Author Topic: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig  (Read 1958480 times)

CornFarmer

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6200 on: December 18, 2023, 07:07:33 AM »
Would someone be willing to give me a referral to the companies that buy tradelines? Also, if any would be interested in selling spots on my amex?

Also some of the companies I have found through Google seem to have a huge amount for sale, unless people buy these constantly it makes me think the likelihood of getting a sale would be pretty small?
« Last Edit: December 18, 2023, 08:01:56 AM by CornFarmer »

Car Jack

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6201 on: December 18, 2023, 07:09:49 AM »
I had the Discover "enter a real address" problem.  I even went to Google street view to view the address which is an apartment building.  Perhaps they want an apartment number.  I don't have the patience so simply checked the box with my own address and it posted.  Who cares?  So I'll get Cap One offers for years for this AU or bill collector letters.  Could be either and I don't really care.  They go to start my wood furnace in the morning or to the recycling center in the summer.

And with even better news....the new company paid me!  So I guess I'll wait another year and a half for my next payment like I seem to see all the time now.

secondcor521

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6202 on: December 18, 2023, 02:16:05 PM »
The odd exception is your spreadsheet says 2 months for BOA, I've always had 4 month periods for AUs with BOA and been paid extra for those - however cannot confirm if it was a preventative measure (minimalize card closure), or a requirement for proper posting. I'm going to look into that but if anyone has info, please relay. I'll get a definitive answer from a non-new/old company within the next few days max of their opinion/reasoning for that.

In my experience and my understanding, tradelines post to the AUs account either (a) within a few days after statement close for most cards, or (b) close to the end of the calendar month for USBank cards.  Provided that (1) the AU information matches, (2) the AU information contains at least three matching data points among (name/SSN/address/DOB), (3) the card closes with a balance, and (4) nothing weird happens.

Therefore, leaving the AU on for 2/3/4 months is only for (A) giving the AU time to do whatever they need to do, and (B) to reduce the risk of account closure.  It is never, in my understanding and experience, to ensure posting.

WayDownSouth

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6203 on: December 18, 2023, 04:35:03 PM »
The odd exception is your spreadsheet says 2 months for BOA, I've always had 4 month periods for AUs with BOA and been paid extra for those - however cannot confirm if it was a preventative measure (minimalize card closure), or a requirement for proper posting. I'm going to look into that but if anyone has info, please relay. I'll get a definitive answer from a non-new/old company within the next few days max of their opinion/reasoning for that.

In my experience and my understanding, tradelines post to the AUs account either (a) within a few days after statement close for most cards, or (b) close to the end of the calendar month for USBank cards.  Provided that (1) the AU information matches, (2) the AU information contains at least three matching data points among (name/SSN/address/DOB), (3) the card closes with a balance, and (4) nothing weird happens.

Therefore, leaving the AU on for 2/3/4 months is only for (A) giving the AU time to do whatever they need to do, and (B) to reduce the risk of account closure.  It is never, in my understanding and experience, to ensure posting.

Thanks for sharing. Most of us know that the 2 month period is standard/minimum/basic from any company in the industry - that's what the buyer pays for, and it gives them time. The idea that a 3 or 4 month time period was required to ensure posting threw me off.

I can confirm that one company strictly requires 4 months for BOA to prevent card closure and pays much extra for that. Not exactly double the typical 2 month payment but close.

Monkey stache

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6204 on: December 19, 2023, 11:08:31 AM »
I just had my first closure which was with CapitalOne. It looks like I was part of the last wave of cuts that some of you were apart of. I added a total of only 3 AUs this year, it was my oldest card, and they didn't even bother sending me a letter to let me know.

Any recommendations on a replacement card? I already have 2 Chase cards, 1 USAA card, and a Barclays card. I work with both the old and new company but have a preference for the one that pays out automatically. Bonus points if the AU can be added and removed online


WayDownSouth

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6205 on: December 19, 2023, 01:38:50 PM »
I just had my first closure which was with CapitalOne. It looks like I was part of the last wave of cuts that some of you were apart of. I added a total of only 3 AUs this year, it was my oldest card, and they didn't even bother sending me a letter to let me know.

