First Post - Which Cards To Apply For? Bad Score But Higher Income Now

[Anonymous]

Hi All,

This is my first post, so thank you for having me!

I need some help on a few different things.  Specifically I am looking for recommendations on specific cards to apply for and which "backdoor" numbers I should call, if things don't go my way initially.

I will supply as much info as possible, so I can get some good answers and act right away.  I have been trying to fix my credit forever.  I wrote countless letters for years and was semi-successful.  I got some stuff removed and resolved to let some stuff fall off naturally.  Should be gone in the next year or so.

I would REALLY appreciate it if a few of you guys would lay a step by step gameplan out for me and tell me what you would do if you were me.

Here is my situation...

A)  My score on Credit Karma is only 624.  However, almost all of my negative stuff should fall soon.  More details on that to follow.

B_)  My income has recently increased pretty significantly.  I was broke for a while, so my credit decisions were pretty poor when I was young.  However, it has gotten much, much better in the last 2 years.  For about 1 year, I was working as a financial analyst for one of these big banks.  My income improved (still not great) and my overall financial situation got better, so my credit got better because of me being more responsible.  NOW, I have recently scaled up my own business and left my analyst position.  My income has gotten significantly better and I can provide proof to the lenders of $40k+ booked in business just in the last 3.5 months.  About $25k of that has been paid already (with proof) and about $15k of it is booked business that I am waiting for payment on.  I don't have a tax return with this higher income yet, but I could provide statements, etc.

C)  I keep getting pre-approved offers and then when I apply...I get denied.  What is the reason for this?  This happened to me twice in the past 2 weeks for First National American Express and Bank of America Cash Rewards Visa Signature.  Should I call backdoor numbers for these and ask to be reconsidered?  I think the letter for the American Express one even said no limit.  (It should be noted that I had a paid charge-off with Amex back in like 2007.  I don't think they even included that as one of the reasons for the denial though.  Maybe because the denial came from First National and not Amex?

D)  What other things should I mention if/when calling?  My savings and checking accounts are at Chase.  I would like a Chase card.  I especially want a Chase card in the Business' name, but I know that's really difficult to get.  If you could help with that, I would be ecstatic.

Here is all my relevant info courtesy of Credit Karma...PLEASE HELP AND GIVE ADVICE!

My Current Cards and Limits

I'm really sick of these BS cards with tiny limits that never increase.  I was happy to get them a few years ago and very grateful while trying to repair my credit and get a second chance.  However, most of them have annual fees, terrible limits and rates, etc.

1)  Capital One Visa ($500 limit)  I have had this limit FOREVER.  They will not increase it.

2)  Capital One MasterCard ($500 limit)  This card is actually suspended but active.  They closed it when I owed money before.  I paid the balance to $0, but they still won't reactivate it.  It reports $0 balance $500 limit still, which is good.)

3)  Orchard (Now Capital One) Visa ($420 limit)

4)  Orchard (Now Capital One) Mastercard ($300 limit)

5)  Bryant State Bank "Show" Mastercard ($300 limit)

6)  First Savings Bank Mastercard ($400 limit)

7)  First National Bank "Legacy" Visa ($550 limit)

8)  Credit One Bank Visa ($775 limit)

9)  First Premier "Aventium" Mastercard ($300 limit)

10)  First Premier "Platinum" Mastercard ($300 limit)

Total Credit Card Limit = $3,845

Credit Karma Details

624 Credit Rating:  POOR

Open Credit Utilization 6%  Grade:  A  (I always keep this low.)

Payments Made On-Time 97.9% Grade:  D  (Before it was very bad, now it's very good.)

Avg. Age of Open Credit Lines 2 Yrs 6 Mos:  D (I'm 26, so my oldest accounts are a lot older than this, but most of my accounts are newer and bring the average down.)

Total Accounts 37 Grade:  A  (I'm glad this is an A but it's sort of artificial.  A lot of the accounts are the same things broken up or renamed (like school loans in different amounts.  Still happy.)

