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Hello All!
I turned 18 a few days ago and immediately applied for my first credit card (Chase Freedom) at my local Chase branch. I was instantly approved with a $1900 cl. The banker was extremely surprised that I was approved with no credit history at all. I would like to get in the door with an amex charge card. What is the next step towards that? I understand that I won't have any chance at a green card now, but what can I do to improve my chances in the future?
Thanks in advance
Welcome to the forum
Congrats on your first card
Welcome to the forum and congrats on your first card.
Congrats! Build some history you'll be there in no time.
@HaroldandKumar wrote:Hello All!
I turned 18 a few days ago and immediately applied for my first credit card (Chase Freedom) at my local Chase branch. I was instantly approved with a $1900 cl. The banker was extremely surprised that I was approved with no credit history at all. I would like to get in the door with an amex charge card. What is the next step towards that? I understand that I won't have any chance at a green card now, but what can I do to improve my chances in the future?
Thanks in advance
Nice going (and nice nym) HaroldandKumar. That's a surprising first card and it's one to cherish and treat well. Next steps are to use it for six months to a year, always pay more than the minimum payment, if you use more than 30% of your credit line, be sure to pay it down before the statement cuts (because the balance that's on the card on the statement date is what gets reported to the credit bureaus). Like others will tell you, 9% or less is better than 30%, but 30% is acceptable.
When you're ready to app for your Amex, make sure the last reported balance on your Freedom is under 10% and that you have a perfect ontime payment record.
Good work!
Thanks for all the replies! I'm thrilled to have the Freedom card and look forward to the 5% cash back at gas stations and starbucks (I'm there every day) next quarter. Since I'm not putting any huge charges on the card, I am just going to pay my balance in full every month. You guys really think that I will have a shot at Amex Green within a year? It seems like a bit of a stretch.
@HaroldandKumar wrote:Thanks for all the replies! I'm thrilled to have the Freedom card and look forward to the 5% cash back at gas stations and starbucks (I'm there every day) next quarter. Since I'm not putting any huge charges on the card, I am just going to pay my balance in full every month. You guys really think that I will have a shot at Amex Green within a year? It seems like a bit of a stretch.
You appear to believe (and this is a common belief, great marketing!) that Amex is hard to get. The charge cards in particular are not, easier than their credit cards. Do you know a credit score? It's certainly not unlikely that if you qualified for the Freedom as your first card you can get the Amex now. To be safe though, it's probably worth having some history with the Freedom and keeping the reported utilization low when you do apply.