need new credit but have high utilization

[Math_Rocks]

For reasons I won't go into, we need to get some new credit but currently sit at about 85% utilization. (Do store cards count? If so, then 73% utilization.) I really feel like we are in a catch-22. We are being squeezed real tight and need to make our way through a couple months of a cut of income. Things will get better around September. But we don't have enough credit avail to "get by" even if we max everything out but I know the high utilization makes it hard to get new credit, which would lower overall utilization. Here is the summary: his Cap One 4200 (5000 CL) my Cap One 4200 (5000 CL) Providian/WAMU 8000 (10000 CL) I would give anything to get rid of this one! AT & T Citibank 3300 (3400 CL) Kohl's 660 (1500) CitiFinancial-Ashley Furniture 1800 (5500 CL) This is a 12 month no payment, no interest. I was shocked that we qualified for this in April. Other factors: * dh has 689 TU, 663 EQ; I have 660 EQ. * Chapter 7 BK discharged 06/01 (7 years now). Nothing bad since. * I recently finished graduate school and now have the daunting task of paying 75K in student loans. I am currently making interest-only payments since I did not qualify for a forbearance. * I have already tried for credit limit increases and a reduced rate on the Providian with no luck. We also tried to get a loan/CC from credit union but they wanted our 2nd car as collateral. Any ideas or are we just SOL? Also, if we apply for something, should it be us or just him (since I have higher income but also have student loans)?

[islandchild82]

Yes, store cards do count into your overall utilization.

It's going to be tough to get approved with such high utilization, and for those you do get approved for I imagine the credit limit wouldn't be as high as your others.

Either way, good luck with sorting everything out! It's a tough situation, but it's one I'm sure you guys can manage and figure out.

[Anonymous]

Your situation sounds a bit similar to mine, but I doubt you're going to qualify for a decent card. My highest limit is $13,600 (BofA, formerly MBNA ... that card has been good to me), but the offers I get now are like $1,500 and stuff. Well, for about a year, I don't really get offers anymore.

If you're really desperate, it would be worth trying. A hard pull isn't the end of the world, but that card might just save you yet. But even if you do get approved, I wouldn't expect too much, unfortunately

[Anonymous]

Your scores are decent. You could also try to get a personal loan through a Credit Union or on prosper.com provided you clearly explain why your cash flow will be much better in September and you will be able to pay off the loan on time.

[Math_Rocks]

Do you know if its still the case that B of A will not give credit with a BK on the report? Its been 7 years but I know it stays on there 10 years (or more).

[Math_Rocks]

Back in February when we first started seeing the "storm rising", we tried the credit union route without luck. (Our 2nd car is one of our fully owned assets and we don't want to have to pay for comprehensive insurance.) Did you have a particular credit union in mind?

Also, what is prosper.com?

[Anonymous]

Have you considered selling your 2nd car and using that money to live off of for a few months until your cash flow allows you to purchase another vehicle? If you can take public transportation or carpool with a coworker or have your spouse drive you on their way to work you might come up with enough money to pull it off without needing a loan and you might save some on gas.

Prosper.com is  a website where people bid to give you a loan and the website consolidates it into one package and transfers the funds to you. It is typically a 2-3 year loan I believe. The rates aren't cheap but they are cheaper than you would get at a bank and credit card debt consolidation is one of the major reasons people go there. With high 600 scores your hubby might be able to get a decent rate. I have never used the site but some people on this forum have with no problems.

[Math_Rocks]

Yes, we've thought of it but it can't work. We've both done the public transportation thing before (in another state) but now live in a small town (no public transportation) and too often our work takes us different directions. I've been browsing the boards and still feel at a loss what to do. I love the concept of prosper.com but with the loans being 36-month, the monthly payments would be the same or higher for paying off current high-rate credit.

[MattH]

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@Math_Rocks wrote:
Yes, we've thought of it but it can't work. We've both done the public transportation thing before (in another state) but now live in a small town (no public transportation) and too often our work takes us different directions. I've been browsing the boards and still feel at a loss what to do. I love the concept of prosper.com but with the loans being 36-month, the monthly payments would be the same or higher for paying off current high-rate credit.

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Until you get your income and outgo into better balance, any other financial moves you make will be little more than rearranging the deck chairs on a ship that is taking on water bigtime.

[smallfry]

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@Math_Rocks wrote:
Do you know if its still the case that B of A will not give credit with a BK on the report? Its been 7 years but I know it stays on there 10 years (or more).

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Go to the pre approval site and you'll find they will only offer you a $300 secured CC. BOA is not BK friendly at all. They might be worse than Amex in that regard.