I don't understand this in the slightest, shut down for CLI but approved for an additional card?

[Lakers]

So I've been bored at work this week and I started looking at my credit cards.  

I have in my wallet: 

Chase Freedom - $500 limit - 460 balance

Barclays - $750 limit - 550 balance

Capital One Quicksilver - $2000 limit - $1700 balance

Well I opened the Barclays about 3 years ago and the $750 was my initial approval.  I called them this week and asked for a CLI...I got nothing but a hard pull and a get your ulitization down.  

I called Capital One and did the online thing for a CLI and got a whopping $150 CLI.  I did a CLI with them about 2 years ago and went from $1000 to 2000.  

So this morning I just said F it and applied for a Capital One Platinum.  APPROVED $3000 limit?!?!  You'll only give me a buck fiddy on the QS but 3 racks on the Platinum? 

I already have a mortgage and my ultimate goal is to have an American Express and be above 740.  

[NRB525]

Congratulations on the new card, and yes this is typical results for Capital One cards.

[Lakers]

I'm currently anyway from 600 to 650 depending whatever free credit monitoring service you want to use.  

I get that my UTI is high, but what can I say, I'm a spender...

Do I have any hope of getting the CL increased on the Freedom?  

[Anonymous]

I'm guessing you were approved because you don't earn rewards on the Platinum and it comes with a nearly 25% APR on purchases, which they're happy about since you have a high utilization and make consistent payments on the Quicksilver.

[core]

Capital One's whole point in life (it seems) is to get you to take as many triple-hard-pulls as possible during your relationship with them.  Want to PC your card?  Sorry, apply again.  Secured to unsecured?  Apply again.  Apply, apply, apply.   Triple-pull, triple-pull, triple-pull.

I think they do this intentionally to decrease your credit score and force you to remain loyal to them.  And to leave their mark... all over the place.  Like some gal who puts a big ol' bite mark someplace visible on your person.

[Anonymous]

Lakers wrote:

my ultimate goal is to have an American Express and be above 740.  

---

Why is that your ultimate goal?

Which card and why? Their chargecards must be paid in full each month, by the way.

Your ultimate goal should be to manage your cards responsibly and be debt free.

[creditguy]

Credit cards especially cap one have some odd behaviors and approvals but anew here there is a method to their madness. I would note that your utilization is running pretty high, that may be a reason why your not getting CLI's. If your ultimate goal is to get an Amex you will definitely have to address the utilization.

[jeffery581]

 I think it has something to do with the type of card.  Cap 1 wouldnt raise my 1k limit on one card but approved me for a 3k card on the same day. So I thought ok. Ill combine. It was like pulling teeth. That being said cap 1 has been very good to me, very good. 

[Anonymous]

Nowadays, those are all built into computer risk assessment/credit approval algorithms. I have written a few of them myself for a finance company. Depending on your profile and the card you are applying, it will lead to different paths. Some of the flowcharts I worked with were as big as a 16x10 whiteboard. One of my friends work for a big bank in the same capacity, and she told me that they are making those changes at a rate never seen before. The super data mining tools that are available these days have something to do with it!

[Anonymous]

Congrats on the approval! Your balances on those cards are really high compared to their limits. If you can bring your utilization way down on each of those cards you should see a significant score increase 

Edit: And I wouldn't recommend trying for an increase on your Freedom until you get your utilization down.