Re: What the heck is going on with Synchrony?

HeavenOhio · ‎03-21-2017

@Anonymous wrote:
…I have also considered getting CareCredit for medical spending but the reports on that are all over the place and since I just got Discover It I don't feel any urgency to apply for CareCredit at this point. As for most of the other stores Synchrony handles, I don't have enough interest in what they have to offer to apply for cards with them.

I have that card, and I wish I didn't. I can see how it can be a fit under certain scenarios, though. My main pieces of advice would be to apply for it before you're sitting in the doctor's office and to get a decent limit. Also, realize that Synchrony likes to float payments, i.e. they'll credit you for paying, but there could be several days before your limit is restored. If you call, they'll tell you how to avoid the floats.

I got my card at the dentist. I was fully able to pay the bill on an existing card. But after a hard sell extolling the virtues of 0% interest, I reluctantly agreed to apply. At the time, I knew nothing about inquiries, account ages, utilization, or maxed out cards.

I was approved, but I walked out of the office with a card that was 95% maxed out. Not long after that, I started reading about utilization and maxed out cards, so I decided to start paying off this card quickly. I made two $1000 payments, which were floated for either ten days or two weeks. Synchrony told me that had I made four $500 payments, the floats wouldn't have occurred. So I paid off the rest of the balance in smaller chunks.

I now have a paid off card I don't really need, and I didn't get any advantage from the 0% interest. To keep it active, I'll pay for my 90-day cleanings. That'll keep my utilization in check, but I'll probably pay the bill as soon as the payment posts. Because I'd be better off getting rewards by using a different card, I'll probably end up cancelling at some point.

The bottom line is that this card may benefit some, but it's not benefiting me. If you get CareCredit, handle it with care.

Anonymous · ‎03-21-2017

@HeavenOhio wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
…I have also considered getting CareCredit for medical spending but the reports on that are all over the place and since I just got Discover It I don't feel any urgency to apply for CareCredit at this point. As for most of the other stores Synchrony handles, I don't have enough interest in what they have to offer to apply for cards with them.
I have that card, and I wish I didn't. I can see how it can be a fit under certain scenarios, though. My main pieces of advice would be to apply for it before you're sitting in the doctor's office and to get a decent limit. Also, realize that Synchrony likes to float payments, i.e. they'll credit you for paying, but there could be several days before your limit is restored. If you call, they'll tell you how to avoid the floats.

I got my card at the dentist. I was fully able to pay the bill on an existing card. But after a hard sell extolling the virtues of 0% interest, I reluctantly agreed to apply. At the time, I knew nothing about inquiries, account ages, utilization, or maxed out cards.

I was approved, but I walked out of the office with a card that was 95% maxed out. Not long after that, I started reading about utilization and maxed out cards, so I decided to start paying off this card quickly. I made two $1000 payments, which were floated for either ten days or two weeks. Synchrony told me that had I made four $500 payments, the floats wouldn't have occurred. So I paid off the rest of the balance in smaller chunks.

I now have a paid off card I don't really need, and I didn't get any advantage from the 0% interest. To keep it active, I'll pay for my 90-day cleanings. That'll keep my utilization in check, but I'll probably pay the bill as soon as the payment posts. Because I'd be better off getting rewards by using a different card, I'll probably end up cancelling at some point.

The bottom line is that this card may benefit some, but it's not benefiting me. If you get CareCredit, handle it with care.

Good advice, thanks! I expect I won't need to spend more than $100 - $200 max if I need to spend money to upgrade/adjust my glasses prescription, so my new Discover It card or my Cap One unsecured card will probably be best for that. Dental care is the main thing I had in mind for CareCredit at this point, in fact, since it's been a long time since I was able to go to the dentist and I need some work done which could end up costing a fair bit after deductibles. My doctor's office - I have my annual physical on Friday - doesn't take CareCredit as far as I know, so there's that.

Anonymous · ‎03-21-2017

Best of luck to you!

Care Credit was the first card I apped for when rebuilding because I had two older furry babies. I had a low CL for a couple of years, but finally received a larger CL. I love the card and hope to keep it a long time. I have carried zero interest charges the whole time (with one four month exception.) Synchrony is an odd duck. I only have two other Synchrony cards - the Amazon store card and Stash Rewards (because I stay in a Stash hotel every year when we visit NOLA).

AverageJoesCredit · ‎03-21-2017

Ahh, this thread always brings me down memory lane.. The problem as i see it is not that Sync has monopolized all the retail store cards, its that the general population is not educated on why its not necessarily a good thing to have so many cards with one lender. Rebuilders especially. Heck when i first restarted my build and no knowledge of this wonderful place, i just looked for where i sometimes i shop and could u get a card from them . Pennirs to Wally to Sams to...you get my point. They KNOW we are going to apply because we think we NEED it and when we get that approval, oh boy, here comes the ego trip lol.

