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How to improve my credit lines.. Who should I deal with..

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Anonymous
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How to improve my credit lines.. Who should I deal with..

Hi everyone!

 

I have a few questions regarding my fairly new credit history in the U.S and I was wondering if I did understand eveything the "right" way.

 

In a perfect future, I would like to deal with a few cards to match my utilization.  My goal would be this one:

 

- A credit card with an at least 3,5 credit limit what I use every month for my everyday expenses (probably airline)

- An Amex charge card for stuff that I want myself to pay in full at the end of the month

and a credit card with a decent credit limit and an ok APR to pay credit purchases I did not expected and then pay back in full in a few months (like computer, vet bills, christmas gifts...)

 

I don't really care about the rewards though I REALLY enjoyed getting $75 cash back from Discover after I bought my couch last month.

 

Here is a quick summury of my CR as of today.

 

- Discover It with $1,000 CL   (always paid before statement closes, 8% utili)   May 2014

- Captial One with $300 CL (always paid in full before statement closes)    May 2014

- Bank of America fully secured with $400  (always paid before statement closes, 2% utili)   July 2014

- Barclaycard Rewards MC with a $500 CL (just received it yesterday)   August 2014

 

So a total of $2,200 credit lines.   A FAKO score of Exp> 721  TU> 704  Eq> N/A  (which I know doesn't mean anything since it's fresh)

 

I also have 8 hard inquiries (I was denied 2 times for Amex PRG -less than 6 momths CH-, 1 time for citi Diamond Prefered -could not find my CR even though I have a hard inquiry- and 1 store credit card) on my CRs.

 

AAoA is 0.2 months. 

 

I have been playing with these cards since I spend around  $1,500 a month which is more than my highest CL. 

 

My goal is to get a $4,500 CL soon-ish.  

 

So here are my questions!  I really appreciate your help and advices Smiley Happy

 

1/  Am I wrong seeking a primary CC with a credit line 3 times higher that what I actually spend every month?  

I am thinking CRs and other creditors might think I am maxing out my cards even though I am PIF on the due date. 

 

2/ I will obvisouly stop applying for cards until I apply again for an American Express charge card but am I in trouble with those 8 inquiries? 

2 of them are already for the same Amex PRG.  

-Do you think Amex (creditors?) see a difference with someone applying for 8 CC in 6 months with no credit history and someone going crazy asking for credit and being a potential risk?

 

3/ What lender should I decide to mainly deal with to make sure I got a real CLI (at least something in between $1,000 and $4,500)?  

Should I max out and pay 90% with Discover, Barclays or my secured BofA?

 

my last question..!

 

4/ I have some savings I am not using, should I increase my CL with BofA (from $400 to $1k or $1,5k) and deal with it?  With another hard inquiry...  Smiley Sad

I do not have a checking account with them.  

 

Obviously the next step is to get PRG as soon as possible to charge everything and PIF at the end.  

Since my credit history starts in May 2014, I was thinking I might be approved in November 2014 after 6 months of CH* but now that I have 8 inq, I am not so sure. 

 

* This is the reason why I was denied and people who replied to my first post said I should be good with a 6 months credit history and a few tradelines. 

 

Also my last application of August 25th for the PRG switched from "Declined" to "In Progress".  I don't have much hope though with my 4 months credit history. 

 

 

Thanks for reading me!

All of your comments will be welcomed!   

 

Will 

Message 1 of 5
4 REPLIES 4
coldnmn
Mega Contributor

Re: How to improve my credit lines.. Who should I deal with..

To generate a credit report you need 6 months of credit reporting. In order to get larger CL credit cards it takes time by using current cards responsibly.  Unfortunately credit is a journey not a race. Good Luck going forward!

Discover IT $17k / US Bank Ace (VSig) $13.5K / US Bank Cash+ (VSig) $13.5k
Sam's Mastercard $15k / Walmart Mastercard $10k / Blispay $7.5k PayPal Ex MC $10.8k
CareCredit 5k / Husq $5k / Cap1 QS $4.5k / Barclay Ring $5.35k / Citi DC (WMC) $12k
Gardening Date 7/01/16 / MyFico 08: EQ 801 / TU 777 / EX 771 / 06/08/17
Message 2 of 5
CreditPlay
Frequent Contributor

Re: How to improve my credit lines.. Who should I deal with..

You have good starter cards, garden them for atleast 6 months before applying for any new credit. Once you start getting FICO score with your discover statement you can plan for next cards. For amex i would go to the pre qual site and see if they are even showing the green card, else no point in increasing inquiries. 

 

Discover is good at clis every 3 months so keep reporting balances on that card.Good luck!


         
FICO08 12/2014EQ 777TU 799EX 767
 
    
Message 3 of 5
takeshi74
Senior Contributor

Re: How to improve my credit lines.. Who should I deal with..


@Anonymous wrote:

Since my credit history starts in May 2014


Given that you need to focus on rebuilding and letting your inquiries age.  Constantly applying for credit (are you reading and addressing the reasons for denial?) will make you look like a risk -- especially with only a few months of credit history.  This all takes time.

Message 4 of 5
jamie123
Valued Contributor

Re: How to improve my credit lines.. Who should I deal with..

You have some really good starter cards with the Discover IT, BoA and Barclay cards. You need to stop applying for new credit now and garden these cards you have. Nobody will give you a CL of $4500 right now and it will probably be at least until next May when your Discover card is a year old before you can get one.

 

Your best bet would be to garden the Discover card really well, spend a lot on it and PIF every month. If they don't automatically give you CLIs I would suggest calling them after you pay the six month satement and asking for a CL of $5000. They probably won't give you the $5000 but will give you what they can. Once you pay the 12th statement call again and ask for $6000. Same thing will probably happen and you won't get the $6000 but you might get to $5000.

 

With a history of less than 2 years old it is pretty rare for someone to get a CL of $4000 or more to start unless you already have a CC with a $4000 CL. Lenders try and match your highest CL if they can and don't want to go much over your highest existing CL.


Starting Score: EQ 653 6/21/12
Current Score: EQ 817 3/10/20 - EX 820 3/13/20 - TU 825 3/03/20
Message 5 of 5
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