@Knice86 wrote:A lot of people say you have to be patient over time to delvelop high cumulative CC tradelines but I'm seeing a different trend. Loads of people on here who fit that bill seem to have one thing in common -- lots of inquiries. I feel like there may be an unspoken rule I'm not understanding and just wonder if anyone has any tips to get delveop high tradelines accross all CC's ...
First a few questions and cautions about high limits.
WHAT: The definition of what a “high limit” card or “high total limits” varies widely. What would you consider a high individual or total limit? Some people are happy with $5K individual limits while others want a minimum or $50K. And over time, your idea of "high limits" may change.
WHY: Why are you seeking these high limits and moreover, does your spending patterns or income support them? Many of us seek higher limits either due to spending that is very high or wanting more credit utilization padding. It’s human nature to think that most everyone has a comparable lifestyle, income, or spending pattern as ourselves. In reality, we’re actually a diverse group on My Fico. There are some members who have either very high business or personal incomes or spending that is far greater than what most of the population will generate. That makes comparisons with other members’ profiles potentially tricky, misleading, and unreliable since we don’t see the entire picture about each other. Some utilization padding is prudent but it’s easy to overdo what you really need. A little padding helps your credit profile but the benefits decrease as you add more and more credit. If you add limits far in excess of what your profile will comfortably support, you may find yourself either struggling to monitor and maintain all those limits (cards), spreading yourself too thin between too many rewards pools where redemption is challenging, or having cards suffer credit limit decreases or closures due to lack of enough usage. In other words, just because you can get it doesn’t mean you get to keep it. Some lenders may become alarmed if your total credit limits are greatly in excess of what your profile will support, which could lead to denials of new credit or lower limits on cards you really want to acquire in the future. So high limits that aren't in alignment with your overall profile and needs can become a curse instead of a blessing.
I highly recommend you consider your overall profile factors when considering what a reasonable target is for individual or total limits, factoring in your income and typical spending patterns.
HOW: I’ve written about high credit limits before in several older threads. If you go to the first link below and then open the other older links I mentioned, you can find my longer responses and observations.
In a nutshell, though, the key elements are a good to excellent credit profile coupled with either
- a lot of time,
- a lot of spending,
- a lot of income,
- a lot of assets invested,
- or often a combination of the above.
The aggressive credit seeking behavior which entails adding a huge number of inquiries in a short period of time is a risky and poor substitute for the methods above, since it will most likely cause short term credit score damage and may lead to diminishing results as you get farther into the process. That means you continue to acquire more and more new cards with lower and lower limits and higher APRs than what you might qualify for otherwise if you rush the process too quickly. Eventually, you’ll face wasted inquires as lenders repeatedly deny you additional credit. Moreover, it may not yield the same quality of results one could get with a slow-growth method and it may not even withstand the test of time. There’s a lot to be said for quality over quantity, so I recommend having useful cards that are well thought-out, and growing them over time.
If you still think building high credit limits is something you want or need to do, here is my link and good luck with the process!
@Knice86 wrote:A lot of people say you have to be patient over time to delvelop high cumulative CC tradelines but I'm seeing a different trend. Loads of people on here who fit that bill seem to have one thing in common -- lots of inquiries. I feel like there may be an unspoken rule I'm not understanding and just wonder if anyone has any tips to get delveop high tradelines accross all CC's. I'm willing to take a hit on my score 700-750 range if needbe, not planning on buying a house any time soon. MOD CUT - we are not doing this
Some of us do take HP to get a CLI. That might be part of why you see more HPs listed for people with higher CLs. Then again, we are app happy on this site so that might just be coincidence.
@iced wrote:
@wingennis wrote:Some of us do take HP to get a CLI. That might be part of why you see more HPs listed for people with higher CLs. Then again, we are app happy on this site so that might just be coincidence.
My observations on this forum would lead me to believe these are two distinct groups (the app happy and HP CLI takers), and people who take HP CLIs will tend to have fewer HPs overall than the app happy crowd.
The people most adverse to taking a HP for a CLI view HPs as a currency best spent on new accounts, where they may pick up a bonus or larger limit with that HP. These people would rather HP a new card and combine limits later than take a HP for a CLI.
I'm in the second group. Don't app often. I never run more than 2 HP's across all bureaus. At most, i've had 3 (2 CC's and an auto-loan). Once one or two fall off, then I request a CLI with those stubborn lenders that want a HP and don't auto-CLI me. Although, I'm currently at a point where those lenders are already threatening me with CLD (Barclays) or where I already have a limit way higher than I need (BB). So really...Chase is the only lender I have where I'd be taking a HP these days...not that I really need it. All my cards are 10K and up except my stupid Sync Marvel...which is a SP but they're so cheap with that card in particular ($3800 CL after 2 CLI's).
Must garden until 2/1/2022 to hit my goal AAOA. 