What FICO score version is used to classify the cards at the top of this forum?

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@redbeard wrote:

You need to focus on the items on your report more than the score alone.

Your score is used as a part of the approval process but if you have derogs on your actual credit report, those can be far more of a show stopper than the credit score itself.  Credit companies don't simply say 'Since your score is 662, we'll approve you for this...'.  They look at the whole picture to make sure it fits.

For the brackets above, I'm sure they use the Fico '08 scores, but don't assume just because you fit the bracket that you will get approved (or denied for a higher one).  You still have to go through underwriting.  Just use those as a starting point of what opportunities exist for your credit bracket.

Dan

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I have zero negatives.  One personal loan which has all on-time payments and was paid off a few months ago.  One Discover card in good standing, very low % balance opened last month.    No other credit accounts, no collections, no late payments, one hard inquiry from Discover (according to my credit reports requested last month).

I literally have zero other items on my credit, negative or otherwise.  Anything relevant is gone from my report completely due to age.   

My FICO Score 8 just hopped to 700ish across all CRAs (i subsribe to myFICO Ultimate) but i have no idea how this correlates to credit card "worthiness" (or which cards i should even consider researching).  

Is there a guide that will allow me to understand what cards could "match" my credit file/score?

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Give it until you have six months of history with the Discover, then app for an Amex. They will love you.

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Interesting.  Should I seriously hold off on applying for anything else for six months?  I was under the impression that having a second card and keeping it low+paying it off every month was the best way to build score+history.  

Note-- i've lived without credit for my entire life (made a series of horrendous credit related mistakes when i was young, promised myself i would wait to touch credit until my report was clean and my savings were solid), so i have no desire to use these guys for anything other to build.  I just wanted to know what the best tools for this purpose are.  

Amex seems to have really great benefits, and i have a 96th percentile salary which I was told was a good fit for their rewards cards, but I was also told that they are very strict about approvals and didn't even consider the notion of applying.  I thought I had to wait until i had at least a score in the high 700s.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@redbeard wrote:

You need to focus on the items on your report more than the score alone.

Your score is used as a part of the approval process but if you have derogs on your actual credit report, those can be far more of a show stopper than the credit score itself.  Credit companies don't simply say 'Since your score is 662, we'll approve you for this...'.  They look at the whole picture to make sure it fits.

For the brackets above, I'm sure they use the Fico '08 scores, but don't assume just because you fit the bracket that you will get approved (or denied for a higher one).  You still have to go through underwriting.  Just use those as a starting point of what opportunities exist for your credit bracket.

Dan

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I have zero negatives.  One personal loan which has all on-time payments and was paid off a few months ago.  One Discover card in good standing, very low % balance opened last month.    No other credit accounts, no collections, no late payments, one hard inquiry from Discover (according to my credit reports requested last month).

I literally have zero other items on my credit, negative or otherwise.  Anything relevant is gone from my report completely due to age.   

My FICO Score 8 just hopped to 700ish across all CRAs (i subsribe to myFICO Ultimate) but i have no idea how this correlates to credit card "worthiness" (or which cards i should even consider researching).  

Is there a guide that will allow me to understand what cards could "match" my credit file/score?

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Give it until you have six months of history with the Discover, then app for an Amex. They will love you.

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Interesting.  Should I seriously hold off on applying for anything else for six months?  I was under the impression that having a second card and keeping it low+paying it off every month was the best way to build score.  

Note-- i've lived without credit for my entire life (made a series of horrendous credit related mistakes when i was young, promised myself i would wait to touch credit until my report was clean and my savings were solid), so i have no desire to use these guys for anything other to build.  I just wanted to know what the best tools for this purpose are.  
Amex seems to have really great benefits, and i have a 96th percentile salary which I was told was a good fit for their rewards cards, but I was also told that they are very strict about approvals and didn't even consider the notion of applying.  I thought I had to wait until i had at least a score in the high 700s.

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Your current revolving experience - at one month - is too slim for most prime card providers. On the other hand, Amex loves clean, thin files just as Discover does. Both want to lock in the newbies. So, by giving it a few more months to show that experience, Amex will welcome you with open arms.

Edited to add: A high 700's score is not necessary to get an Amex.

[SecretAzure]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

---

@Anonymous wrote:

---

@redbeard wrote:

You need to focus on the items on your report more than the score alone.

Your score is used as a part of the approval process but if you have derogs on your actual credit report, those can be far more of a show stopper than the credit score itself.  Credit companies don't simply say 'Since your score is 662, we'll approve you for this...'.  They look at the whole picture to make sure it fits.

For the brackets above, I'm sure they use the Fico '08 scores, but don't assume just because you fit the bracket that you will get approved (or denied for a higher one).  You still have to go through underwriting.  Just use those as a starting point of what opportunities exist for your credit bracket.

