Occasionally I check the prequal sites (and am usually turned down). Lately I've been focusing on Navy Fed, since I got the Cash Rewards card (am working on the minimum spend) and am hoping to apply for the Navy AMEX card later this year. So why look elsewhere?
But yesterday I thought I'd see if anything had changed! And it has! Now Citibank, which has always rejected me in the pre-approval page, gave me three offers. The Citi Rewards+, the Double Cash, and one other (I think the no rewards one). The interest rate is a fixed amount (not a range) and it appears it's the highest interest % they offer.
I'm going to wait until probably next year to apply for the Double Cash since it would be my 2% off everything card. But it was so exciting to get a pre-approval for Citibank! This is the first pre-approval (from a non-subprime bank) I've gotten since I got in with Discover. (Capital One still wants nothing to do with me, same with AMEX, obviously Chase is no-go, and so forth.)
I also, on a whim, checked to see if Avant still thinks I'm poison. I do their preapproval each month and each time I immediately get an email saying get lost. This time I got offered a $750 credit limit with a $29 annual fee. I'm not taking them up on it. A few months ago I would have been over the moon with that offer, Avant, but too little, too late.
Data Points:
FICO: Mid 650-660s.
75% Utilization (paying off some closed credit cards with a low-interest payment plan). All open credit cards have low util.
AAoA: over ten years
Baddies: 90 day late (8-12 months old, depending on the report) and a settlement (not charge-off) for less than full amount, about 8 months old.
Low income (22K), but also low debt-to-income ratio.
At least you are seeing improvement. Not an approval, but willing to at least take a look. Good for you @tenaya
