Objective: Target RedCard MC

[Taurus22]

I'm certain that this is going to lead to some informative DP's. Please come back and share....

[Anonymous]

Op, what do you use for credit monitoring?

You said that some of your scores seem to count some closed accounts and others that don't? My understanding is that Vantage scores, (called Fako scores here), which is what you'd see on sites like Credit Karma, only use open and active accounts when determining AAoA. But vantage scores aren't really used en masse for credit lending. 

In terms of actual reports from the CRA's, closed accounts stay on your report for 7-10 years depending on some of the specifics of the account. FICO scores most certainly count those closed accounts (until they fall off your report) in determining your AAoA, and FICO scores are the ones that matter in most practical circumstances. So it seems to me that you should have years ahead of you before your AAoA takes a hit from selling your house and closing your mortgage. Forgive me if I misunderstood and you know all this, just want to make sure you know that your AAoA shouldn't be immediately impacted.

Please keep us all posted on your Target experiment! And good luck 🍀 

[Anonymous]

And make sure you prioritize monitoring your real FICO scores. Vantage scores are interesting to watch but they can vary widely from FICO scores and be very misleading.

[TSlop]

Pardon my ignorance, but is the RedCard MC available right away? In other words, is it like a credit worthy thing where you get either the store card or the MC version when you apply (like Best Buy is/was)? Or is it everyone that applies gets the store RedCard and hopes for an upgrade?

[Anonymous]

You can only apply for the store card and hope to be upgraded. It is a strange one.

[blindambition]

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@TSlop wrote:

Pardon my ignorance, but is the RedCard MC available right away? In other words, is it like a credit worthy thing where you get either the store card or the MC version when you apply (like Best Buy is/was)? Or is it everyone that applies gets the store RedCard and hopes for an upgrade?

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Unfortunately not the same. Target and TD Bank start you with store card. Nobody knows the special mojo for upgrade. DP are very random.

[Anonymous]

Interesting experiment and should be fun.     

I also have a target redcard for about 3-4 months now and very curious to see what if any DP's or things to do for the upgrade to MC.

[Guyatthebeach]

forJAT,

Good look and this will be an interesting goal to see happen.

I'm the outlier because it took me 6 years to the upgrade to the Target MC.

Hopefully you two will get the Target MC's much sooner!

Guyatthebeach

[recoveringfrombk7]

I got mine 8/2019 - also started with $2k.  I was doing AZEO, so paying in full before statement.  Last month I let $285 post and paid it the next day.  I've also heard that updating your income every time you pay can help.  Good luck.  I hope to learn something from your experiment!

[staticvoidmain]

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@kdm31091 wrote:

I really don't understand the reason for TD being so elusive about the Mastercard. If someone wants it for whatever reason, I don't get why they cannot just ask for an upgrade and/or apply for the Mastercard outright. It's an odd situation.

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Ditto. I have a Target next to me. I am not shopping there just because I am not getting 5% (I refuse to pay full price), and do not feel like applying for a purely store card. For me, it is Target's loss, and Amazon's (and local supermarket's) gain.