AmEx Global Transfers worked: Approval for Hilton Honors Ascend

[Anonymous]

Good morning from Germany!

I am moving to the US later this year and want to be prepared for this huge step. I am a German citizen (31) and will get married to my US fiancé once our visa application is approved. I have lived in the US before (2008) and have a SSC but no credit history yet as I had a debit card only at that time. Credit card appovals are nothing I have to worry about at home but seems like I need to engage with this topic now. I have two German AmEx (Platin and cashback) and was told that these can be used as a reference for a foreign AmEx. 

I was a bit naive and first applied for a credit card out of the blue and it was denied of course. Here is my application history, happening in the past 6 weeks:

1) CapitalOne Quicksilver: denied (that's where I have my checking account)

2) Discover It Secured: denied because I couldn't provide my bank statement within 30 days as it was newly opened. I have asked Discover to extend the application period and they confirmed on the phone but apparently they have not.

3) AmEx HH Ascend: credit limit of $5,000 approved after submitting notarized copies of my SSC and passport. On the phone I was told that I had 60 days to submit the missing documents but a couple of days later I received a letter saying I had to do it within 30 days. Luckily I managed this even though the copies had to be notarized in the US. I was very relieved when I got the card and can also start using it for my everyday purchases in Germany as it doesn't have the foreign exchange fee.

I have a couple of question now and hope this is the correct forum for that purpose:

I will spend more than $2,000 in the first month to get the sign up bonus of 125,000 HH points. That will bump my utilization rate to more tahn 40%. I have installed auto pay already but I assume that I can still transfer money to the credit card in order to keep utilization low, right?

I am very curious to learn about my initial credit score. Does anybody know when this could happen in my situation? I have tried to google it and some websites say 2 months while others mention it could take up to 6. 

I would like to add a cashback credit card to my protfolio asap, not sure yet which one though. In addition, I would love to get the Chase Sapphire Reserve but I guess that's a long way to go for me. Any hints on a strategy that I should follow are highly appreciated.

Have a great Sunday and best regards from Germany!

[Anonymous]

@GermanGirl87 -

Congratulations on your upcoming marriage and your move to the United States!

And Super Congrats on your American Express HH Ascend $5,000 approval!!!

It's a very wise move on your part to establish U.S. credit before coming to the States.

Moving is always challenging, so this will be one less thing you will have to worry about.

Regarding your questions: Yes, American Express allows members to make multiple payments

during a billing cycle. Even though you are able to meet the $2,000 spend requirement for the

125,000 HH points in the first month, you have 90 days from the date your account was opened

to fulfill the $2,000 spend requirement for your HH points.

Based on your post, I assume you don't have any FICO scores yet. You will need a minimum

of six (6) months of credit history before your Equifax, Experian and Transunion FICO scores

are generated. In addition, three (3) credit cards is what FICO likes to see in order to maximize

your credit scores. To accomplish this, try to carry a zero (0) balance on 2 of your cards,

and don't let any more than 8.9% report to the credit bureaus on your third card. For example,

since your HH Ascend has a $5,000 limit, don't let any more than $445 report each month.

For your other 2 cards, make sure a zero (0) balance reports. This is called the AZEO method

(All Zeroes Except One). If time permits, do a quick search for AZEO for more details.

Finally, your timing is excellent if you're in the market for a cash back card. The Chase Freedom Unlimited

card is offering 3% cash back the first year up to $20,000, which is potentially $600 cash back. After that,

the card pays 1.5 % cash back on all purchases. Chase normally hard pulls both Experian and Transunion

for their credit card approvals. In addition, Chase Bank prefers that you already have another credit card

with at least a $10,000 limit before applying for the Chase Sapphire Reserve. This is just a general guideline,

not a hard and fast rule. Everyone's situation is unique and your results may vary.

I hope this helps you. Once again, congratulations on your HH Ascend approval,

your upcoming wedding and your move to the States. Please feel free to keep us

posted on your progress. Thanks so much for sharing!

[GApeachy]

Congrats OP all the way around!  Can you become an Authorized User on an old or established card and make some purchases to hopefully speed things up on generating a credit report?  My son got a report in 35 days after I made him an AU on my oldest cards.  My dil got hers within 2.5 months as well...couldn't that work for you?  Somebody will chime in on that.  Enjoy your new life

[Anonymous]

Hi there, 

I'm a Canadian, got my first US cards back in August. Canadians have a few more options than others, as some US banks are Canadian owned and will pull your Canadian credit report.

So I was able to get an Amex Gold, an RBC Visa (12,000 CL) and a TD Visa (7,500 CL) back then. I also got a Saks card (we own that too).

My scores started generating in March and I used Global Transfer to get two more Amex cards.

All cards have been paid on time and in full, aside from taking advantage of 0% interest offers. My current utilization is about 15%.

But it was only this week that I was able to get a US card on my own merit - a Capital One Platinum with a $300 limit! 

Your US credit report only shows someone who seeminlgy appeared out of nowhere, with no history. It will take time for you to appear like a "real" person, even if your scores are good.

After about six months, try checking for pre-qualified offers on the Amex, Capital One, Discover and other sites. And don't bother applying till you get some pre-approvals. I wasted a lot of hard pulls in March thinking "I have 6 cards now. Everyone will want me as a customer!"

[gdale6]

Am not a member of Amex cant help you with them. Welcome to myFico and grats on the new card

[Anonymous]

Congrats on the new card!! But most of all, congrats on your upcoming nuptials and moving to the U.S.!!!! 

[Anonymous]

Thank you very much everybody for your replies! I have only one credit card up to now. Is there any recommendation as to when I could apply for another one? I had two denials and one approval in the past 8 weeks...

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Thank you very much everybody for your replies! I have only one credit card up to now. Is there any recommendation as to when I could apply for another one? I had two denials and one approval in the past 8 weeks...

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As above: After about six months, try checking for pre-qualified offers on the Amex, Capital One, Discover and other sites. And don't bother applying till you get some pre-approvals.

[AverageJoesCredit]

Congrats

[Anonymous]

Hello all,

this is the thread opener again with an update: after 61 days with my Hilton Surpass I have requested a credit card limit from 5k to 12k but AmEx denied due to a lack of history. Bummer! I guess I need to be patient and wait... 

The exciting news: I got my first credit score this week! Transunion: 697; Equifax: 697. Utilization: 7%; Payment history: 100%. As you know it is my very first card and was opened on June 22 so I guess that is not too bad. 

Next step/wish in my portfolio would be a cash back credit card and some time next year I would like to enter the Chase world

Thank you again for all the great tips and support here. I really appreciate this community!

All the best from Frankfurt!