Hard Credit Inquiries 13  Grade:  F  (Not sure why so high.  I don't apply like crazy anymore.  It was 15 in May and had 2 fall off since.)

Derogatory Marks 0  Grade:  A  (Happy, but surprised it's 0.  I have a lot of charge-offs that I am waiting to fall off.)

Loans = $40k

About $15k in auto loan and $25k in schools loans.  Payment history is perfect on all.  I would like to get a mortgage in about a year.

Negative Accounts As per Experian 03-18-13 (can't get a newer one for free yet)

1)  American Express Balance = $0  Charge off as of 08/2007 "on record until May 2014"

2)  Capital One Balance = $0 Charge off "on record until Sep 2014"

3)  HSBC Balance = $0 Charge off "charge off 07/2008 disputed on 10/2010"

4)  Home Depot / Citibank Balance = $0 Charge off "on record until Oct 2014"

*I also have a handful of accounts listed as negative accounts that are open credit cards with low or $0 balances.  I guess I had them and was late on a payment or two in the past.  Can I get these removed?  Who should I talk to?

ANYWAY...that's my story.  Can I somehow leverage my now higher income and get Credit Limit Increases or BETTER cards?  Who should I call?  What should I apply for?  PLEASE HELP!!!

THANK YOU IN ADVANCE!!!

[Burned2manybridgesB4]

You're in that grey area: you have functioning credit, but have major derogs. If you do get any prime approvals, they'll be very low limits, if any approve at all. You're better off trying to get the derogs off, and waiting out the COs CRTP before apping, to get a much higher approval chance/limit.

Keep trying for the CLIs.

[halos24]

I have to agree. Unfortunately, with credit I learned that and you have to be patient. I would allow the cards you have grow. My bankruptcy stopped me from getting prime cards for a few years, almost 6-7 years I think. Just continue if you can letting those cards grow and watch the Inquiries.

[Burned2manybridgesB4]

Unfortunately I'll give you an example from experience:

Rebuilding mode: get a citi for $500, with derogs showing. Eventually they clear up, piece by piece...after two years, you're at 2.5k (example purposes).

Clean report mode: get approved for 3k, and in those same two years, your limit is probably in the 5k zone.

See the difference patience makes?

[Anonymous]

Thank you for the replies. Here is what confuses me the most...

WHY was I pre-approved for these good cards?  Obviously their was some criteria, which I met to get the letter.  Isn't it the same system then denying me later?  I could understand being preapproved for something based solely on data and then, upon closer inspection, being denied.  In my case, however, I would think that the closer inspection would benefit me.  Should I try talking to someone on the phone?

[myjourney]

---

@Anonymous wrote:

Hi All,

This is my first post, so thank you for having me!

I need some help on a few different things.  Specifically I am looking for recommendations on specific cards to apply for and which "backdoor" numbers I should call, if things don't go my way initially.

I will supply as much info as possible, so I can get some good answers and act right away.  I have been trying to fix my credit forever.  I wrote countless letters for years and was semi-successful.  I got some stuff removed and resolved to let some stuff fall off naturally.  Should be gone in the next year or so.

I would REALLY appreciate it if a few of you guys would lay a step by step gameplan out for me and tell me what you would do if you were me.

Here is my situation...

A)  My score on Credit Karma is only 624.  However, almost all of my negative stuff should fall soon.  More details on that to follow.

B_)  My income has recently increased pretty significantly.  I was broke for a while, so my credit decisions were pretty poor when I was young.  However, it has gotten much, much better in the last 2 years.  For about 1 year, I was working as a financial analyst for one of these big banks.  My income improved (still not great) and my overall financial situation got better, so my credit got better because of me being more responsible.  NOW, I have recently scaled up my own business and left my analyst position.  My income has gotten significantly better and I can provide proof to the lenders of $40k+ booked in business just in the last 3.5 months.  About $25k of that has been paid already (with proof) and about $15k of it is booked business that I am waiting for payment on.  I don't have a tax return with this higher income yet, but I could provide statements, etc.

