Help with cap 1 Cli.

[Anonymous]

I currently have 3 cards and 2 are at 0. I was working on cap1 increase qnd found out I have been paying wrong this whole time! Oops🤦🏻‍♀️ I payed in full before a statement cut so to them I'm not using my credit. How much would you all recommend I let report on my statement for them? I know the under 30% rule but this card is only at a $400 limit. Letting it report only around $17 doesn't seem deserving of a cli to me, but I am new to this. So my fico friends...... do I let this report at $17, or do I go higher in the 3-350 range for the next few months and pay in full soon as the statement cuts?? 

[RSX]

Cap1 sees all your use.  The CRA's don't because you pay before, but that only affects other lenders seeing your use

use it as much as you can each month, without overspending.  Pay it down multiple times during the month if you need to

cap1 like lots of use - try for a CLI in 3 months after using it heavily.  

[rostrow416]

The issuer knows fully how much credit you have been using.  And Capital One loves it when you use credit.  Keep doing what you are doing.  Getting CLIs out of them is like pulling teeth.  Just be patient.

[Anonymous]

Yes I'm learning that lol. I've put spend on it, a lot of times in total on this $400 card I've spent $6-800 a month but paid it to 0 before the statement cut so not was always showing a 0 balance. When I did try for cli I was denied saying recent use of this accounts credit line has been too low! I just thought that's crazy because I'm actually spending more than my limit really and paying all before the bill cuts but apparently that's wrong. How much should I let report?

[Anonymous]

Should I ask for an increase when my balance is at 0, or at $350?? No idea how to play this game lol

[blindambition]

When doing a CLI request, they use reports that are a couple months old, so keep that in mind. Ask when balance is 0, or very low.

The $400 limit shows card is Bucketed. The CLI train will be a long route. They will most likely result in $100-$300 increments. 
Cap One likes LOTS of spend. You'll have to decide how much worth it is. The card will always be one of your lowest.

[Anonymous]

But spend is what I'm confused about. I already put spend and my statements showed 0 for moths and months and they said I'm not using my credit. But if I max it out and let my statement show I owe $350 on due date then that's too much for them. I can't win and find the happy medium with them😩 I know it's bucketed as it's my first card but I would still like to figure out how to use it to the best of my ability 

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

But spend is what I'm confused about. I already put spend and my statements showed 0 for moths and months and they said I'm not using my credit. But if I max it out and let my statement show I owe $350 on due date then that's too much for them. I can't win and find the happy medium with them😩 I know it's bucketed as it's my first card but I would still like to figure out how to use it to the best of my ability 

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What is the credit limit?

It has nothing to do with how much reports to the bureaus or on tge statement. This is the creditor, themselves, so they see your entire history of the account with them. I would not let high utilization post to your credit reports at all. Then they will say the denialn is because "reported balances too high".

If you are not using most of the credit limit, or even better, cycling the entire credit limit a couple times a month, you will unlikely see a CLI. They really are sticklers about *actually needing* more credit because you have to make more than one payment a month to free up more credit.

Even at that, the CLIs are very small with Cap One. $100-$300. A lot of work for little pay off. Unless you have a small CL and can cycle it, I would work on different creditors to build your limits with.

Edit: I see you said $400 limit. That is an odd number. How long have you had this card? Is it secured? Have you already gotten your "credit steps" increase? Or did you get only the $100 partial "credit steps" increase st this point?

If you have not gotten your "credit steps" increase yet and already got the "early" $100 increase, it is too soon to ask for a CLI.

If it has not been 6 months since your "credit steps" CLI, then it is too soon to ask for a CLI.

If it is secured, you can only get the "one time", "credit steps" CLI. 

If you are not cycling $400+ a month through the card, you are not using & paying it enough 

[OmarGB9]

I think you've asked this before...

https://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Rebuilding-Your-Credit/Maximize-chances-for-cli/m-p/6169759

https://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Credit-Cards/Help-Am-I-paying-Cap-1-wrong-to-get-a-CLI/td-p/6163829

and it was mentioned that there is no right or wrong way to pay. There's also no magical way to entice Cap One to give you a CLI. There's honestly no rhyme or reason to their CLIs. Also, lately they've been giving only token $100 CLIs...so...it's not worth it, IMO. Plus, having a bucketed card doesn't help. I'd move on from trying to get a CLI from them and just work on your credit report and once scores go up and history is a bit longer, get another card from another issuer who is known to be easier to get CLIs from (i.e. Amex, NFCU if you qualify, etc.).

[Anonymous]

^^^ this. Forget about trying to grow CapOne. The odds just aren't there. Use them naturally rather than forcing spend. Pay them each month. Get other rewards cards when able, and let CapOne fall by the wayside. With the policies they're running these days as outlined above, it isn't worth wasting your effort. Use them as a stepping stone to better cards and then focus your spend on those better cards and don't look back.