@DeeBee78 wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:I see some people have two quicksilver one cards and combined them into one. Does that increase your credit line? Also, why wouldn’t capital one just increase your credit line to save you the trouble of applying for two cards. Sorry new to this. How long do you normally wait before combining the cards? I currently have two cards a secured one (which you can’t combine) and a quicksilver one.
Does it increase your credit line?
Yes, and no. It increases the limit of the card you're transferring to, but it closes the donor card. For example, if you have two Quicksilver cards with $1,000 limits and you combine them, you will have one card with a $2,000 limit when you're done.
Why won't Capital One increase your credit line to save you the trouble of applying for two cards?
Capital One used to be very stingy with CLI's and only very recently started allowing you to combine cards, so that is why you see members with multiple cards.
How long do you wait before combining the cards?
Each person is different. Some people would rather have the two separate trade lines, and some people would rather have one combined limit. I personally am waiting one more week for my (hopeful) 6 month CLI's to kick in, then I will combine them. Additionally, you have several requirements that need to be met before you can even request the accounts be combined, one of those being the accounts are at least 6 months old.
+1
Everybody has a slightly different 'story' as to how they got where they are with Capital One. Here's my reasoning for having two, and my plans for my own Capital One cards going forward...
I have a Quicksilver One MasterCard that is eight years old. It was previously a HSBC/Orchard Bank card that was purchased by Capital One a few years back. They 'nerfed' my cash rewards from 2% to the Quicksilver's 1.5%, but they kept the same legacy annual fee of $79 (ouch). On the plus side, it's one of my oldest accounts, and the APR is 14.9%, which is low relative to my other cards. The credit line was 'stranded' for years at $720 until spring 2014, when I got a $1k CLI. I've since received a $200 CLI and in May 2015 they gave another $1k CLI, making the credit line $2920. (As a data point, the odd credit line is due to my very first CLI being $20... seriously).
Knowing I would have higher utilization for a few months, needed a 'cushion' so I checked the Capital One pre-qual site back in March and it said I was pre-qualified for a Quicksilver Visa, a Venture, or a Platinum MC with no AF. I chose the Quicksilver Visa, and it was approved for $5k. A couple of months later I used the 'button' and got a $2k CLI, making the new credit line $7k.
So, in my case I now have two Quicksilver cards, a MasterCard and a Visa.
Back to your question... I've been trying the last couple of years to get Capital One to waive the AF on my MasterCard but the best they'll do is waive half of it, which makes the fee still more than someone would pay for a brand new QS1. I keep 'holding my nose' and doing this each time, but now that there's an option to merge the accounts I can move my MasterCard's limit to the no-annual fee Visa, and still have the same available credit. My personal preference would be to just keep both cards (and the lengthy history on the MC) but if they can't do something about the AF I will be moving the credit line and closing the MC, even though it has the lower APR (I don't carry a balance so I'm not super-sensitive to APR at this time).
If you 'comb' the threads, you'll find other stories similar to mine, each a little different but with similar reasoning. Getting an additional Capital One card can also be a good plan if you're pre-qualified for a card with a lower APR than the card(s) you already have... you get the new, lower APR card, and in six months roll your old, higher-APR card's limit into the new, lower APR one. Once my last two 'baddies' are off my reports next summer, I might consider taking advantage of this myself. I generally PIF, but for those times where you must carry a balance having a low APR is helpful. Of course, each Capital One application entails a HP on each bureau, so you have to really make it count. (As a note, Capital One is not known for lowering APRs without serious effort, thus this method).
Hopefully some of this will help explain how folks got multiple Capital One cards, and why the 'merge' feature is such a big deal! 
Side note - Some of you might think I would have been better off back in March to get the Venture instead of the QS, and I agree... but that's a topic for another thread. 
@DeeBee78 wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:I see some people have two quicksilver one cards and combined them into one. Does that increase your credit line? Also, why wouldn’t capital one just increase your credit line to save you the trouble of applying for two cards. Sorry new to this. How long do you normally wait before combining the cards? I currently have two cards a secured one (which you can’t combine) and a quicksilver one.
Does it increase your credit line?
Yes, and no. It increases the limit of the card you're transferring to, but it closes the donor card. For example, if you have two Quicksilver cards with $1,000 limits and you combine them, you will have one card with a $2,000 limit when you're done.
Why won't Capital One increase your credit line to save you the trouble of applying for two cards?
Capital One used to be very stingy with CLI's and only very recently started allowing you to combine cards, so that is why you see members with multiple cards.
How long do you wait before combining the cards?
Each person is different. Some people would rather have the two separate trade lines, and some people would rather have one combined limit. I personally am waiting one more week for my (hopeful) 6 month CLI's to kick in, then I will combine them. Additionally, you have several requirements that need to be met before you can even request the accounts be combined, one of those being the accounts are at least 6 months old.
Can you combine QS1 MC limit to QS Visa platinum? or does it have to be mc to mc?
@Anonymous wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:Got ya. Thank you for the education. I may apply for another quicksilver one card now.
Well I would hold your horses. What are your scores and inquiries? Have you checked for prequal?
The reason you see so many folks with duplicate cards is because of Capital One itself. They encourage bad behavior. Instead of letting a person get a cli on a product they already have. This keeps the consumer in their place, so to speak. To the point where fewer lendors will extend credit. It isolates the person to capital one.
Not to mention enduring a triple inquiry each time. Now... if you have fair but not excellent credit...and this is something you need...and maybe your current quicksilver has a really high APR and they wont lower it... then maybe I would consider it. If you have fair/good scores... I would wait another month or two because they are releasing a new product. This way you could endure the triple hit, grab a QS and the new product.
Why do you need the higher CL? Are you unable to PIF weekly? Have you tried using your qs exclusively? I have been stuck at 3500 since june. Cant complain as it was a 1k card opened in december 2014.
I do like capital one though. Hats off to them. They extend credit when others wont. And they back up their limits.... when other banks will balance chase, capital one does not.
I tend to agree....