C)  I keep getting pre-approved offers and then when I apply...I get denied.  What is the reason for this?  This happened to me twice in the past 2 weeks for First National American Express and Bank of America Cash Rewards Visa Signature.  Should I call backdoor numbers for these and ask to be reconsidered?  I think the letter for the American Express one even said no limit.  (It should be noted that I had a paid charge-off with Amex back in like 2007.  I don't think they even included that as one of the reasons for the denial though.  Maybe because the denial came from First National and not Amex?

D)  What other things should I mention if/when calling?  My savings and checking accounts are at Chase.  I would like a Chase card.  I especially want a Chase card in the Business' name, but I know that's really difficult to get.  If you could help with that, I would be ecstatic.

Here is all my relevant info courtesy of Credit Karma...PLEASE HELP AND GIVE ADVICE!

My Current Cards and Limits

I'm really sick of these BS cards with tiny limits that never increase.  I was happy to get them a few years ago and very grateful while trying to repair my credit and get a second chance.  However, most of them have annual fees, terrible limits and rates, etc.

1)  Capital One Visa ($500 limit)  I have had this limit FOREVER.  They will not increase it.Send an email to EO (SP) CLI's 

2)  Capital One MasterCard ($500 limit)  This card is actually suspended but active.  They closed it when I owed money before.  I paid the balance to $0, but they still won't reactivate it.  It reports $0 balance $500 limit still, which is good.) Same as above

3)  Orchard (Now Capital One) Visa ($420 limit)

4)  Orchard (Now Capital One) Mastercard ($300 limit)

5)  Bryant State Bank "Show" Mastercard ($300 limit)

6)  First Savings Bank Mastercard ($400 limit)

7)  First National Bank "Legacy" Visa ($550 limit)

8)  Credit One Bank Visa ($775 limit)

9)  First Premier "Aventium" Mastercard ($300 limit)

10)  First Premier "Platinum" Mastercard ($300 limit)

Total Credit Card Limit = $3,845

Credit Karma Details

624 Credit Rating:  POOR

Open Credit Utilization 6%  Grade:  A  (I always keep this low.) Good

Payments Made On-Time 97.9% Grade:  D  (Before it was very bad, now it's very good.) GW when was last lates?

Avg. Age of Open Credit Lines 2 Yrs 6 Mos:  D (I'm 26, so my oldest accounts are a lot older than this, but most of my accounts are newer and bring the average down.) Good

Total Accounts 37 Grade:  A  (I'm glad this is an A but it's sort of artificial.  A lot of the accounts are the same things broken up or renamed (like school loans in different amounts.  Still happy.) Good

Hard Credit Inquiries 13  Grade:  F  (Not sure why so high.  I don't apply like crazy anymore.  It was 15 in May and had 2 fall off since.) Need to know how many on each CA=credit agency?

Derogatory Marks 0  Grade:  A  (Happy, but surprised it's 0.  I have a lot of charge-offs that I am waiting to fall off.) ? Explain are they showing on CR's?

Loans = $40k

About $15k in auto loan and $25k in schools loans.  Good

Payment history is perfect on all. Perfect

 I would like to get a mortgage in about a year.

Negative Accounts As per Experian 03-18-13 (can't get a newer one for free yet) Will need to pay for accurate current reports from all 3  CA's (update us)

1)  American Express Balance = $0  Charge off as of 08/2007 "on record until May 2014" GW= Good will letters

2)  Capital One Balance = $0 Charge off "on record until Sep 2014"GW= Good will letters GW= Good will letters ...this maybe a problem getting CLI's with current open cap1 cards

3)  HSBC Balance = $0 Charge off "charge off 07/2008 disputed on 10/2010" Cap 1 again

4)  Home Depot / Citibank Balance = $0 Charge off "on record until Oct 2014" GW

*I also have a handful of accounts listed as negative accounts that are open credit cards with low or $0 balances.  I guess I had them and was late on a payment or two in the past.  Can I get these removed?  Who should I talk to? How old are Lates?

