Reality Check - Citi Premier (re)application

[JZK]

I have been hiding under a rock since I was denied the Citi Premier in January, letting my credit report simmer.  I intend to apply for the Premier again and wanted to get opinions if there would be any advantage to wait longer before I pull the trigger.

Here is where I stand:

Scores: Exp: 829 Eq: 814 TU: 830

     scores increased +27,+13,+36 on latest report

Inquiries (6/12/24): Exp: 0/1/5 Eq:  0/1/3 TU: 0/1/2

     1 inquiry will drop off all report Nov 15

Cards: 11 credit + 2 charge cards

     I have the double cash, but minimal use recently

     Total credit limit: 153K but several chase and cap1 cards lowered recently commensurate with use

No derogotories.

Avg age: 3y 11mo

Oldest account: 11y 9mo

Utilization: less than 1%

Income: +/- 160K

Am I overly cautious?  After getting denied, I figured that it would be best to minimize negatives before I attempt another application.  I would love to hear any thoughts you may have.

[GZG]

age of newest account?

if you wait out the year from when you last applied, that inquiry falls off and your citi inquiry comes off in terms of FICO scoring

any reason you don't want to wait the year out?

[FrankenBeans]

If you're not in a huge hurry, I would hold out for an elevated SUB. It seems like a new one should be coming out soon. The last one was 80k in April; seems they should be doing something with the upcoming holidays. 

[SouthJamaica]

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@JZK wrote:

I have been hiding under a rock since I was denied the Citi Premier in January, letting my credit report simmer.  I intend to apply for the Premier again and wanted to get opinions if there would be any advantage to wait longer before I pull the trigger.

Here is where I stand:

Scores: Exp: 829 Eq: 814 TU: 830

     scores increased +27,+13,+36 on latest report

Inquiries (6/12/24): Exp: 0/1/5 Eq:  0/1/3 TU: 0/1/2

     1 inquiry will drop off all report Nov 15

Cards: 11 credit + 2 charge cards

     I have the double cash, but minimal use recently

     Total credit limit: 153K but several chase and cap1 cards lowered recently commensurate with use

No derogotories.

Avg age: 3y 11mo

Oldest account: 11y 9mo

Utilization: less than 1%

Income: +/- 160K

Am I overly cautious?  After getting denied, I figured that it would be best to minimize negatives before I attempt another application.  I would love to hear any thoughts you may have.

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They'd be crazy to turn you down.

[JZK]

Newest account was 10/22

You're right, doesn't make sense to apply at 11 months, when I can wait a couple more and remove one more negative.

I was thinking about getting it before an upcoming international trip, plus I am expecting a large expense end of the year.  But mostly because I am getting antsy. 

[JZK]

Great idea.  Looks like it would make sense to wait until Jan anyway.

[JZK]

Maybe, but I thought that when I first applied.  So I thought I best be cautious.

[youngandcreditwrthy]

I don't think citi likes that low of Util.

[NoMoreE46]

Based on your current profile, I would congratulate you on the Premier if you applied today or in Jan 2024.

Would you share the denial reason from this Jan?

[JZK]

I've found that my scores drop if my utilization goes up even by a couple percent.  Obviously, it is easy enough to increase utilization.  What do you find to be an optimal utilization?