Any recommendations on a replacement card? I already have 2 Chase cards, 1 USAA card, and a Barclays card. I work with both the old and new company but have a preference for the one that pays out automatically. Bonus points if the AU can be added and removed online

That sucks, but part of playing. Any idea what contributed? Did you contact them? Were you adding/removing online or by phone? Did you have any other cards with them and did they close those as well?

Looking at new cards: Discover, Capital One, and US Bank have been my least problematic cards of all time. Obviously Capital one isn't an option for you. Navy Federal (if you feel like going with a credit union and even better if you want to open a checking account with them first).

MoneyTree

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6206 on: December 19, 2023, 01:47:57 PM »
I just had my first closure which was with CapitalOne. It looks like I was part of the last wave of cuts that some of you were apart of. I added a total of only 3 AUs this year, it was my oldest card, and they didn't even bother sending me a letter to let me know.

Any recommendations on a replacement card? I already have 2 Chase cards, 1 USAA card, and a Barclays card. I work with both the old and new company but have a preference for the one that pays out automatically. Bonus points if the AU can be added and removed online

Barclays and Discover are at the top of my list. Online add and remove. I have been opening barclays cards regularly to age them, and then I will reallocate credit limit to them when I am ready to sell spots on them in the future. Discover has been good as well, but I believe you can only open 2 Discover cards maximum.

Car Jack

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6207 on: December 23, 2023, 02:48:20 PM »
Barclays often does not post.  I put in all the info and add the AU and they show up.  Then they disappear and of course they don't come back.

secondcor521

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6208 on: December 23, 2023, 03:57:57 PM »
Barclays often does not post.  I put in all the info and add the AU and they show up.  Then they disappear and of course they don't come back.

Are you at the lifetime limit on that card maybe?

I've had 29 Barclay AUs with Good Company and all but one posted.  The one that didn't post was a lifetime limit issue.

Otherwise, are you following the TL company recommendations for how to add?

Car Jack

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6209 on: December 24, 2023, 07:58:51 AM »
Yes.  I have 4 Barclays cards just waiting for AUs.  I absolutely do follow the old company's instructions on how to add and over the years, I've had probably 50 times where they were fine.  In the last year, they're maybe 2 work, 1 doesn't kind of percentage. 

secondcor521

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6210 on: December 24, 2023, 10:18:51 AM »
Yes.  I have 4 Barclays cards just waiting for AUs.  I absolutely do follow the old company's instructions on how to add and over the years, I've had probably 50 times where they were fine.  In the last year, they're maybe 2 work, 1 doesn't kind of percentage.

Hmm.  Strange.  Maybe ask the Person Who Seems to Do Most If Not All of The Work at Old Company for advice?

Padonak

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6211 on: December 24, 2023, 11:47:53 AM »
I remember there was a problem with Barclays non posting around 2020-2021. I wasn't using Barclays at the time for TLs so I was not affected. Almost all of my recent Barclays TLs posted just fine.

Reddart67

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6212 on: December 27, 2023, 08:01:58 AM »
If I get a decent amount of AUs this month, I might get close to 20K this year.

Tips?  Tricks?  Anything unusual about your situation?  Just counting piggybacking or are you including SUBs and other stuff?

(I do well, but not anywhere near that well.)

Well the best tip would be that you get many high limit credit cards with issuers that historically don’t have AU cancellation problems, and that you had gotten them many years ago, so the age of the credit line is high.

Yes, that is something one cannot just do.

And that is just TL revenue, not counting any SUB or other cc perks.

Ah, OK, thanks.  I've mostly done that, just not apparently to the same extent that you have.  Congratulations!

Of course I jinxed myself, December and Q4 as a whole has been pretty lousy in TL sales. I’m going to be down slightly yoy.

MoMoney88

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6213 on: December 27, 2023, 09:19:47 AM »
Interesting random question when I asked the BOA online chat rep to remove my AU... her response..

"May I ask the reason you are removing the authorized user is because they passed away?"



