How often to apply??

Anonymous · ‎11-11-2014

I have a low credit score due to lack of credft. I applied and was approved for the capital one quicksilver card, $1k cl. Doing so dropped my score by 10 pts for the hard inquiry. How often or how far apart should I apply for another card without hurting my score even more? What kind of card should I try next, a store card?

jon22guitar · ‎11-11-2014

Only apply for cards that you need and can see yourself using for a very long time. 1-2 store cards can be decent, but you will probably regret getting much more than that in the long run. Then wait a year and you can probably get some prime cards. Remember: ALWAYS PIF

CSP 10,000, Citi Forward 3400, Barclay Arrival+ 2750, BOA Travel Rewards 2700, Discover IT 1500, Chase Freedom 1000, Crap One 500

Involver · ‎11-11-2014

People are way too worried about score hits from inquiries.

You need inquiries to build credit. If you app responsibly and don't have outrageous amounts of inquiries they are nearly meaningless.

The hit to AAOA will effect your score far more, but the points gained in the end will be worth far more than the temporary hit.

Anonymous · ‎11-11-2014

I understand it takes inquiries to get credit. We would like to buy a house next year. My husband had credit but I don't. It is a double edged sword for me right now. I need credit without making my score worse and no idea how to accomplish that.

MoreRewards · ‎11-11-2014

Your score will recover! So I wouldn't worry about current score for something in the future since it will likely rise above what it was.

EQ 773 * EX 786 * TU 797

NRB525 · ‎11-11-2014

@Anonymous wrote:
I understand it takes inquiries to get credit. We would like to buy a house next year. My husband had credit but I don't. It is a double edged sword for me right now. I need credit without making my score worse and no idea how to accomplish that.

$1k is a good CL to start with. You can do your credit history all kinds of favors by carefully using a small amount of that each month, and PIF with the statement amount, paid on time. Some will suggest you pay before the statement even prints, but with the one card, you need that amount to show on the credit bureau. The 30% maximum utilization rule that is floated is a good limit, in other words, don't let the total amount used go over $300 on the card.

Not missing any payments is the next important point.

Keep to those basic rules for now, and your credit score should start to show good results.

High Bal Jan 2009 $116k on $146k limits 80% Util.
Oct 2014 $46k on $127k 36% util EQ 722 TU 727 EX 727
April 2018 $18k on $344k 5% util EQ 806 TU 810 EX 812
Jan 2019 $7.6k on $360k EQ 832 TU 839 EX 831
March 2021 $33k on $312k EQ 796 TU 798 EX 801
May 2021 Paid all Installments and Mortgages, one new Mortgage EQ 761 TY 774 EX 777
April 2022 EQ=811 TU=807 EX=805 - TU VS 3.0 765

peaceonearth · ‎11-11-2014

@Involver wrote:
People are way too worried about score hits from inquiries.

You need inquiries to build credit. If you app responsibly and don't have outrageous amounts of inquiries they are nearly meaningless.

The hit to AAOA will effect your score far more, but the points gained in the end will be worth far more than the temporary hit.

+10

Isn't that something?

Pay off to look good on CR, who pulls what, low Util etc..

All kind of manners and ways to manipulate the credit system.

Relax, be patient and let it grow naturally..

Anonymous · ‎11-11-2014

I was doing Christmas shopping for my daughter on Victoria secret. I got the pop up that I was pre-approved. Since my undertanding is that is a soft hit, I completed it. I was approved for $750. I think I am going to stick with this and my capital one acct for a while. I will do some small charges and pay them off. In the mean time, I will continue to read posts and learn what my next step should be. I appreciate the responses!!

peaceonearth · ‎11-11-2014

@Anonymous wrote:
I was doing Christmas shopping for my daughter on Victoria secret. I got the pop up that I was pre-approved. Since my undertanding is that is a soft hit, I completed it. I was approved for $750. I think I am going to stick with this and my capital one acct for a while. I will do some small charges and pay them off. In the mean time, I will continue to read posts and learn what my next step should be. I appreciate the responses!!

50/50

The only way to find out is: to look at your credit reports.

For VS I think, they pull Transunion.

Best of luck

Anonymous · ‎11-11-2014

@Anonymous wrote:
I was doing Christmas shopping for my daughter on Victoria secret...

I was going to help you out, but after reading that part... it just sounded so wrong to me... I don't feel I can help you... that just ain't right. And you are probably another of them vegetarians, anyway...