure I'll app for this in the next couple months.  Just want to try to strategically time it around my other planned apps.  Thanks!

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See responses above.

Good luck if you decide to apply.

[coldfusion]

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@MrDisco99 wrote:

I get the impression Sync cards are pretty easy to get, but they can be a bit trigger happy down the road.  Any general tips for getting along with them?

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Right now they're operating from a heightened sensitivity to cardholders getting into financial difficulty or have to great of an opportunity cost, either because their algorithms flag someone as an elevated risk or they've been extended in total a lot of credit (roughly $50-100K range) for cards collecting dust.

So, try to avoid:

- going on an app spree

- aggressively seeking CLIs from Synchrony, and as a corrollary:

- leveraging Synchrony cards primarily as utilization padding i.e. as an example getting and growing several Synchrony cards to $10K each and a $35K Lowes card and sockdrawering them all

- Make a purchase or BT to a card, especially where you end up with a card with high utilization, while planning to make mininum payments monthly for a period of time with a single large balloon payment at the tail end.

[Remedios]

I don't have any Synch cards right now, but I do remember them starting reporting while HP was still in the process.

They also kept reporting multiple times per month like they were getting paid for it. Whole world needed to be alerted whenever I bought dog towel at Walmart.

Other than that, no issues at all. 

During the application, I transposed first and last name, and they approved it like that 😂 

Anyway, when I chatted them to let them know, they asked for copy of ID, but no horror stories about closing the card, restricting card, or "we didn't receive it" 

Had they not reported daily, I would have kept it, but it bothered me at that time. 

[MrDisco99]

Cool... thanks all for your feedback.

So this and the Elan MCP are on deck right now.  I want to put off the Elan until January when my EQ INQ falls to 2/12.  I thought about maybe sneaking the Verizon Visa in before it if it would wait to report, but it sounds like that won't work.  So I'll do that after the Elan.  Then I'll sit tight for a while until I fall below 5/24 in April.

[lgtwriter]

I have the Synchrony Verizon Visa signature card and I use it as one of my daily drivers for groceries, due to the 4% cash back. (anything that is not whole foods. I use my Chase Amazon for Whole foods.) I am a Verizon customer so this card makes sense for me since I end up with $35-50 a month off of my Verizon bill in cash back just from my normal grocery and Verizon expenses.

I started at $5k and the card is now $10k. I ask for cli every six months and have gotten them with no problem (I do not do the frequent cli on Synchrony cards.)

I have two other Synchrony cards, a BH Photo finance card (for all my apple stuff) and a Paypal line of credit from years ago. I have never had an issue with Synchrony. 

My ficos are all in the mid 700s. (and climbing now that my utilization is below 15%) Synchrony pulled TU for me for the Verizon card. (and the BH photo finance card. I don't remember what the Paypal line of credit pulled.) 

I think one card with Synchrony will not be a problem at all.

[SouthJamaica]

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@MrDisco99 wrote:

I just got new phones with a Verizon plan so naturally the Verizon Visa has made it onto my to do list.  This would the first Synchrony card I was actually interested in getting.

A few questions:

Who do they typically pull?  I've seen reports that they like to pull TU, but some have reported TU+EX?  Do they ever pull EQ?

Any "good credit" report items they may not like (X/24, recent pulls)?

How soon do they report?

How are they on starting limits?

I get the impression Sync cards are pretty easy to get, but they can be a bit trigger happy down the road.  Any general tips for getting along with them?

Pretty sure I'll app for this in the next couple months.  Just want to try to strategically time it around my other planned apps.  Thanks!

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Synchrony can be problematic, because (a) it reports balances erratically and unpredictably, and (b) it closes accounts for no good reason.

Me, I would stay away from them.

[coldfusion]

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@SouthJamaica wrote:

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@MrDisco99 wrote:

I just got new phones with a Verizon plan so naturally the Verizon Visa has made it onto my to do list.  This would the first Synchrony card I was actually interested in getting.

A few questions:

Who do they typically pull?  I've seen reports that they like to pull TU, but some have reported TU+EX?  Do they ever pull EQ?

Any "good credit" report items they may not like (X/24, recent pulls)?

How soon do they report?

How are they on starting limits?

I get the impression Sync cards are pretty easy to get, but they can be a bit trigger happy down the road.  Any general tips for getting along with them?

Pretty sure I'll app for this in the next couple months.  Just want to try to strategically time it around my other planned apps.  Thanks!

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Synchrony can be problematic, because (a) it reports balances erratically and unpredictably, and (b) it closes accounts for no good reason.

Me, I would stay away from them.

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I would agree with (a), not quite so wholeheartedly with (b) as a number of the account closures as it turned out after a bit of digging were directed at cardholders who engaged in one or more behaviors that risk having any issuer raise an eyebrow but which SYNC has shown heightened sensitivity toward over since summer 2020. 

But yeah, if one nowadays expects to do things that have been demonstrated emperically as increasing risk of their initiating AA then staying away isn't a terrible idea.