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@Phoenix-rising wrote:I just got a letter in the mail from AmEx. They sent a Form 4506-T request for transcript of tax return.
What's up with that? The letter says that if they don't hear from me within 30 days, they will give no further consideration to my application.
O-kay? So if I don't send it in, I wonder if my current CL will remain intact. So far it hasn't changed.
Amex knows that you have been been revolving credit card debt for the past few years. If you have been paying down the debt consistently there shouldn't be any problem with adverse action being taken by Amex.
If you haven't paid down much of your debt in the past year or so, there might be some adverse action taken by Amex if you don't send in the form.
When a person asks for credit limit increases instead of paying down debt to decrease utilization, that is called pyramiding debt. When a bank sees evidence of pyramiding debt it gets nervous. Amex might feel that you need to borrow more money because you are having financial difficulty.
Amex just wants to be sure that you can afford to pay back the debt you currently have before increasing your credit limit. You have stated in older posts that you took a 0% offer because it was too good to pass up. Did you save that money or spend it? If you still have that money, now might be the time to pay down some of your debt so that Amex is reassured that you are not in financial difficulty.
If you have income that justifies your Amex credit limits, simply fill out the form and send it in. If your income does not justify the credit limits that you already have, definitely don't send in the form.
Amex may or may not reduce your current credit limits. The deed is already done so you cannot unring the CLI request bell. You can pay down as much debt as you can as fast as you can to get ready for your refi. You cannot rely on any CLIs to help you. The chances are that you might actually receive some CLDs between now and the refi.
You will have more success with the refi if you put aside all of the old strategies and plans for gaming the system. There is only one thing lenders are looking for now. They want to lend to people who are obviously not in financial difficulty. A high FICO score does not guarantee that a person is not in financial difficulty. Substantially paying debt down every month is the absolute best way to demonstrate to all that you are not in financial difficulty.
Hopefully Amex will not CLD you. It is not the end of the world if it does. Even if you do not receive a CLD there is no guarantee that you can refi with the terms that you want if you happen to have a high debt to income ratio. As others have suggested, seeking new credit of any kind is not the best move going forward.
Hopefully the Amex experience will work out for the best if it leads to you revising your game plan leading up to the refi.
@Phoenix-rising wrote:I just got a letter in the mail from AmEx. They sent a Form 4506-T request for transcript of tax return.
What's up with that? The letter says that if they don't hear from me within 30 days, they will give no further consideration to my application.
O-kay? So if I don't send it in, I wonder if my current CL will remain intact. So far it hasn't changed.
Yes, this appears to be a FR or financial review, as stated by YoungEntrepreneur. Good luck.
@Anonymous wrote:
sometimes only after do we realize that we have opened Pandora's box....
Too bad Pandora's box doesn't have
a consumer warning label on it.
WARNING:
Opening this box can have unintended consequences
that will cause a lot of pain, suffering, and remorse.
Actually asking for advice in these forums
before taking an action usually will provide
ample warning of negative consequences.
Ask MyFICO Forums first !
Keep Pandora's box closed !
Phoenix-rising wrote:
I just got a letter in the mail from AmEx. They sent a Form 4506-T request for transcript of tax return.
What's up with that? The letter says that if they don't hear from me within 30 days, they will give no further consideration to my application.
O-kay? So if I don't send it in, I wonder if my current CL will remain intact. So far it hasn't changed.
Thank you all for your very wise, informed, enlightening and entertaining replies. I love this place!
After reading your replies I do think it's in my best interest to fill in the form and send it in. I'll wait until after April 15 when we file our 2008 tax return. Our income is significantly higher than our 2007 return. Right now the cash we have set aside will be used to pay our 2008 tax return. After we pay our tax return, we'll be in a position to pay off AmEx over the next 3 months. Our debt is significant lower than it was a year ago. DH & I both use CreditSecure, so I'm sure AmEx already knows most of the information it needs. My util ratio has dropped from over 30% to around 20% or less. The financial picture is definitely getting better for us. We've worked hard this past year to pay down our debt.
I'll continue to update this thread as the story unfolds.
I really appreciate all your input.
@YoungEntrepeneur wrote:
Phoenix-rising, I believe they are conducting a financial review on your account. Check your account online and see if they suspended it or not. They did the same to me in January 2008. They said that if I didn't provide the necessary info within 30 days, they would close my account. I gave them the information and it took about a week for them to release my account.
I just looked online and it didn't seem to show anything about being suspended. It shows an available balance of $13k and I just made a purchase with my AmEx card a couple of days ago. I think I'm still OK so far.
Does a financial review involve more than just filling out the Form 4506-T or is that all I'll need to do?
I just looked at my past AmEx statements. In Dec my statement balance was $12k. It's down to $6.5k now.
@Phoenix-rising wrote:
I just looked at my past AmEx statements. In Dec my statement balance was $12k. It's down to $6.5k now.
Congrats. Way to go. That's the kind of improvement that will ultimately lead to the best refi rate possible.
GOOD NEWS!!!!!
I finally sent in the form 4506-T in mid-April. Last week they actually gave me the requested CLI. I've carried a balance on that card ever since October because of the 0% BT offer with the Blue Cash account. I was so afraid they would CLD me, but I guess I'm lucky they didn't.
Also, our refi is under way and with any luck we'll close next week.