WayDownSouth

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6214 on: December 27, 2023, 12:02:08 PM »
For what it's worth, I've kept a running file based entirely off of what I've seen on this 123 page thread about what cards are likely to work and which ones won't. I'll post it here for anyone's edification, but I will not vouch for it nor can I say it's up to date, though nothing I've seen lately obviously overturns it all. If anyone knows better, just say so and I'll update my file:

Good:

Discover
TD Bank
Barclays
PNC
Associated Bank
Amex
Wells Fargo (not currently accepted)

Maybe:

Capital One
US Bank
Citi (requires over the phone)

Bad:

Chase (will shut down all accounts)
Bank of America (lots of shut downs)
Elan Fidelity

**

I personally have only used a Discover card through Old Company and have had nothing but good results. I have not been as aggressive about doing the TL thing as a lot of people, but then again I'm happy to make a few hundred bucks here and there for little effort without any stress. And props to arebelspy as usual for having been cool enough to make this something that the community can use.

AmEx is not good at all. There is an important reason why, and it's that AmEx doesn't post to an authorized user's credit profile with the true age of the card. While the credit report WILL display the correct credit limit, the authorized user is seen as "new" and therefore the account is shown as "new".

There are very few circumstances when an authorized user wants to purchase a card that is going to figure into their credit score as brand new because obviously this alters their average card age which in turn affects their overall credit score. Typically, the limit would need to be astronomically high in order to outweigh the loss of age - unless your particular problem/goal/strategy as an AU is to temporarily lower your utilization by an extreme amount.

Point is, it has it's purpose but I think sellers of AmEx should be very aware of this. Some bad players in the industry sell Amex (they love to slip them into packages mixed with other lines that have an old age and lower limit) to buyers who don't know better and who aren't trying to solely minimize their overall utilization. I don't think that's fair or moral but you have the right to ask your brokerage what they're doing with your AmEx and/or how it's being offered to AUs. A good brokerage would explain or leverage this tool in the proper way. Other brokerages will simply allow any random user to buy, and let the process proceed as normal without informing the AU of what I spoke about.

As far as reporting, they report very well. But the way in which they report and the way this is misused, misunderstood and manipulated is something that puts any AmEx card into "special use only" zone when it comes to selling. 

Many of you know this but there are still many who don't.

WayDownSouth

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6215 on: December 27, 2023, 12:10:32 PM »
Interesting random question when I asked the BOA online chat rep to remove my AU... her response..

"May I ask the reason you are removing the authorized user is because they passed away?"

That's unreal... Nothing surprises me though... My response to that would be:

"Excuse me??? How you could possibly feel comfortable asking me about something so personal and potentially offensive? Is this protocol???"

chuckster

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6216 on: December 27, 2023, 04:52:52 PM »
I've never been pushed for an explanation of who I'm adding as an AU, but, my go to is along the lines of 'My girlfriend's brother is getting into home renovation and I'm giving him some work to get on his feet, the AU is one of his workers who will be buying supplies from Home Depot and I want the points."

If they ask for a reason he's being removed, "Yeah, change of plans on the renovation"
« Last Edit: December 27, 2023, 04:56:15 PM by chuckster »

WayDownSouth

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6217 on: December 27, 2023, 05:26:27 PM »
I've never been pushed for an explanation of who I'm adding as an AU, but, my go to is along the lines of 'My girlfriend's brother is getting into home renovation and I'm giving him some work to get on his feet, the AU is one of his workers who will be buying supplies from Home Depot and I want the points."

If they ask for a reason he's being removed, "Yeah, change of plans on the renovation"

That's either a really good one or a really bad one... I like it, I mean it's a great answer. But I'm not a bank.

We know they already hate it when people know how to play the points game effectively. If they assume you're going to carry a big balance afterward I guess they might be all for it. If they think they won't be earning any interest there then it might not work so well.

I honestly believe they're brushing very close to breaking the law by asking anything about the "why" behind adding your AUs. I posted a link to this a page ago. The definitely shouldn't be asking for documents and they know this but asking pushy questions is almost the same. I mean, it's personal. Its your card. Why should you have to explain to them, because they issued the card? Well, maybe they need to state that in their policy - something they cannot legally do as far as I know. If they use that info to later determine your creditworthiness, they're committing a huge discriminatory crime. It may not be so black and white, but as sellers we're operating in the backwaters so.... I guess it is what it is.

