@fittiger wrote:
I've had credit for a while but had some baddies that took a while to get off my reports and now everything is clean. Right now my goal is to get 1) a Chase Sapphire Preferred, 2) Chase Freedom, 3) AMEX BCP or SPG, 4) low interest/decent CL card (PenFed or Barclay ring).
Background: Have 2 small limit cards 750/500 (Chase/Cap1) from early 2007 with one 30L from June 08 on Chase card. Have a Cap1 that was closed in 2008 from 1997. Have some student loans from 97 and 05. Also have 2 Auto Loans PIF from mid 2000's.
New Accounts: Have a new mortgage from June 12. Discover card opened April 12, 12K CL. 2 GE cards opened in 12/12, 1/13 w 2k & 2.5k CL.
INQ's: EX (4) - Verizon 9/12, CITI 8/12, Eqfx Mtg 4/12, CITI 11/11
EQ (3) - Eqfx Mtg 4/12 & 6/12, AT&t 5/12, Chase 3/12
TU (4) - GE 12/12 & 1/13, Eqfx Mtg 4/12 & 6/12, Discover 3/12
When my latest Discover posts to CRA's, I will have a Util 6% overall. AAoA is about 5.5 yrs.
EQ and Tu scores are 750 - 765, EX should be similar.
I feel like I've put all my ducks in a row as best I can. What is my best path forward to get the CSP. Do I need to get Freedom first? Then wait how long?
What about SPG/BCP? Which would be easier to get? BCE would be fine too if its easier. Do I need to get a charge first or would I qualify for a revolver?
Do I need to give the GE accounts some time to age? I won't really use these any more since they are product specific.
I would think that the mortgage and Discover have aged well enough. I don't want to app for CSP and get denied but I really want it first. I don't want to bother with a Charge from Amex but I don't mind taking my time with that.
ok let me try to help.
the easiest way to get started on estimating your chances for Chase cards, is to try the online preapproval tool they have on their website. https://creditcards.chase.com/
Fill it in, and see if you are preapproved for anything. If you are, your chances are higher. If you are not, that does not necessarily mean you will not be approved. I was not preapproved for the CSP when I applied and I still got approved eventually, although I didn't get an instant approval.
your accounts are fairly new (2 GE cards in 12/12 and card(s) in 1/13). I would wait until those age >6 months preferably, if not >3 months at the very least. Chase, and especially Amex, can get paranoid when you are applying for new lines of credit over a short period of time. Your AAoA isn't high nor low.
You do not need to get the Freedom first to get the CSP. If you do get the Freedom first, normally people will advise you to wait 6-12 months, but I've seen cases where people apply for both within a span of 5-20 days and get approved for both. You have really good scores and if your EX is similar, you can probably go straight for the CSP, or both.
SPG and BCP underwriting requirements shouldn't be too different (I am not too sure on this). BCP/BCE have the same underwriting requirements from what I know. You can get a charge first, and then apply for the revolver right away or at a later time, or jump straight to a revolver. It's really up to you. If you don't need a charge card, just apply for the revolver directly. The charge card will just lower your AAoA, increase your number of inquiries, and increase number of accounts opened recently. Your existing banks might AA you if they start to get paranoid. However, the charge card is also a good way for you to get your foot into the door. So there's pros and cons that you need to evaluate.
I would recommend letting any account age. It really helps a lot.
For your case, I would say go with the AMEX revolver first, then apply for CSP. This is the same advice many other people gave me. Reason being AMEX is hard to recon, and Chase is easy to recon. Also, if you already have banking relationship with Chase, your chances are much higher.
Best of luck!
To add: I think you have an extremely high chance of getting approved for the CSP. It might not be an instant approval, but you should get approved after a few days at most. Amex I can't really say because I am trying to figure out how to get myself in as well. For me, Amex declined me because of a new account that just reported a month ago, and the current balance to original debt balance amount was too high (100%) which is expected because it is my 1st statement......but I still got declined.
JPMorgan Palladium (100k), AmEx Platinum (NPSL), AmEx SPG (46k), AmEx BCP (42k), Chase Sapphire Preferred (47k), Citi Prestige (31k), Citi Thank You Preferred (27k), Citi Executive AAdvantage (25k), JPMorgan Ritz-Carlton (21k), Merrill+ (15k), US Bank Cash+ (22.5k), Wells Fargo (12k), Bloomingdale’s (12.4k), Chase Freedom (5k), Discover IT (5k).