The day i hate on Sync though will be the day i receive a blue envelope but by then ill be sufficiently snuggling in the lovely arms of my Disamechase sailing the high seas with Navy waiting to pull in to port and see what kinda Boa we can purchase on our night out in the Citi

Anonymous · ‎03-21-2017

@AverageJoesCredit wrote:
Ahh, this thread always brings me down memory lane.. The problem as i see it is not that Sync has monopolized all the retail store cards, its that the general population is not educated on why its not necessarily a good thing to have so many cards with one lender. Rebuilders especially. Heck when i first restarted my build and no knowledge of this wonderful place, i just looked for where i sometimes i shop and could u get a card from them . Pennirs to Wally to Sams to...you get my point. They KNOW we are going to apply because we think we NEED it and when we get that approval, oh boy, here comes the ego trip lol.

The day i hate on Sync though will be the day i receive a blue envelope but by then ill be sufficiently snuggling in the lovely arms of my Disamechase sailing the high seas with Navy waiting to pull in to port and see what kinda Boa we can purchase on our night out in the Citi

Back in the day, I didn't really pay much attention to who offered what card, but I've learned alot from being on this forum. As long as I don't get the blue envelope, I'll keep my Wallymart, Sam's and Lowe's. Can't beat the deferred financing option.

Anonymous · ‎03-21-2017

@Anonymous wrote:
@AverageJoesCredit wrote:
Ahh, this thread always brings me down memory lane.. The problem as i see it is not that Sync has monopolized all the retail store cards, its that the general population is not educated on why its not necessarily a good thing to have so many cards with one lender. Rebuilders especially. Heck when i first restarted my build and no knowledge of this wonderful place, i just looked for where i sometimes i shop and could u get a card from them . Pennirs to Wally to Sams to...you get my point. They KNOW we are going to apply because we think we NEED it and when we get that approval, oh boy, here comes the ego trip lol.

The day i hate on Sync though will be the day i receive a blue envelope but by then ill be sufficiently snuggling in the lovely arms of my Disamechase sailing the high seas with Navy waiting to pull in to port and see what kinda Boa we can purchase on our night out in the Citi
Back in the day, I didn't really pay much attention to who offered what card, but I've learned alot from being on this forum. As long as I don't get the blue envelope, I'll keep my Wallymart, Sam's and Lowe's. Can't beat the deferred financing option.

Me, either, kaykay. I had no clue. This forum is a real education. One that never ends as you read the posts.

AverageJoesCredit · ‎03-21-2017

Yup, now thats probably the first things we ask when learning of someplace having a cc. Who runs it...Sync

big easy cli....Citi , uhm ok gonna make me earn my cli

....Chase.... my endless loveee... Comenity..... oh great , now i gotta purchase something to earn that new increase and have it report lol

.

But its good to know. Yeah im hanging on to some of my big boy Sync cards for awhile too.....BUT.....if Navy ever shows my THEIR Fort Knox, ce la vie baby

HeavenOhio · ‎03-21-2017

@AverageJoesCredit wrote:
Yup, now thats probably the first things we ask when learning of someplace having a cc. Who runs it...

Yep. I want to know things like this:

Do people like the card?
Which bank?
What are my chances for approval?
What are the starting limits like?
Which bureau or bureaus are likely to be pulled?
Is it a hard or soft pull for credit limit increases?
If the application involves a promo purchase, how much of the limit is going to be used?

Question number 1 involves some research. Questions 2–7 should be answerable by the merchant. The main thing is to sleep on it when you're thinking of applying for a card.

Anonymous · ‎03-22-2017

I was talking on another Synchrony thread just now (the one about exposure), and humuhumunukunukuapuaa (I had to type that out manually, phew!) mentioned someone who'd had a Walmart card for 10-12 years, paid their balance in full every month, and ended up getting blue-enveloped. And that does make me wonder if, in some way, that might be another factor here. I've read some say that it may not always be a good idea to pay off one's balance in full every single time, but better to let a modest balance (being mindful of utilization) ride so that the issuer can earn interest from the balance - and interest, after all, is how credit-card issuers make their money. Then again, I might be just talking through my hat...

HeavenOhio · ‎03-22-2017

Don't pay interest.

Even though interest earns money for the lenders, just about every card's FAQs and articles push the value of paying in full. When I talked to CapOne with questions about a possible CLI, the first thing the rep said was, "You're in great shape; you always pay in full."

I think that these companies are happy with the swipes, and they realize that carrying a balance means higher risk.

What the heck is going on with Synchrony?

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