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Denied for NM.. what am I doing wrong?

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Anonymous
Not applicable

Denied for NM.. what am I doing wrong?

Hi Everyone,

 

This is my first post here. I have been browsing the boards for some time and see that you are all very helpful so I thought I'd give it a shot.

 

I applied for a NM credit card last night and was flat out denied. I'm very curious as to what I'm doing wrong here and how I can better improve my credit. A little bit out me and my credit history. I'm 20 years old and received my first credit card in late 2007, say October.

 

October 2007 - Capital One $300 limit / currently owe $176.21

- In late 2007 & early 2008 I missed two payments but immediately made a payment a day or two after they were due. I haven't missed a payment since. I did make a habit of only paying the minimum (stupid, I know!) but within the past few months I have made larger payment of about $50.00 per month.

 

*From this time period till 2010 I tried to apply for other cards (maybe two or three, mainly in 2008) but was always denied. I do remember in early 2010 applying for a BOA Visa and I was denied based on not enough credit, etc that whole thing*

 

May 2010 - Got a pre-approval for an Amex Green, signed up and was approved. Currently "no limit". I usually charge a few thousand dollars per month and of course since this is a charge card, it is always paid in full each month,

 

July 2010 - Decided to try my luck with Victoria's Secret and was approved! At this point I was very excited thinking I was now doing something right lol. They gave me a $500 limit. Made a few minimum payments and then uped it to again about $50.00 per month sometimes $60/$70. They recently increased my limit to $800. I didn't ask, I just saw the change on my account.

$800 limit / $299.16 owed

 

September 2010 - Decided to try my luck with Bloomingdales this time and again I was approved!

$400 limit / $224.99 owed

 

October 2010 - Tried for an American Express blue and was denied based on too many inquiries, not enough credit, and I believe it also said my score was too low which surprised me.

 

Yesterday I used the Fico Score Estimator and was told my score would be between 640-690 hence why I decided to go for the NM account. I won't know why exalt I was denied until my letter comes in the mail but I am going to assume it will be the same as all the other letters. The only mistake I think I made on the application was that I put my household income (about $200K) as opposed to my individual income. Most applications I have filed out ask for the household income so I didn't realize until I was denied and went back to review the application where my mistake might have been.

 

Would it be possible for me to call them and see if they could re-review my application? While I myself do not make $200K, I do make a nice amount for my age as I have worked my way up in the company over the past three years. If I do call to have them re-review, what are some questions they usually ask?

 

Overall, what do you all think I'm doing wrong? I really do not want to continue to be denied as I know that is only hurting me. Is there some type of credit monitoring I should sign up for? Thank you all in advance for your advice!

 

Message 1 of 12
11 REPLIES 11
alph4
Regular Contributor

Re: Denied for NM.. what am I doing wrong?

Your current utilization as I have calculated is about 47%. That's a bit high for a new potential lender to see. If your able, I would say try to get all balances below 30% of your limits.

Current Cards:
American Express Blue Cash Preferred - March 2007 - CL $10,000
Citi Forward Visa Signature - September 2009 - CL $6,500
Chase Freedom - March 2011 - CL $15,000
Chase Sapphire Preferred - May 2013 - CL $12,500
Discover It - November 2013 - $5,000
Barclay Arrival - January 2014 - $10,000
Message 2 of 12
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Denied for NM.. what am I doing wrong?

Got it! I thought it was good to keep a partial balance and not pay everything off right away but I guess I was wrong. I have already planned to get my Bloomingdales down to $0 when payment is due next month. From there I will work on the next two cards. Thank you for your advice!

Message 3 of 12
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Denied for NM.. what am I doing wrong?

Hi alana20,

 

Welcome!

 

FICO looks at overall utilization, as well as utilization on individual cards.  They also look at number of accounts reporting balances.

 

Many folks find their scores do best if all revolving accounts except one report a zero balance, with that one account reporting a balance of less than 9%.

 

If you haven't had a chance, be sure to pull a FICO score here.  You will get a very helpful report with your FICO score that will help you understand how lenders see you.  It will also tell you "What Is Helping Your FICO Score" and "What is Hurting Your FICO Score".  This is my very favorite way of knowing where my credit stands and how I look to potential creditors.  Google "myFICO discount codes" to save a few bucks.

Message 4 of 12
Wolf3
Senior Contributor

Re: Denied for NM.. what am I doing wrong?

You may want to wait until you are 21.   Maybe they did not want to verify income per new law.

Message 5 of 12
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Denied for NM.. what am I doing wrong?

Per new law? What does that mean exactly if you don't mind? Smiley Happy

Message 6 of 12
smc733
Valued Contributor

Re: Denied for NM.. what am I doing wrong?

Two things here:

 

They do not have to verify that the income is true for people under 21, they just have to collect information from the applicant stating that they have their own income.  IE, I could lie and say I'm making $300k, but being under 21, all applications tell me to state my own personal income, not HHI (some have that separate).  They don't have to verify what you said is true (no one has for me).

 

HSBC is very picky with new accounts and short history when it comes to approving private label retail accounts.  Wait 6 months, then retry.  Though if NM also has a "program B account", I'm worried that's what you'll end up with.

BofA Cash Rewards VS - $25k | Citi Double Cash World MC - $18.9k | Amex BCE - $50k | Discover it - $50k | Chase Freedom Unlimited VS- $10k | Barclay Ring $5k |
Message 7 of 12
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Denied for NM.. what am I doing wrong?

On the NM application it did ask me just "Your Income" which is where I made my mistake. I put my household income. They verify your income by calling the employer or?

 

What is the program B for NM?

Message 8 of 12
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Denied for NM.. what am I doing wrong?

Thank you for your advice!

 

Should I sign up for the quarterly monitoring? Do these pulls hurt my credit score?

Message 9 of 12
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Denied for NM.. what am I doing wrong?

Very odd.. I pulled by free Equifax report as I hadn't pulled it this year. It doesn't show my Amex green charge at all but it shows "other" with a high balance (which would be my amex). And then it comes up as debt to credit ratio 273%. What the heck??

 

Also shows one hard inquiry in the last two years.. but one page shows Bloomies.. and the next shows HSBS (neimans). This make no sense to me.

Message 10 of 12
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