Most Useful Cards for Current Situation

[CBARR82]

Hello everyone! After some long hard work I finally applied for a mortgage and am in the process of becoming a homeowner. With that being said I know not to apply for any cards until I close, but afterwards I would like to put 2 to 3 nice cards in my wallet. That's where I need the forums opinions on what would benifit me the most! So here is a quick look at my situation. 

Current cards-

Cap One QS-$2,485/$4,000

Cap One QS1-$647/$3,000

Walmart Store Card-$0/$2500

Utilization 33%

Annual Income-$65,000

Mortgage Payment-$450

Scores pulled by mortgage lender 6/1/2015

Exp-801

Eq-811

TU-731 (has a paid judgement I am still battling)

I am wanting to balance transfer @ 0% to get all my CC/Loan debt paid. Suggestions on what cards would work the best for me? I would really like to get into some higher limits now that my scores are where they are. This time last year before rebuilding I was in the low 600's!!

Thanks in advance for the suggestions!

[degs138]

If you want to Balance transfer then get a Chase Slate card.  You can put all your debt on that card and then pay it off over the next 18 months interest free.  What do you want to use your cards for other then balance transfer?  Do you want rewards? Do you travel?  Do you want to refurnish your home?

With your income and how low your mortgage is you should be able to qualify for prime cards that will get you reward points.  I would get a Citi double cash card for general spending as well as a chase freedom or a discover it card.  All three cards have 0% APR introductory periods and spend bonuses to get you some free cash.  If you're looking to make some big purchases I would definitly look at those cards and pay them off over the next 12 months.

[SunriseEarth]

Chase Slate is a good suggestion for balance transfer.   With Discover's double your cash back after 12 months promo in place, that is effectively a 2% cashback card for the first year (just not paid out fully for 12 months), not to mention the category spend also getting doubled.   

As for other suggestions, it really depends on your spending or purchase needs.   Will you need special financing on furniture or appliances?   Do you buy lots of groceries or gas or dine out often?  Are you a member of a warehouse club?

[CBARR82]

Thanks for the quick responses! Those are Def some of the cards I had looked at, minus the double cash. My purchases would really be all over the place so I am going to have to say Cashback rewards would benifit me the most. Not much of a traveler and dine out occasionally. The house is already furnished with everything I am not bringing with me so I will not be financing furniture. I was also thinking of a home depot/Lowe's card for upgrades I would like to do once I get moved in. 

[vanillabean]

I like to bring my CostCo card.

[Anonymous]

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@CBARR82 wrote:

Hello everyone! After some long hard work I finally applied for a mortgage and am in the process of becoming a homeowner. With that being said I know not to apply for any cards until I close, but afterwards I would like to put 2 to 3 nice cards in my wallet. That's where I need the forums opinions on what would benifit me the most! So here is a quick look at my situation. 

Current cards-

Cap One QS-$2,485/$4,000

Cap One QS1-$647/$3,000

Walmart Store Card-$0/$2500

Utilization 33%

Annual Income-$65,000

Mortgage Payment-$450

Scores pulled by mortgage lender 6/1/2015

Exp-801

Eq-811

TU-731 (has a paid judgement I am still battling)

@I am wanting to balance transfer @ 0% to get all my CC/Loan debt paid. Suggestions on what cards would work the best for me? I would really like to get into some higher limits now that my scores are where they are. This time last year before rebuilding I was in the low 600's!!

Thanks in advance for the suggestions!

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Holy crap! Where do you live?

[CBARR82]

I live in Indiana. Put a nice chunk of $$ down on the house. :-)

[Anonymous]

Good for you on the home purchase and the low monthly bill.  I would look at Chase Freedom and Discover It.  Both are really solid 5% quarterly cards.  They can both be balance transfer cards as well, and can give you some benefits once you pay it all off. 

If you are just simply looking for balance transfer, go with Chase Slate and/or Citi Simplicity. 

[CBARR82]

Thanks for the replies. I am correct to go ahead and get these hard inquiries while I already have one with the mortgage lender on each bureau?? Goal is to pay off my CC debt and use these cards to my advantage afterwards. Any input on whether Lowe's or HD starts you out with a better limit? Also I read on the forum that Walmart no longer PC to their Mastercard. Can anyone provide truth behind this? Thanks

[SunriseEarth]

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@CBARR82 wrote:

Thanks for the replies. I am correct to go ahead and get these hard inquiries while I already have one with the mortgage lender on each bureau?? Goal is to pay off my CC debt and use these cards to my advantage afterwards. Any input on whether Lowe's or HD starts you out with a better limit? Also I read on the forum that Walmart no longer PC to their Mastercard. Can anyone provide truth behind this? Thanks

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Lowes is backed by Sync, so it's usually easy to get a high CL through calling Credit Solutions or by chat.   HD is backed by Citi.   Sync usually pulls TU and Citi usually pulls EX (but YMMV).   

As far as Wally, I haven't seen any posts about a successful upgrade since they transitioned from Discover to MC.  I'm unsure if they've stopped upgrading or do them on a more infrequent basis.