CornFarmer

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6218 on: December 28, 2023, 07:47:13 AM »
Everyone says discover allows 7AUs in a year including the TL company I'm selling with. On the discover page where I can add AUs it says 5. Can I only add 5 or is it 7? I sold 3 in 2 days time and don't want to oversell.

Nutty

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6219 on: December 28, 2023, 08:42:13 AM »
Everyone says discover allows 7AUs in a year including the TL company I'm selling with. On the discover page where I can add AUs it says 5. Can I only add 5 or is it 7? I sold 3 in 2 days time and don't want to oversell.
Discover will tell you when you reach your limit.  I sold 7 and was locked for a year.  They may change it with no notice.  My take is sell until Discover says no more then start checking in 8 months.

MoneyTree

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6220 on: December 28, 2023, 11:29:41 AM »
Everyone says discover allows 7AUs in a year including the TL company I'm selling with. On the discover page where I can add AUs it says 5. Can I only add 5 or is it 7? I sold 3 in 2 days time and don't want to oversell.
Discover will tell you when you reach your limit.  I sold 7 and was locked for a year.  They may change it with no notice.  My take is sell until Discover says no more then start checking in 8 months.

Discover has been inconsistent with this for my cards. Sometimes they will prevent more AUs sooner than I expect. Sometimes the block will mysteriously disappear before it is supposed to. Sometimes they will say that I can add more AUs after a specific date, and then the date will change for no reason. I would just check each month when deciding if your discover card should be made available for sales.

MoMoney88

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6221 on: December 28, 2023, 04:38:17 PM »
same here MoneyTree!  Discover has been my weakest/finickiest card for tradelines for sure!

All I can do is just laugh when I see that AU date keep getting pushed out farther and farther.
But, I could add AUs over the phone despite what it says online.  That worked for a couple of AUs, then out of the blue Discover stopped posting to the credit bureaus.
After about 3 phone calls, talking to 5 different people, I finally was able to get them to make my AUs post again!
« Last Edit: December 28, 2023, 04:48:38 PM by morris08 »

MoMoney88

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6222 on: December 28, 2023, 04:47:47 PM »
Speaking of Discover,  how long do you guys typically have to wait between CL increases with Discover?
I know they deny CL increases if you haven't been spending a lot... but I am currently going through an "aging" stage with my Discover trying to get the CL higher.
After about 7-8 months of denying an increase due to low utilization, I decided to put EVERYTHING on my Discover for a few months and finally got a small CL increase!
That was 3 months ago so now I figure it's time to request another CL increase.

Pretty much all my other cards had no problem giving me decent limits ($25k - $35k) right off the bat...but my lame 4 yr old Discover card only has a $14k limit right now.

WayDownSouth

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6223 on: December 28, 2023, 05:42:00 PM »
They only allow 7 spots a year. The solution here is simple. If you sell 7 spots in 6 months, you've got 6 months of free time to spend away. During those 6 months, get a few grand onto that card and make a mid-month payment of $500. Then let it roll over with a balance into the next period by making a smaller payment than the full balance, yet much more than the minimum required payment... Make some more purchases, then make a payment or two during the month. Let it roll over again. Pay in full before 3rd closing month... No interest. 4th month, spend a lot and pay in full. Same for month 5 and month 6.

They're not going to give you large increases when your usage and payments are stale and/or nothing. Create some action in there. Then chill and sell more tradelines. Rinse & repeat.

Ideally you want to ask for a limit increase with them when you have a decent balance going, but not during the very first month of that. Ideally, IMHO, month 5 or 6 would be ideal to ask for the increase. Just don't have it maxed out when requesting the increase because that doesn't look too great either.

From what I've learned, making more frequent payments than required (paying mid-period for example) keeps your utilization constantly fluctuating and has helped me not only with increases but my credit score seemed to grow quicker and by larger margins that way as compared to not doing that.

densyong

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6224 on: December 30, 2023, 06:06:25 PM »
I have been trying to get an AARP (Barclay) card, but not having any luck.  It's been long enough I don't recall all the details but these are some of the basics.

