Sorry this is a little long...
Well, it’s been a busy first part of March for me. After years of struggle and toil spent wandering through the credit wilderness, I finally was in a position to start applying for some prime cards. I have been planning/researching for my first spree for several months, and everything was lined up.
Before the Spree, this is what was in my wallet:
US Bank Secured Card ($1000CL); Cap One Platinum Secured Card ($2150CL); Cap One Platinum Card ($500CL).
In reality...I had $650 in total unsecured credit. Pretty sad.
Before I started apping, I wanted to take care of my existing cards. First, I called US Bank and asked for my card to be unsecured. Done. Thought it would be a SP, but they ended up pulling TU a week later after I’d already received my card. Oh well… Already received my deposit check back for $1K…score!
At the same time, I wanted to take care of my Cap1 Platinum. It’s been stuck on $500 since I got it in 1999! First tried the luv button…no dice. I contacted Capital One EO (via Facebook) to see what they could do for me. Got a call a few days later from a nice woman. She immediately waived the AF and upgraded me to the Quicksilver One. She then asked how much of a CLI I wanted. I asked for 6K, got 2K. I can live with that… Next step is to close the Cap One secured this week and get my $2K deposit back.
In the meantime, my car was on the fritz. Took it to the shop and they estimated in addition to the immediate repair, I was probably looking at $2k worth of repairs (new tires, brakes, sensor replaced, etc.) over the next few months. So I sped up the plan to get a new vehicle. Went to the Nissan dealership this weekend, drove out with a brand new Nissan Rogue. Qualified for their top tier financing; NMAC pulled TU.
Now on to the spree. I sat down at my desk last night with a Grey Goose & Tonic in one hand, and my checklist in the other. Opened up the Chrome browser, and here we go:
- AMEX Delta Skymiles--> Instant Approval $2K (EX pull)
- Amex BCE--> applied almost immediately afterwards…they asked me to call. Called AMEX and they wanted to verify this was not a duplicate app to the Sky Miles. I said it was not…they indicated it would be held for a five days, then processed. I assume that will be another HP. In retrospect, probably should not have applied same day for 2 AMEX. Oh well…
Back to the Apps:
3. Chase Freedom---> Instant Approval $6K (EX and EQ pull)
4. Sallie Mae Platinum---> Instant Approval $1.6K (TU pull)
5. Lowe’s---> Instant Approval $0.6K (TU pull): recon to $6K this morning
BCE is pending but overall, I am ecstatic! If you’d had asked me 12 months ago I’d be approved for these cards, I would have thought you were nuts. I went from $650 unsecured credit to $18600!.
I will now be gardening for YEARS. Well…16 months at least. I plan to apply for a mortgage in the summer/fall of 2015 when my last baddie falls off. I wanted to get all the apps out of the way now, so by the time I applied for a mortgage, my scores will not be dinged by the apps/new TL’s. Assuming all goes well, I really don’t need any other cards. My current portfolio now includes 6 of the largest banks in the world: Chase, AMEX (Centurion), GE, Barclays, US Bank and Capital One. If I treat these cards well, maintain good credit, and build solid relationships with these banks, in a few years I will literally have creditors begging for my business. As time goes on and my credit/income continue to improve, I can upgrade from Freedom, BCE, and USB Platinum to the CSP, BCP and USB Cash+.
And that’s my plan…IMHO credit cards are a means to an end, not THE END. The “endgame” is to have strong enough credit to be able to walk into any bank and assuming your income/assets are adequate, get a loan to fulfill your dreams: Buy a home, start a business. Whatever you want. The keys to the kingdom lie in good credit. And with these approvals, I’m well on my way.
Thank you to ALL of you for your advice and support. This board is amazing!
Congrats on a great journey! Thanks for sharing.
Discover IT $17k / US Bank Ace (VSig) $13.5K / US Bank Cash+ (VSig) $13.5k
congrats! That was a great app spree!
Discover IT $2,600- First Premier MasterCard $1,000- Dillards Store Card $300- Fingerhut Advantage $200
Congrats on the spree!! Thanks for sharing! 
Nice run, enjoy
Congratulations! Glad the hard work paid off...Enjoy the nice cards. But not too much! :-)
Starting Score: EQ 450 EX 498 TU 470
Congrats! You got some good credit cards
*******Dw4250*****
To coin a phrase: If you like your current credit plan, you can keep it.
Only you really can!
THAT'S A MAGNIFICENT TURN OF EVENTS!
Congrats!
To coin a phrase: If you like your current credit plan, you can keep it.
Only you really can!
THAT'S A MAGNIFICENT TURN OF EVENTS!
Congrats!