Advice on what cards to get next

CBTS · ‎07-20-2018

A little background: I filed Chapter 7 on 08/30/17 and received the discharge on 12/04/17. I started with a Capital One Platinum ($1000 SL)---converted to Quicksilver a couple of months ago---and a BCU Launch (secured $500 CL) in late December/early-to-mid January. Capital One increased my limit to $1500 last month with credit steps and the higher limit just got reported for the first time when the statement cut a few days ago. I've been running around $2000-2500 every month through the Cap One card ever since I got it. I make multiple payments every month and pay it down to $200-300 before the statement cuts, and PIF soon as I receive the bill. The BCU card has been showing $0 statement balance for the most part (I did let it show a $350 and a $450 statement balance the two months I used it).

I tried the Capital One prequal at the end of May using the "Average Credit" option and I was offered the QuicksilverOne with an annual fee. Is it a good idea to try it again with the "Excellent Credit" option to see if they offer me the Quicksilver with no annual fee? Or should I be trying for a different Capital One card since I already have a Quicksilver (which was PC'd from Platinum) in order to get a decent SL? My main objective is to get the biggest SL possible, and the cashback bonus would be nice too. For the BCU card, it doesn't graduate but I was told I can apply for an unsecured card in 6-7 months with them but it will be a HP (July 16 was 6 months for me since account opening).

I was also looking at the Paypal 2% Cashback Mastercard, but I'm not sure how hard it is to get that one. Is Synchrony Bank BK-friendly at all? As far as I can tell it's always YMMV with them, and I don't know if that card is especially hard to get or not.

I also have a $500 Share Secure Loan with a $39 balance (<8% of the starting loan amount). Current statement balance on Quicksilver is $30. Overall utilization is 1.5%. My starting FICO scores post-discharge were: 553 EX, 521 EQ, 500 TU. Current FICO scores: 638 EX, not sure about EQ and TU. I'm waiting for the BCU card to report one more $0 balance for this month before I run a 3-bureau report. (It's still showing last month's $0 balance.) They usually report the balance to the bureaus by now but they've been slow this month; the statement hasn't even cut yet.

Are there any other cards I should be looking at for my situation? I burned all the big lenders including Discover and Barclays unfortunately, so I doubt they're going to let me get anywhere near them. Apologies for the length of this post for asking such basic questions, and thank you in advance for any advice/suggestions!

gdale6 · ‎07-22-2018

Moved to main CC forum as no responses in RYC

Brian_Earl_Spilner · ‎07-22-2018

Discover will let you apply pretty quickly after a bk, wouldn't be surprised if you could get one now. Try the pre qual site. You can rule out Chase for about 10 years as a bk will disqualify you. If you app for sync it would be a good idea to put a 6 month buffer between it and other apps.

CBTS · ‎07-23-2018

@Brian_Earl_Spilner wrote:
Discover will let you apply pretty quickly after a bk, wouldn't be surprised if you could get one now. Try the pre qual site. You can rule out Chase for about 10 years as a bk will disqualify you. If you app for sync it would be a good idea to put a 6 month buffer between it and other apps.

Do you think there's a chance for an approval if Discover was IIB? I've seen approvals with them in under a year after discharge, but I'm not sure if any of them were IIB. I might try the prequal now and then after the 12-month mark.

I know Chase, AMEX, and CITI is off the table for me in this lifetime. I burned the first two for quite a bit. BofA for not so much but I'm probably gonna wait a long time before I app with them.

Brian_Earl_Spilner · ‎07-23-2018

@CBTS wrote:
@Brian_Earl_Spilner wrote:
Discover will let you apply pretty quickly after a bk, wouldn't be surprised if you could get one now. Try the pre qual site. You can rule out Chase for about 10 years as a bk will disqualify you. If you app for sync it would be a good idea to put a 6 month buffer between it and other apps.
Do you think there's a chance for an approval if Discover was IIB? I've seen approvals with them in under a year after discharge, but I'm not sure if any of them were IIB. I might try the prequal now and then after the 12-month mark.

I know Chase, AMEX, and CITI is off the table for me in this lifetime. I burned the first two for quite a bit. BofA for not so much but I'm probably gonna wait a long time before I app with them.

Discover will let you know immediately if they won't service you. You'll be fine with Amex in time. I burned them for 5 figures years ago and I'm eligible. If you want to speed up the process, pay them back. Chase just started blacklisting for bk whether they were included or not, this year. But, it's only for 10 years.

morgacj2004 · ‎07-23-2018

I would try Cap One, BofA secured. CITI Also offers a secured card although harder to get. Maybe a store or gas card.

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