@FieryDance wrote:
Can’t speak for others but I have never based my card usage on its CL. If the card’s rewards fit my spending I use it. Simple as that.
TBH, if someone is capable of feeling big and important just because of a large CL or feeling insulted because of small CL I would go as far as saying they are focusing on the wrong thing financially if not downright immature.
I understand what you're saying and agree that there are those who get totally caught up in the ego aspects of high (or low) credit lines. But there are many other issues at stake in the discussion than just ego.
"I" am not my credit score, or my credit line, or my income, or my social status, or my education, or any number of other things people sometimes use to try to make themselves feel superior to others. So yes, I totally agree that people who use those things in that false believe may be emotionally immature or have other issues they need to process with a counselor!
Except for those we choose to tell in real-life, the only people who know our credit limits for better or for worse are us and our lenders. If you struck up a conversation with our "ordinary" non-MyFico friends about the size of your credit lines, you'd probably just get some pretty strange looks. 
Of course, in this forum, it's appropriate and useful for us to share these personal financial details anonymously and I'm glad that some are willing to be forthright.
Simply put, applying for credit is establishing a relationship. It's a financial relationship, but it's a relationship none-the-less. To me, the credit line I am granted is a demonstration of the trust the bank gives me in that lending relationship. When psychologists diagram the relationships in our lives, they define them by rings of concentric circles in terms of intimacy and disclosure. If you draw a correlary to other relationships in your life, you expect a similar level of trust from people in the same "circle". If you have two similar casual friendships, and one treats you with more trust and respect than the other one, you notice the difference, and you may want to reciprocate. The more trusting friend moves closer; the less trusting friend moves farther away.
It's the same with the way our lenders treat us but unlike a subjective measurement of trust you would get in a friendship, the financial relationship can be quantified by real numbers. If I have ten lenders who have shown they are willing to trust me with average credit lines of $10K and a new lender only grants $1,000 for a similar type of card, I definitely notice. They obviously don't trust me as much or else are not as interested in my business. I actually had this happen and ended up sock drawering the card for a few years because it didn't fit the purpose for which I applied for it. (A balance transfer offer.) It didn't meet the expectations I had for approval, which was based on prior similar relationships with other lenders. And yes, I did feel disappointed and even insulted because they trusted me much less than the trust I had been extended over a couple of decades of credit history. And I had wasted (invested) a Hard Pull for this.
This was a common occurrence with the Goldman Sachs Apple card recently as documented by dozens of My Fico forum postings. GS was very conservative in granting credit lines. Most people were surprised and disappointed with the lower-than-expected lines they received. Many posted that they actually turned down their offer due to the low credit lines or higher-than-expected APRs, another indication of trustworthiness. I don't think less of them for feeling that way. It's human nature to expect things to proceed a certain way in our lives based on our past experience.
I also use a credit card because its' rewards fit my needs but it's not as simple as that. I have cards that are valuable to me because they bolster and anchor my credit age. Saving a few dollars worth of rewards to me is not worth losing 20-year + account history. And keeping accounts open with different lenders helps me to stay diversified with different banks and keep my options open. I want to keep them around because they support my credit file and score. So I maintain them and use them.
And not surprisingly, some of those oldest lenders have shown their appreciation by giving me higher limits than I ever expected to receive. So yes, it does make me want to keep those accounts open and useful in some ways. They are demonstrating as best as they can that they value me as a customer and want to keep me around. I appreciate that. The higher credit lines add to my credit report by showing other lenders that I am trusted and by helping to keep my utilization rates very low.
@Aim_High wrote:@FieryDance wrote:
Can’t speak for others but I have never based my card usage on its CL. If the card’s rewards fit my spending I use it. Simple as that.
TBH, if someone is capable of feeling big and important just because of a large CL or feeling insulted because of small CL I would go as far as saying they are focusing on the wrong thing financially if not downright immature.I understand what you're saying and agree that there are those who get totally caught up in the ego aspects of high (or low) credit lines. But there are many other issues at stake in the discussion than just ego.
"I" am not my credit score, or my credit line, or my income, or my social status, or my education, or any number of other things people sometimes use to try to make themselves feel superior to others. So yes, I totally agree that people who use those things in that false believe may be emotionally immature or have other issues they need to process with a counselor!