Dan

---

I have zero negatives.  One personal loan which has all on-time payments and was paid off a few months ago.  One Discover card in good standing, very low % balance opened last month.    No other credit accounts, no collections, no late payments, one hard inquiry from Discover (according to my credit reports requested last month).

I literally have zero other items on my credit, negative or otherwise.  Anything relevant is gone from my report completely due to age.   

My FICO Score 8 just hopped to 700ish across all CRAs (i subsribe to myFICO Ultimate) but i have no idea how this correlates to credit card "worthiness" (or which cards i should even consider researching).  

Is there a guide that will allow me to understand what cards could "match" my credit file/score?

---

Give it until you have six months of history with the Discover, then app for an Amex. They will love you.

---

Interesting.  Should I seriously hold off on applying for anything else for six months?  I was under the impression that having a second card and keeping it low+paying it off every month was the best way to build score+history.  

Note-- i've lived without credit for my entire life (made a series of horrendous credit related mistakes when i was young, promised myself i would wait to touch credit until my report was clean and my savings were solid), so i have no desire to use these guys for anything other to build.  I just wanted to know what the best tools for this purpose are.  

Amex seems to have really great benefits, and i have a 96th percentile salary which I was told was a good fit for their rewards cards, but I was also told that they are very strict about approvals and didn't even consider the notion of applying.  I thought I had to wait until i had at least a score in the high 700s.

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Not all Amex are that hard to get. Waiting is the best thing to do with credit. If you wait a year, I'm sure Amex will give you a much higher CL.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:
Your current revolving experience - at one month - is too slim for most prime card providers. On the other hand, Amex loves clean, thin files just as Discover does. Both want to lock in the newbies. So, by giving it a few more months to show that experience, Amex will welcome you with open arms.
Edited to add: A high 700's score is not necessary to get an Amex.

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Ok, this is helpful.  So your advice is to hold off on applying for an "easy" second card for six months, then maybe try a pre-approval for Amex?  

Abandon the second card in the short term?  

[lg8302ch]

+1 to Captool

I would also recommend to build with that Discover and btw congrats on such a nice card to start with.  In 6 months you might add a 2nd card at the same time with an Amex and then again "garden" build history on these accounts.  I was a very slow builder and for many years had only 1 card. Today I would do differently but not adding a ton of cards at the same time. I am all for slow and steady growth...passive credit seaker..lol ... for me it has worked way better. The ony spree I ever did was 4 cards at once and Freedom was the last of the series. Look at that APR of 22,99%. Today I say I should have waited and probably would have gotten way better terms.

Build slowly but quality is my motto not fast and quantity

[Anonymous]

Nice.  Thanks for the advice!  I'll adjust my plan.  

It's odd, there is a completely different conventional wisdom at the Rebuilding Credit subforum which is where i got most of my advice, even though i'm not rebuilding and sorta starting from scratch.  

[lg8302ch]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Nice.  Thanks for the advice!  I'll adjust my plan.  

It's odd, there is a completely different conventional wisdom at the Rebuilding Credit subforum which is where i got most of my advice, even though i'm not rebuilding and sorta starting from scratch.  

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Wonderful idea and if you are bored in the meantime you can read read read...this forum is full of excellent info and I am sure it takes longer than 6 months to read everything..lol...

As for the Rebuilding CC forum I cannot really comment as I just peaked over for a couple of  posts

[SecretAzure]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Nice.  Thanks for the advice!  I'll adjust my plan.  

It's odd, there is a completely different conventional wisdom at the Rebuilding Credit subforum which is where i got most of my advice, even though i'm not rebuilding and sorta starting from scratch.  

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Well ignore that and listen to us because we're the best! Lol..no really, listen to us ftw.

[Anonymous]

People there have advised to get three credit cards as quickly as possible.  Granted, they also advised to keep them all at 0% and one at 1%-9% util while paying every month, but the consensus there is to quickly get three cards to build asap., But you guys seem to value growing one card's history at a time (i've heard the six month history on my first card from a few of you in this one thread).  

Which is the right answer (and more importantly why?)

[MarineVietVet]

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@Anonymous wrote:

People there have advised to get three credit cards as quickly as possible.  Granted, they also advised to keep them all at 0% and one at 1%-9% util while paying every month, but the consensus there is to quickly get three cards to build asap., But you guys seem to value growing one card's history at a time (i've heard the six month history on my first card from a few of you in this one thread).  

Which is the right answer (and more importantly why?)

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There is no one right or wrong answer.

All of our credit journeys and profiles are different and constantly changing.

In the end you are the one who has to decide what will work best for you. Will you make mistakes? Sure. I make them all the time.

But you keep at it and keep learning and adjusting.