4 month plan for best CLI's on 3 cards

[Anonymous]

So I've been using a CO QS for over a year as my only CC.  It's got a relatively low limit and I can't request another CLI from them until October.  Last week I scooped up an Amex BCE and Discover card both with SLs 2-3X greater than my QS, but still I'd like higher limits on those two cards as well. 

So basically my goal over the next 4 months is to receive the greatest CLIs that I can on these 3 cards.  My plan shooting from the hip is as follows:

For the next 2 months I'm using the BCE for just about everything.  I've already switched my monthly bills over to this card like car insurance, cell phone, cable, etc.  I should be able to run $2k or so through the BCE each month for the first 2 months while paying in full prior to requesting my 61+ day 3X CLI.  During these 2 months I plan on using the QS maybe once or twice each month, barely at all and throwing a few hundred bucks each month on the Discover.

After the BCE CLI is over with, I've got a month before I can request the Discover CLI so I'll run $2k or so through Discover that month while lowering my BCE purchases (probably switch those monthly payments to Disc) to just a few transactions and again, keeping a transaction or two on QS.  Then, once the Discover CLI is over with for the final month I'll throw $2k at the QS card while keeping minimal transactions/dollars on the other two that I've already received CLIs from.  All of the CLIs will be requested after a PIF (0% utilization) after a heavy month of use.

Do you all think this is the best technique in terms of being able to maximize my CLI chances?  I have no problem "playing the game" for 4 months if it means getting more comfortable credit lines, then going back to utilizing the best cards for the best rewards and such. 

Any thoughts or advice on this?

[kdm31091]

There's nothing wrong with your plan; creditors like seeing usage and payments as one factor for CLIs.

That said, CLIs can be kind of hard to pin down and make a "plan" for. Some people use their cards over and over and never get one. Others get one with barely having used the card. The thing is that usage is just a factor, and not the entire picture or even close. So try not to wrap your head too tightly around a "plan" because there's of course no guarantee of anything.

Discover and Amex are generally speaking not the hardest creditors to get CLIs from (although some people do get "stuck").

[Anonymous]

Right.  I get that my overall profile is going to be the biggest factor in if/how much the CLIs are that I get.  There's very little that I CAN control over the next 4 months outside of the obvious (making on time payments, keeping utilization low, etc) but one thing I certainly can control is usage of each card.  I would think that all other things being equal, showing heavy usage 1-2 months with a PIF prior to requesting a CLI would give me the best chances as far as the CLI goes.  That's where my head was at, anyway.

[longtimelurker]

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@Anonymous wrote:

  I would think that all other things being equal, showing heavy usage 1-2 months with a PIF prior to requesting a CLI would give me the best chances as far as the CLI goes.  That's where my head was at, anyway.

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Yes, that makes intuitive sense, but KDMs point and to channel takeshi74,  it may not actually be the case at all.  

That said, your plan  probably won't make things less likely, so all you risk losing is the rewards when and if you don't use the best card for that transaction.

[Anonymous]

I opened Discover in August and Amex BCE in November. I didn't use Amex once and received the 2x cli I asked for. Discover isn't known for big cli's at the 90 day mark regardless of how much you run through it.  They are more generous starting at the 5 - 6 month mark.  I received $1500 from Discover in November and $4500 at the 6 month mark. I have gotten 3 additional $3k increases since February. I used Discover the most during the 3rd quarter for the home improvement category because we had just bought a house. I tapered off a lot during the 4th quarter last year.  Nothing during the first quarter this year because of the bonus categories, and $300-$400 a mo. 2ND quarter.  My cli's in the past 5 months totalled $13.5k vs $1.5k the first 6 mo.  I would estimate my total usage on Discover to be around $5k in 10 mo.

From my experience, how much I run through the card has minimal (if any) impact.  Payment history seems to be the key.

[RonM21]

That plan sees reasonable, being that you are balancing the spend and timing everything out. Even though ymmv when it comes to these things, you will probably be putting yourself in the best positon possible for where you currently stand with each card. I hope it works well for you!