Except for those we choose to tell in real-life, the only people who know our credit limits for better or for worse are us and our lenders. If you struck up a conversation with our "ordinary" non-MyFico friends about the size of your credit lines, you'd probably just get some pretty strange looks.
Simply put, applying for credit is establishing a relationship. It's a financial relationship, but it's a relationship none-the-less. To me, the credit line I am granted is a demonstration of the trust the bank gives me in that lending relationship. When psychologists diagram the relationships in our lives, they define them by rings of concentric circles in terms of intimacy and disclosure. If you draw a correlary to other relationships in your life, you expect a similar level of trust from people in the same "circle". If you have two similar casual friendships, and one treats you with more trust and respect than the other one, you notice the difference, and you may want to reciprocate. The more trusting friend moves closer; the less trusting friend moves farther away.
It's the same with the way our lenders treat us but unlike a subjective measurement of trust you would get in a friendship, the financial relationship can be quantified by real numbers. If I have ten lenders who have shown they are willing to trust me with average credit lines of $10K and a new lender only grants $1,000 for a similar type of card, I definitely notice. They obviously don't trust me as much or else are not as interested in my business. I actually had this happen and ended up sock drawering the card for a few years because it didn't fit the purpose for which I applied for it. (A balance transfer offer.) It didn't meet the expectations I had for approval, which was based on prior similar relationships with other lenders. And yes, I did feel disappointed and even insulted because they trusted me much less than the trust I had been extended over a couple of decades of credit history. And I had wasted (invested) a Hard Pull for this.
This was a common occurrence with the Goldman Sachs Apple card recently as documented by dozens of My Fico forum postings. GS was very conservative in granting credit lines. Most people were surprised and disappointed with the lower-than-expected lines they received. Many posted that they actually turned down their offer due to the low credit lines or higher-than-expected APRs, another indication of trustworthiness. I don't think less of them for feeling that way. It's human nature to expect things to proceed a certain way in our lives based on our past experience.
I also use a credit card because its' rewards fit my needs but it's not as simple as that. I have cards that are valuable to me because they bolster and anchor my credit age. Saving a few dollars worth of rewards to me is not worth losing 20-year + account history. And keeping accounts open with different lenders helps me to stay diversified with different banks and keep my options open. I want to keep them around because they support my credit file and score. So I maintain them and use them.
And not surprisingly, some of those oldest lenders have shown their appreciation by giving me higher limits than I ever expected to receive. So yes, it does make me want to keep those accounts open and useful in some ways. They are demonstrating as best as they can that they value me as a customer and want to keep me around. I appreciate that. The higher credit lines add to my credit report by showing other lenders that I am trusted and by helping to keep my utilization rates very low.
I agree with what you said. When I got my Propel card, the CL was a flimsy 10K. I didn't like it but used the hell out of it. I maxed it out in about 2 months. A few months later, got a 2K increase. Maxed it out again. Maybe next time I will get an 8K bump. I just paid it in full a day before the 0% rate expires, but I got about 1K in rewards, SUB, and interest earned on the unpaid balance by using the card to its fullest. I could have sock drawered it because of the low line. So to me, it doesn't matter. For some, it does. I got good benefit from it despite the "insulting" CL.
@Anonymous wrote:
@Aim_High wrote:@FieryDance wrote:
Can’t speak for others but I have never based my card usage on its CL. If the card’s rewards fit my spending I use it. Simple as that.
TBH, if someone is capable of feeling big and important just because of a large CL or feeling insulted because of small CL I would go as far as saying they are focusing on the wrong thing financially if not downright immature.I understand what you're saying and agree that there are those who get totally caught up in the ego aspects of high (or low) credit lines. But there are many other issues at stake in the discussion than just ego.
"I" am not my credit score, or my credit line, or my income, or my social status, or my education, or any number of other things people sometimes use to try to make themselves feel superior to others. So yes, I totally agree that people who use those things in that false believe may be emotionally immature or have other issues they need to process with a counselor!
Except for those we choose to tell in real-life, the only people who know our credit limits for better or for worse are us and our lenders. If you struck up a conversation with our "ordinary" non-MyFico friends about the size of your credit lines, you'd probably just get some pretty strange looks.
