Credit Card Help please

[Anonymous]

Hi Everyone, 

I am new to the forum. I have had one secured card, with 2k collateral, for a little over 3 years with my bank, credit limit 2k. I have never been late paying this card. I don't know which version score to look at but the Fico 8 shows Eq: 681 TU: 643 Ex: 647. The bank pulled Equilfax and the email stated my credit score did not meet the minimum requirements. I asked what was my credit score and if they could release my collateral and issue me that limit instead of the original 10k i was asking for because my income is 9500 a month. They replied as follows: 

Thank you for your email.  Unfortunately, we do not have access to your credit score, however, a decline letter has been mailed to your address on file with more information. To increase the collateral hold on your account, you will need to visit your local First Hawaiian Bank branch for further assistance. 

It was signed BankCard Center and gave a number. Do i just place more money in the collateral holding and wait 6months and apply for maybe a chase. My goal is to increase my overall credit limit. I would like travel rewards. If my own bank can't approve me for a credit card then how will i go to the bigger and scarier companies.

CREDIT HISTORY 9 Years 9 Years 9 Years TOTAL ACCOUNTS 17 15 15 CURRENT ACCOUNTS 16 14 15 PAST DUE ACCOUNTS 1 1 0 REVOLVING ACCOUNTS 3 3 1 INSTALLMENT ACCOUNTS 14 12 14 MORTGAGE ACCOUNTS 0 0 0 OTHER ACCOUNTS 0 0 0 COLLECTIONS 0 1 1 PUBLIC RECORDS 0 0 0 NEGATIVE INDICATORS 4 2 3 AUTHORIZED USER ACCOUNTS 1 1 0 FRAUD FLAG No No No

inquiries 2 1 1 (Feb 1, CLI and a loan for a car was the first one, which i did not end up buying because the dealer tried to rip me off..back in October)

Those revolving accounts is from chase but i was a authroized user which is listed as negative and installment accounts are school loans. One collection school accounts from 2007 whcih i paid in 2011 off.

Please guide me on what to do to gain access to raising my credit limit, to gain access to travel cards. Step by step, do this, do that, apply for this. to get to where many of you already are. I apologize in advance if i broke any rules. 

Edit* I also have a utilization question. What if I max the card and pay it off by reporting date. When bank reports 0% utilization. Is that good? Or should i leave 10-30% for the fico people see I am using it? basically the question is paid off card in full or leave some balance on it. Which is a higher score?

[Anonymous]

You could give Capital One a try. Platinum and Quicksilver One are both good starter/builder cards and are easy to obtain. I started with both and they built a really solid credit foundation. Idk about chase, you might want to hold out on that until your scores get closer to 700.

[Anonymous]

Thanks so much Jedi Knight  

I applied for capital one quicksilver one card and was approved instantly for 3k CL. I got ambitious and tried to apply for Venture card and was declined. Please continue to guide me on what next to  apply for and pointers on how to raise this credit limit. Do i call instantly and ask for a limit raise? Do i wait 6months? Please advise and advise on the next card. I did not apply for the Platnum card. Should i do that?

Edit* I don't believe it till i receive the card.

[takeshi74]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I have never been late paying this card. I don't know which version score to look at but the Fico 8 shows Eq: 681 TU: 643 Ex: 647.

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The scoring model that is relevant is whichever one the creditor/product uses.  FICO 8 is the most commonly used model but not all creditors/products use FICO 8.

It is not just the account itself with a given creditor that matters.  Your entire credit profile always matters.

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@Anonymous wrote:

If my own bank can't approve me for a credit card then how will i go to the bigger and scarier companies.

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You need to identify the deficiencies with your credit profile and address them for any creditor including your own bank.

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@Anonymous wrote:

PAST DUE ACCOUNTS 1 1 0

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@Anonymous wrote:

COLLECTIONS 0 1 1 PUBLIC RECORDS 0 0 0 NEGATIVE INDICATORS 4 2 3

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Work on addressing these.  Hit the Rebuilding subfourm and carefully research.  You want to aim for 0 derogs on your reports.  Going forward you need to do whatever it takes to avoid derogs.  Make sure you're budgeting and sticking to it.  Make sure every payment is one time.  Given the impact of Payment History it must be 100%.

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@Anonymous wrote:

Those revolving accounts is from chase but i was a authroized user which is listed as negative

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Being an AU isn't necessarily beneficial.  Negative Payment History, high Revolving Utilization and new accounts generally do not help.  If you were an AU on an account and it is not helping then get yourself removed.  If the tradeline is not removed from your reports after you are removed as an AU then dispute the TL as not yours/not responsible.

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@Anonymous wrote:

One collection school accounts from 2007 whcih i paid in 2011 off.

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A paid collection generally doesn't help much.  Request goodwill removal.  Again, you want to aim for removal of derogs as they tend to have a significant impact and hold one's scores down as long as they are on reports.  You also want to avoid them for those reasons.

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@Anonymous wrote:

Please guide me on what to do to gain access to raising my credit limit, to gain access to travel cards. Step by step, do this, do that, apply for this. to get to where many of you already are.

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Limits are determined based on what your credit profile and income qualify for.  Improve your profile and you'll see better limits.

It's up to you to educate yourself.  We cannot outline step by step.  Learn how credit is assessed as you need to be able to assess your own reports to determine your progress.  That knowledge will give you what you need to know as far as what problems you have in your reports.  How to address each specific issue is going to take some legwork on your own as situations can and do differ and there isn't a one-size-fits-all approach that works for each problem.

Don't overlook other threads, the stickies and the Rebuilding subforum as resources as well.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the advice. Yes I have been reading but you guys have way more experience. I can read all day and without actual experience such as you guys have, I might fail.

I really appreciate all of your help.

[Anonymous]

Hi guys,

I am trying to gain credit and I do not know where to post this. I made a post in credit cards but maybe here will be a much better place. I just got my second credit card after a little over 3 years because of the advice here. It was a Capital One Quicksilver One  instant approval 3k CL.. I tried for the Venture and Platnum but was instantly denied. maybe because it was right after eachother? 

So it says i have to pay the card for 5 months (once I get it) to get a credit limit increase. Sounds great to me. Can you experience credit people help me with questions like, when should I apply for my next card? Which Card? For the Venture and Platnum I got denied for, how does that effect me.Which scores am I looking at when I look at my Fico score.

[Anonymous]

Wait until you get the denial notice for the Platinum and let us know what it says.

[Anonymous]

GZ on the approval! The above stated has some good insight because everyone's credit profile is different so the outcomes will always be varied. At this point you have a couple options, take just the QS1 and/or apply for the platinum and call it a day. A CLI is unlikely upon activation. Around 3 months you can start requesting increases.

Be responsible with your credit and try to pay in full. Set reminders/alerts to make sure you never miss a payment . Keep low utilization and know when your statement cuts.

[Anonymous]

id ask for a recon...

[Loques]

To second what NormanFH said, wait and see what the denial letter states. Cap1 will tell you the exact reason why you were denied. Then you can work on those factors and apply for the cards that you want later on.