Thin file.. help?

[ToughFistFight]

First off, go check out the rebuilding section.  You have a lot of reading to do.    

And dont forget, building credit is a marathon, not a sprint.  Good luck!

[Anonymous]

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@HeavenOhio wrote:

Good job, dhi. It's unusual go get a Chase card until one's oldest card reaches a year old. The OP has burned some inquiries, and he's been denied a few times. It probably wouldn't be worth the risk to apply for Chase until down the road.

Thank you, True, maybe it was because I had a joint account with them which was active for close to a year, so my CC application went thru underwriting, before being approved.

Speaking of Chase, @Anonymous should be aware of their 5/24 rule. If one has opened five or more accounts in the past 24 months, denial is probable. If a Chase card is desired early on, one should build slowly during his first year.

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[Anonymous]

OP, my file is thin too. I moved back to America after living in China for a long time. Unfortunately, you're just going to have to wait. Patience is your friend. The big cards aren't going to hook you up with big credit lines when you only have had a 500 CL Discover for one month. When I started building up my credit, I started out with two cards, my BoA secured card (I had banked with them for years, had my checking account even when I was living overseas), and an unsecured Capital One. After about 6 months on both of those cards, I applied for an was approved for a Discover with a $2000 CL. My husband is a green card holder who started out with literally zero credit and Discover was also the first card that approved him. They are known for being kind to people with thin files. 

So, what did I do once I got my first "real" credit limit? I got excited and applied for the good cards with Chase and Citi, for an upgrade on my BoA, and an upgrade on my Cap 1. No dice. When I called the recon line for Chase, they told me straight up, two things. One, I had too many inquiries. Oops. Guess that spree was not a great idea. Two, my credit lines were still young. The lady on the phone wasn't rude, but she told me pretty clearly that without a credit history of at least a year, I was too big of a risk. It wasn't about my income, my job, my financial stability, it was simply that my history was too short. 

You might add a few smaller limit credit building cards to your arsenal, so that when the time comes, you can show that you can pay back more than just that $500 CL card. Unfortunately, building credit isn't about salary. There are people who make very nice salaries whose credit is toast. And there are people who have low income but who are given relatively high limit cards because they have shown responsible usage. So, time and patience are on your side. Your credit will grow, but these things don't happen overnight. And the more eager you appear, the less likely you are to be approved. Don't spook the likes of Chase and Citi by applying for too much too early in your credit journey. 

[HeavenOhio]

The problem with adding several cards early in one's history is they tend to come with low limits, and people get stuck in what we call low limit hell. Working slowly and patiently is generally the key.

Discover is a great first card that stands a good chance of growing. AMEX likes thin files and offers high limits, but the high limits tend not to come in the first year of one's history. I'd suggest that the OP get a Visa or MasterCard under his belt at around month six and apply for AMEX somewhere between months nine and twelve. Having a Visa or MasterCard in one's arsenal is important because of lesser acceptance rates for Discover and AMEX, particularly outside of the US.

@Anonymous, for card #2, consider a credit union around month six. They often have products that offer higher limits in exchange for forgoing higher rewards.

[CantSmashThis]

I'm basically going to reiterate what most have already posted. And remember to make sure you study well on how to maximize your score! (Utilization under 9%, keep at least 50% of your cards with $0 balance and some with some balance, etc.) I just started getting into credit cards 1yr and 9 months ago but I think for where I am, and my income, I'm doing quite well. (High 740s right now, would be in 760s but just got another card recently).

I started with a Wells Fargo Card in 8/2016 because I banked with them. They gave me $1k SL. 6 months later, app'ed on a few cards, got denied left and right, but was getting frustrated. On my 4th app though, Amex took me in. $1k SL. But with their easy 3x CLIs, it definitely helped me a lot. 61 days went to $3k. Few months later, got another WF card for the SUB. Only $1.6k SL. At the 1 year mark, went for Chase FU, and got $4,500! After some spending of around $600-800, they gave me auto CLI to $5.5k. I do A LOT of traveling, so I went for Amex Plat after just 1y3m of credit history. This is a charge card, no limit, but it seems they would approve me for at least $15-20k. Got another 3x CLI for my Amex to $9k. And then finally I went for the Chase Sapphire Reserve which I was aiming for at the beginning after just 1y8m of history. Got approved for $16.4k.

I think the full timeline is in another post I made some time back. But with patience, paying off your cards on time and doing research will help you get some good cards soon!

[Anonymous]

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@CantSmashThis wrote:

I'm basically going to reiterate what most have already posted. And remember to make sure you study well on how to maximize your score! (Utilization under 9%, keep at least 50% of your cards with $0 balance and some with some balance, etc.) I just started getting into credit cards 1yr and 9 months ago but I think for where I am, and my income, I'm doing quite well. (High 740s right now, would be in 760s but just got another card recently).

I started with a Wells Fargo Card in 8/2016 because I banked with them. They gave me $1k SL. 6 months later, app'ed on a few cards, got denied left and right, but was getting frustrated. On my 4th app though, Amex took me in. $1k SL. But with their easy 3x CLIs, it definitely helped me a lot. 61 days went to $3k. Few months later, got another WF card for the SUB. Only $1.6k SL. At the 1 year mark, went for Chase FU, and got $4,500! After some spending of around $600-800, they gave me auto CLI to $5.5k. I do A LOT of traveling, so I went for Amex Plat after just 1y3m of credit history. This is a charge card, no limit, but it seems they would approve me for at least $15-20k. Got another 3x CLI for my Amex to $9k. And then finally I went for the Chase Sapphire Reserve which I was aiming for at the beginning after just 1y8m of history. Got approved for $16.4k.

I think the full timeline is in another post I made some time back. But with patience, paying off your cards on time and doing research will help you get some good cards soon!

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great journey. I will hopefully be growing in those same lines of yours