Simply put, applying for credit is establishing a relationship. It's a financial relationship, but it's a relationship none-the-less. To me, the credit line I am granted is a demonstration of the trust the bank gives me in that lending relationship. When psychologists diagram the relationships in our lives, they define them by rings of concentric circles in terms of intimacy and disclosure. If you draw a correlary to other relationships in your life, you expect a similar level of trust from people in the same "circle". If you have two similar casual friendships, and one treats you with more trust and respect than the other one, you notice the difference, and you may want to reciprocate. The more trusting friend moves closer; the less trusting friend moves farther away.
It's the same with the way our lenders treat us but unlike a subjective measurement of trust you would get in a friendship, the financial relationship can be quantified by real numbers. If I have ten lenders who have shown they are willing to trust me with average credit lines of $10K and a new lender only grants $1,000 for a similar type of card, I definitely notice. They obviously don't trust me as much or else are not as interested in my business. I actually had this happen and ended up sock drawering the card for a few years because it didn't fit the purpose for which I applied for it. (A balance transfer offer.) It didn't meet the expectations I had for approval, which was based on prior similar relationships with other lenders. And yes, I did feel disappointed and even insulted because they trusted me much less than the trust I had been extended over a couple of decades of credit history. And I had wasted (invested) a Hard Pull for this.
This was a common occurrence with the Goldman Sachs Apple card recently as documented by dozens of My Fico forum postings. GS was very conservative in granting credit lines. Most people were surprised and disappointed with the lower-than-expected lines they received. Many posted that they actually turned down their offer due to the low credit lines or higher-than-expected APRs, another indication of trustworthiness. I don't think less of them for feeling that way. It's human nature to expect things to proceed a certain way in our lives based on our past experience.
I also use a credit card because its' rewards fit my needs but it's not as simple as that. I have cards that are valuable to me because they bolster and anchor my credit age. Saving a few dollars worth of rewards to me is not worth losing 20-year + account history. And keeping accounts open with different lenders helps me to stay diversified with different banks and keep my options open. I want to keep them around because they support my credit file and score. So I maintain them and use them.
And not surprisingly, some of those oldest lenders have shown their appreciation by giving me higher limits than I ever expected to receive. So yes, it does make me want to keep those accounts open and useful in some ways. They are demonstrating as best as they can that they value me as a customer and want to keep me around. I appreciate that. The higher credit lines add to my credit report by showing other lenders that I am trusted and by helping to keep my utilization rates very low.
I agree with what you said. When I got my Propel card, the CL was a flimsy 10K. I didn't like it but used the hell out of it. I maxed it out in about 2 months. A few months later, got a 2K increase. Maxed it out again. Maybe next time I will get an 8K bump. I just paid it in full a day before the 0% rate expires, but I got about 1K in rewards, SUB, and interest earned on the unpaid balance by using the card to its fullest. I could have sock drawered it because of the low line. So to me, it doesn't matter. For some, it does. I got good benefit from it despite the "insulting" CL.
+1
Yes I know there were tons of people that expected higher limits and better terms with the APPLE frenzy, turned down their offers and felt they deserved bettet, to each their own, Once again no lender has to give you credit in the first place, and taking it personal because you believe your score is top notch and you are accustomed to higher limits, that's just not how we play the credit game.
Personally I have had low end SLs and if I didn't accept them they might not have grown to what they are today.
I learned a while back not to take it personal from several members here
@Anonymous wrote:
@FieryDance wrote:
Can’t speak for others but I have never based my card usage on its CL. If the card’s rewards fit my spending I use it. Simple as that.
TBH, if someone is capable of feeling big and important just because of a large CL or feeling insulted because of small CL I would go as far as saying they are focusing on the wrong thing financially if not downright immature.Everyone is different. I read card reviews and saw things like. DON'T GET THIS CARD!! My CLs are around 15k each got approved for 3K. Useless, will cancel. Or, my highest limit is $1500, got approved for $7,200!!! This is my go to card!.
I don't work that way, but some do. I'm sure if your 30K limit card was cut to 15K, you'd consider putting it in the drawer.