ANYWAY...that's my story.  Can I somehow leverage my now higher income and get Credit Limit Increases or BETTER cards?  Who should I call?  What should I apply for?  PLEASE HELP!!!

THANK YOU IN ADVANCE!!!

---

Welcome to the forum

We will really need a lot of questions answered to help you best 

Until all questions are answered DO NOT APPLY FOR ANYTHING

Your time will be spent between 2 forums CC and rebuilding

Rebuilding forum will have experienced people who have had direct contact with your charged off accountst and may have had success getting those lenders to delete or update info on CR.

The good news is if I read correctly all bad accounts are paid...Correct?

So roll up your sleeves you have some work to do but don't get discouraged during this process because it will take some time.

Also need to know when you got the current cards date and year

[Burned2manybridgesB4]

Pretty much; the CRA's sell information to potential clients, and if your name has a certain letter, your report has a certain "pattern," or your score is in a certain zone, you're on a general mailing list. Very few preapps are actual "approval guaranteed." Look for other wording like "pre select," or "offer," with a reply number/code you enter in online, when applying.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the reply myjourney.  Yes, well I've actually been a member over at CreditBoards for a couple of years.  As far as rebuilding goes...I tried so many things.  Like I said, I was semi-successful.  I used probably 10 different tactics on every single bad account.  I was happy when some were removed.  However, some just wouldn't budge.  Those are the ones I have listed.

To answer your other question, yes.  Every negative account on my report has a $0 balance.  I WISH I went to these forums before I paid them.  I would have tried to negotiate removals in exchange for payment.  I didn't know and just wanted to have a clean slate.  5 years later...no clean slate haha

[thom02099]

---

@Anonymous wrote:

Hi All,

This is my first post, so thank you for having me!

I need some help on a few different things.  Specifically I am looking for recommendations on specific cards to apply for and which "backdoor" numbers I should call, if things don't go my way initially.

I will supply as much info as possible, so I can get some good answers and act right away.  I have been trying to fix my credit forever.  I wrote countless letters for years and was semi-successful.  I got some stuff removed and resolved to let some stuff fall off naturally.  Should be gone in the next year or so.

I would REALLY appreciate it if a few of you guys would lay a step by step gameplan out for me and tell me what you would do if you were me.

Here is my situation...

A)  My score on Credit Karma is only 624.  However, almost all of my negative stuff should fall soon.  More details on that to follow.

B_)  My income has recently increased pretty significantly.  I was broke for a while, so my credit decisions were pretty poor when I was young.  However, it has gotten much, much better in the last 2 years.  For about 1 year, I was working as a financial analyst for one of these big banks.  My income improved (still not great) and my overall financial situation got better, so my credit got better because of me being more responsible.  NOW, I have recently scaled up my own business and left my analyst position.  My income has gotten significantly better and I can provide proof to the lenders of $40k+ booked in business just in the last 3.5 months.  About $25k of that has been paid already (with proof) and about $15k of it is booked business that I am waiting for payment on.  I don't have a tax return with this higher income yet, but I could provide statements, etc.

C)  I keep getting pre-approved offers and then when I apply...I get denied.  What is the reason for this?  This happened to me twice in the past 2 weeks for First National American Express and Bank of America Cash Rewards Visa Signature.  Should I call backdoor numbers for these and ask to be reconsidered?  I think the letter for the American Express one even said no limit.  (It should be noted that I had a paid charge-off with Amex back in like 2007.  I don't think they even included that as one of the reasons for the denial though.  Maybe because the denial came from First National and not Amex?

D)  What other things should I mention if/when calling?  My savings and checking accounts are at Chase.  I would like a Chase card.  I especially want a Chase card in the Business' name, but I know that's really difficult to get.  If you could help with that, I would be ecstatic.

Here is all my relevant info courtesy of Credit Karma...PLEASE HELP AND GIVE ADVICE!

My Current Cards and Limits

I'm really sick of these BS cards with tiny limits that never increase.  I was happy to get them a few years ago and very grateful while trying to repair my credit and get a second chance.  However, most of them have annual fees, terrible limits and rates, etc.

