With no credit history exept the loan and fingerhut I honestly don't know what NFCU would see you as. Have you considered tying the pre-qualifications page at Discover? See what you could get there and then go to the garden for 3-6 months then hop out to NFCU where they may give you a larger SL. Just my two cents.
Once you get that next revolver settle down and let them age together for a while then go after another. Then garden for a while concentrating on soft pulls only.
And let us know what Disco says!
@Guyatthebeach wrote:@Anonymous,
Before you move funds around, I would check the NFCU credit card page for a preapproval. If you don't have a preapproval, check back every 30 days. I would apply for the cash rewards first. After you get approved for that, I would wait for a few months, try to see if you have a preapproval for the Flagship card. If not, wait 6 months after getting the cash rewards card first and then apply for the Flagship.
Guyatthebeach
The Navy prequal is useless, it prequalifies everyone for all cards like 99% of the time. So it's not reliable at all. But I agree with the rest of your statement.
@Anonymous wrote:Hello, I'm looking for advice for a Navy Fed strategy. I'm new to credit. I opened a savings account following advise here and got a SSL for 3,150 and paid 92 percent of it. I'm hoping to get a decent bump when they report in June. I don't have any credit history because I've always paid cash for cars and property. I have no debt but have only a 675 credit score. I hope the bump from the SSL gets it to 700. I opened a finger hut account to gain revolving credit.
When would be a good time to apply for a card from NFCU? Should I move my direct deposit from Penfed savings to Navy? Or is it alright that I transfer money between the two myself? If I leave 10 to 15 thousand in savings would that be enough for a card without a credit history or would they suggest I go with a secure card? I'd get the most use from their flagship card but understand that you should pick a different one to start Amex? I have banked with Penfed for a year but read they aren't as easygoing with credit as Navy. Any strategy ideas? Thanks
If I were you I would go ahead and apply for an NFCU card, platinum or cash rewards, and see what happens.
+1 on what @SouthJamaica said. My only trepidation would be that you already applied for the SSL. 675 is hardly an "only" scenario by Navy standards. If that is a FICO score I'd say you're in good shape. Although when I last checked they used FICO9 from Equifax. If you do a quick 3b, you'll be able to see your FICO9 and if you're anything above 650 I'd pull the trigger. Regardless of your SL, anything Navy will grow.