You are right that everyone is different and values different thing. For me, if my 30K limit card was cut to 15K for no apparent reason I would be curious to find out why, but as long as the card still fits my needs I would use it just the same.
My one sock drawer card is my student Discover. It grew from $1,500 to $10K all by itself without me ever asking or even noticing, but it has poor rewards.
I personally don’t value credit limits beyond that they are not restricting usage or affecting utilization rate too much.
@Aim_High wrote:@FieryDance wrote:
Can’t speak for others but I have never based my card usage on its CL. If the card’s rewards fit my spending I use it. Simple as that.
TBH, if someone is capable of feeling big and important just because of a large CL or feeling insulted because of small CL I would go as far as saying they are focusing on the wrong thing financially if not downright immature.I understand what you're saying and agree that there are those who get totally caught up in the ego aspects of high (or low) credit lines. But there are many other issues at stake in the discussion than just ego.
"I" am not my credit score, or my credit line, or my income, or my social status, or my education, or any number of other things people sometimes use to try to make themselves feel superior to others. So yes, I totally agree that people who use those things in that false believe may be emotionally immature or have other issues they need to process with a counselor!
Except for those we choose to tell in real-life, the only people who know our credit limits for better or for worse are us and our lenders. If you struck up a conversation with our "ordinary" non-MyFico friends about the size of your credit lines, you'd probably just get some pretty strange looks.
Simply put, applying for credit is establishing a relationship. It's a financial relationship, but it's a relationship none-the-less. To me, the credit line I am granted is a demonstration of the trust the bank gives me in that lending relationship. When psychologists diagram the relationships in our lives, they define them by rings of concentric circles in terms of intimacy and disclosure. If you draw a correlary to other relationships in your life, you expect a similar level of trust from people in the same "circle". If you have two similar casual friendships, and one treats you with more trust and respect than the other one, you notice the difference, and you may want to reciprocate. The more trusting friend moves closer; the less trusting friend moves farther away.
It's the same with the way our lenders treat us but unlike a subjective measurement of trust you would get in a friendship, the financial relationship can be quantified by real numbers. If I have ten lenders who have shown they are willing to trust me with average credit lines of $10K and a new lender only grants $1,000 for a similar type of card, I definitely notice. They obviously don't trust me as much or else are not as interested in my business. I actually had this happen and ended up sock drawering the card for a few years because it didn't fit the purpose for which I applied for it. (A balance transfer offer.) It didn't meet the expectations I had for approval, which was based on prior similar relationships with other lenders. And yes, I did feel disappointed and even insulted because they trusted me much less than the trust I had been extended over a couple of decades of credit history. And I had wasted (invested) a Hard Pull for this.
This was a common occurrence with the Goldman Sachs Apple card recently as documented by dozens of My Fico forum postings. GS was very conservative in granting credit lines. Most people were surprised and disappointed with the lower-than-expected lines they received. Many posted that they actually turned down their offer due to the low credit lines or higher-than-expected APRs, another indication of trustworthiness. I don't think less of them for feeling that way. It's human nature to expect things to proceed a certain way in our lives based on our past experience.
I also use a credit card because its' rewards fit my needs but it's not as simple as that. I have cards that are valuable to me because they bolster and anchor my credit age. Saving a few dollars worth of rewards to me is not worth losing 20-year + account history. And keeping accounts open with different lenders helps me to stay diversified with different banks and keep my options open. I want to keep them around because they support my credit file and score. So I maintain them and use them.
And not surprisingly, some of those oldest lenders have shown their appreciation by giving me higher limits than I ever expected to receive. So yes, it does make me want to keep those accounts open and useful in some ways. They are demonstrating as best as they can that they value me as a customer and want to keep me around. I appreciate that. The higher credit lines add to my credit report by showing other lenders that I am trusted and by helping to keep my utilization rates very low.
I see what you are saying and agree trust is definitely important. But to me the trust part of that “relationship” is already established to my satisfaction as long as the relationship itself is in a heathy state. I don’t really need the issuer to demonstrate they trust me and love me beyond that as I value the rewards part much more. Since the reward structure is not individual it is hard to take it personally.
What you descaribed might be more akin to retention offers or targeted sign up offers to me. I can certainly see myself not applying for a card if my targeted offer is much weaker than others.