@CorySoccer I'm not in the AMEX club so I'm sure that someone will chime in. I've heard their pre-approvals are pretty solid. That AF is ridiculous and I could never justify it perosnally. I want to get in with Amex but I specifically want the Hilton card, so I'm waiting patiently in the garden for some more stuff to come off in January then I might go a little wild. Check Chase pre-qual as well as Disco. They are soft pulls so you never know what you might find that is good fit.
@CorySoccer wrote:Quick question...
I've been working hard to raise and improve my credit score over the past 2 years or so. I started in the low 500's.
Since then I have improved my scores across all 3 CRA's. However, one CRA is much (at least in my not as well as informed opinion as ya'll lol) than the others.
My FICO scores are as follows:
EQ: 755
TU: 755
EX: 665
I made another thread about why my EX would be 90 pts lower than my other scores and I've been getting some helpful advice there.
My question is this....
I want to get out of these "beginner/rebuilder" type cards that I currently have. Many with low CL's.
However, from what I've read (please correct me if I'm wrong!) is that a lot of credit card companies use a FICO score from just ONE CRA and others use all 3 and choose the MIDDLE FICO score. Given my scores, if they take the middle score, I'm fine. If they take either EQ or TU I'm fine, but what if they take my EX Fico score?
I don't want to waste my time applying for better cards if that low EX score will hurt me. It sucks that it feels like a ball and chain around my ankle lol.
Thanks!
1. No, the thing about taking the middle score is a mortgage thing. It has nothing to do with credit card applications.
2. Most banks and credit unions will just pull one bureau for a credit card application. Capital One usually pulls 2 or 3. Chase sometimes pulls 2. I applied for a credit card with Andrews FCU and they pulled all 3 bureaus (I'm not applying there anymore). So apart from Capital One, Chase, and Andrews FCU, you shouldn't have a problem with multiple bureaus being pulled.
3. You can usually find out in this forum which bureau a particular lender is most likely to pull.
@CorySoccer wrote:@Sandman771 I had been declined for an Amex Card in the past, but out of curiosity just happened to do their free pre-approval app on their website and got an offer for an Amex Platinum card. I used the search feature in the forum but haven't come across much. Do you know much about it? Just curious. This is what the offer looked like. They did a soft pull so I guess it's not an official offer, but it's something lol. $550 AF?
It's hugely expensive. Unless you do A LOT of travel, it's not worth it.
Yeah like I said NFCU is a great one they would look at your TU and PenFed is another well-liked one on here and I believe they will pull EQ, so either one with mid-700's would likely be a great spot to swap out those small CCs.
@Sandman771 wrote:@CorySoccer I'm not in the AMEX club so I'm sure that someone will chime in. I've heard their pre-approvals are pretty solid. That AF is ridiculous and I could never justify it perosnally. I want to get in with Amex but I specifically want the Hilton card, so I'm waiting patiently in the garden for some more stuff to come off in January then I might go a little wild. Check Chase pre-qual as well as Disco. They are soft pulls so you never know what you might find that is good fit.
Agree that the AF is ridiculous, except for people who do a lot of air travel. If I did a lot of air travel, it would be worth it to me.
I've had all 3 Hilton cards, and find them useful. The points are only worth around .4 cents to me, but it's easy to pick up a lot of points. And their hotel offerings are excellent in my book. I especially like that breakfast is included in every stay.
@CorySoccer wrote:@Sandman771 I had been declined for an Amex Card in the past, but out of curiosity just happened to do their free pre-approval app on their website and got an offer for an Amex Platinum card. I used the search feature in the forum but haven't come across much. Do you know much about it? Just curious. This is what the offer looked like. They did a soft pull so I guess it's not an official offer, but it's something lol. $550 AF?
If you already have an Amex card, it's usually a soft pull.
But when you apply for your first Amex card, it's a hard pull, and for me it's always been on Experian. So in your case you should probably wait on Amex. Perhaps you might want to try Discover.
@CorySoccer EQ: Penfed, BB&T , Suntrust, DCU. TU: Barclays, Apple Card I would also look into maybe a local credit union in your area