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the input guys.  I'll be sure to report back what my CLIs are when I get them.

[SouthJamaica]

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@Anonymous wrote:

So I've been using a CO QS for over a year as my only CC.  It's got a relatively low limit and I can't request another CLI from them until October.  Last week I scooped up an Amex BCE and Discover card both with SLs 2-3X greater than my QS, but still I'd like higher limits on those two cards as well. 

So basically my goal over the next 4 months is to receive the greatest CLIs that I can on these 3 cards.  My plan shooting from the hip is as follows:

For the next 2 months I'm using the BCE for just about everything.  I've already switched my monthly bills over to this card like car insurance, cell phone, cable, etc.  I should be able to run $2k or so through the BCE each month for the first 2 months while paying in full prior to requesting my 61+ day 3X CLI.  During these 2 months I plan on using the QS maybe once or twice each month, barely at all and throwing a few hundred bucks each month on the Discover.

After the BCE CLI is over with, I've got a month before I can request the Discover CLI so I'll run $2k or so through Discover that month while lowering my BCE purchases (probably switch those monthly payments to Disc) to just a few transactions and again, keeping a transaction or two on QS.  Then, once the Discover CLI is over with for the final month I'll throw $2k at the QS card while keeping minimal transactions/dollars on the other two that I've already received CLIs from.  All of the CLIs will be requested after a PIF (0% utilization) after a heavy month of use.

Do you all think this is the best technique in terms of being able to maximize my CLI chances?  I have no problem "playing the game" for 4 months if it means getting more comfortable credit lines, then going back to utilizing the best cards for the best rewards and such. 

Any thoughts or advice on this?

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Each bank has their own thing.

1. With Discover you can request a soft pull CLI every 31 days, and are more likely to get one if 91 days has passed since the last CLI. Since you just got it, you'll probably have to wait until the 90th day from account opening to get your first CLI.

2. Cap One gives auto CLI's, and luv button soft pull CLI's, at 6 mo. intervals. You're wasting your time if you try to do better. Sometimes they do give auto CLI's sooner than 6 mos. to accounts that keep spending , then paying down.

3. With the Amex BCE you can request a soft pull CLI at 61 days from account opening. Believe it or not, if you ask for 3x your existing limit, you may get it. If you get a CLI granted, you have to wait 6 mos. to try again.

 As to whether a lot of spending helps you,

(a) I don't think it really helps with Discover, some people think it does

(b) I think Cap One is more likely to give if you spend, pay down, spend, pay down,etc

(c) I don't think the spending will have any impact in Amex because their rules are so rigid.

[Anonymous]

Understood.  So, while I may be wasting my time to some degree (perhaps with Discover) I'm certainly not damaging my CLI chances by doing what I have planned.  I know overall profile matters more than my spend on these cards... but like I said, not much can be done profile-wise in a couple of months while the spend is definitely something I can control and at least attempt to use to give a "good look" which may or may not help my chances as favorable CLIs.

[Imperfectfuture]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I opened Discover in August and Amex BCE in November. I didn't use Amex once and received the 2x cli I asked for. Discover isn't known for big cli's at the 90 day mark regardless of how much you run through it.  They are more generous starting at the 5 - 6 month mark.  I received $1500 from Discover in November and $4500 at the 6 month mark. I have gotten 3 additional $3k increases since February. I used Discover the most during the 3rd quarter for the home improvement category because we had just bought a house. I tapered off a lot during the 4th quarter last year.  Nothing during the first quarter this year because of the bonus categories, and $300-$400 a mo. 2ND quarter.  My cli's in the past 5 months totalled $13.5k vs $1.5k the first 6 mo.  I would estimate my total usage on Discover to be around $5k in 10 mo.

From my experience, how much I run through the card has minimal (if any) impact.  Payment history seems to be the key.

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Discover, Citi and Amex rely on scores as well for those cli's.  They give more for big spend or semi spend, yet scores over 750 and income are more key.  Vs blispay which seems to want mid scores right now.  However, without information on initial limits and scores, very hard to tell.  And, I can now see why your blispay app is in limbo, inquiries (recent) matter.