1)  Capital One Visa ($500 limit)  I have had this limit FOREVER.  They will not increase it.

2)  Capital One MasterCard ($500 limit)  This card is actually suspended but active.  They closed it when I owed money before.  I paid the balance to $0, but they still won't reactivate it.  It reports $0 balance $500 limit still, which is good.)

3)  Orchard (Now Capital One) Visa ($420 limit)

4)  Orchard (Now Capital One) Mastercard ($300 limit)

5)  Bryant State Bank "Show" Mastercard ($300 limit)

6)  First Savings Bank Mastercard ($400 limit)

7)  First National Bank "Legacy" Visa ($550 limit)

8)  Credit One Bank Visa ($775 limit)

9)  First Premier "Aventium" Mastercard ($300 limit)

10)  First Premier "Platinum" Mastercard ($300 limit)

Total Credit Card Limit = $3,845

Credit Karma Details

624 Credit Rating:  POOR

Open Credit Utilization 6%  Grade:  A  (I always keep this low.)

Payments Made On-Time 97.9% Grade:  D  (Before it was very bad, now it's very good.)

Avg. Age of Open Credit Lines 2 Yrs 6 Mos:  D (I'm 26, so my oldest accounts are a lot older than this, but most of my accounts are newer and bring the average down.)

Total Accounts 37 Grade:  A  (I'm glad this is an A but it's sort of artificial.  A lot of the accounts are the same things broken up or renamed (like school loans in different amounts.  Still happy.)

Hard Credit Inquiries 13  Grade:  F  (Not sure why so high.  I don't apply like crazy anymore.  It was 15 in May and had 2 fall off since.)

Derogatory Marks 0  Grade:  A  (Happy, but surprised it's 0.  I have a lot of charge-offs that I am waiting to fall off.)

Loans = $40k

About $15k in auto loan and $25k in schools loans.  Payment history is perfect on all.  I would like to get a mortgage in about a year.

Negative Accounts As per Experian 03-18-13 (can't get a newer one for free yet)

1)  American Express Balance = $0  Charge off as of 08/2007 "on record until May 2014"

2)  Capital One Balance = $0 Charge off "on record until Sep 2014"

3)  HSBC Balance = $0 Charge off "charge off 07/2008 disputed on 10/2010"

4)  Home Depot / Citibank Balance = $0 Charge off "on record until Oct 2014"

*I also have a handful of accounts listed as negative accounts that are open credit cards with low or $0 balances.  I guess I had them and was late on a payment or two in the past.  Can I get these removed?  Who should I talk to?

ANYWAY...that's my story.  Can I somehow leverage my now higher income and get Credit Limit Increases or BETTER cards?  Who should I call?  What should I apply for?  PLEASE HELP!!!

THANK YOU IN ADVANCE!!!

---

The VERY FIRST thing that you should do, in my opinion, is NOT base credit decisions on CreditKarma and whatever info it provides.  Spring for the $$$ and purchase all three...yes 3...of your reports right here.  You'll get a TU98 (old model) a EQ Beacon 5.0 (commonly used) and a EX08 (latest and "greatest", but EX04 more common).

BUT...you will have a reliable benchmark for your rebuilding purposes.  You need to know where you REALLY are, and not rely on a FAKO.    You may actually be surprised at where you really may be. 

EDIT: and +1 to what myjourney said.  There's still questions to answer.  Time is your ally. 

[myjourney]

---

@Anonymous wrote:

Thanks for the reply myjourney.  Yes, well I've actually been a member over at CreditBoards for a couple of years.  As far as rebuilding goes...I tried so many things.  Like I said, I was semi-successful.  I used probably 10 different tactics on every single bad account.  I was happy when some were removed.  However, some just wouldn't budge.  Those are the ones I have listed.

To answer your other question, yes.  Every negative account on my report has a $0 balance.  I WISH I went to these forums before I paid them.  I would have tried to negotiate removals in exchange for payment.  I didn't know and just wanted to have a clean slate.  5 years later...no clean slate haha

---

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