Applied on line
Got email links requesting various documents
Provided documents online
Links then said declined
Got letter asking for more documents ... what?
Called Barclays, got bounced around a lot, ended up talking to a separate AARP department, was told they could not help me and I had to fax the requested documents.  They said they could only do a new application over the phone, expecting the same results I choose to continue with the original application.
Faxed documents
Got 2nd letter asking for same documents
Mailed the documents this time
Got a 3rd letter asking for the same documents.   :[

No idea how get this card.  Does anyone have some helpful experience?
Thanks in advance

We recently got this card for my wife.  We applied online, no documentation was requested, approval was immediate.

Padonak

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6225 on: December 31, 2023, 12:44:45 PM »
I have been trying to get an AARP (Barclay) card, but not having any luck.  It's been long enough I don't recall all the details but these are some of the basics.

Applied on line
Got email links requesting various documents
Provided documents online
Links then said declined
Got letter asking for more documents ... what?
Called Barclays, got bounced around a lot, ended up talking to a separate AARP department, was told they could not help me and I had to fax the requested documents.  They said they could only do a new application over the phone, expecting the same results I choose to continue with the original application.
Faxed documents
Got 2nd letter asking for same documents
Mailed the documents this time
Got a 3rd letter asking for the same documents.   :[

No idea how get this card.  Does anyone have some helpful experience?
Thanks in advance

I had a very similar experience, almost the same as you, when I applied for that card. Jumped through all the hoops and got approved.
The only option to send them the documents was by mail which was very annoying.

harrydogyo

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6226 on: January 01, 2024, 09:22:29 AM »
I would say Amex has been very good for me and has made me the most money over 3 1/2 years.  Of the two brokers I sell through, one does use it as a throw in to other sales/packages they do to help give a client who bought other TLs an extra boost.  My card is 60k CL so it's meaningful.

Have sold around 170 spots over that time, thought it's certainly slowed down.  Had one account review with Amex that I passed and I continue to use them for signup bonus hacks. Once you've added 99 to a card that card is done for a few years but easy to add a new card and transfer CL.

 

For what it's worth, I've kept a running file based entirely off of what I've seen on this 123 page thread about what cards are likely to work and which ones won't. I'll post it here for anyone's edification, but I will not vouch for it nor can I say it's up to date, though nothing I've seen lately obviously overturns it all. If anyone knows better, just say so and I'll update my file:

Good:

Discover
TD Bank
Barclays
PNC
Associated Bank
Amex
Wells Fargo (not currently accepted)

Maybe:

Capital One
US Bank
Citi (requires over the phone)

Bad:

Chase (will shut down all accounts)
Bank of America (lots of shut downs)
Elan Fidelity

**

I personally have only used a Discover card through Old Company and have had nothing but good results. I have not been as aggressive about doing the TL thing as a lot of people, but then again I'm happy to make a few hundred bucks here and there for little effort without any stress. And props to arebelspy as usual for having been cool enough to make this something that the community can use.

AmEx is not good at all. There is an important reason why, and it's that AmEx doesn't post to an authorized user's credit profile with the true age of the card. While the credit report WILL display the correct credit limit, the authorized user is seen as "new" and therefore the account is shown as "new".

There are very few circumstances when an authorized user wants to purchase a card that is going to figure into their credit score as brand new because obviously this alters their average card age which in turn affects their overall credit score. Typically, the limit would need to be astronomically high in order to outweigh the loss of age - unless your particular problem/goal/strategy as an AU is to temporarily lower your utilization by an extreme amount.

Point is, it has it's purpose but I think sellers of AmEx should be very aware of this. Some bad players in the industry sell Amex (they love to slip them into packages mixed with other lines that have an old age and lower limit) to buyers who don't know better and who aren't trying to solely minimize their overall utilization. I don't think that's fair or moral but you have the right to ask your brokerage what they're doing with your AmEx and/or how it's being offered to AUs. A good brokerage would explain or leverage this tool in the proper way. Other brokerages will simply allow any random user to buy, and let the process proceed as normal without informing the AU of what I spoke about.

As far as reporting, they report very well. But the way in which they report and the way this is misused, misunderstood and manipulated is something that puts any AmEx card into "special use only" zone when it comes to selling. 

Many of you know this but there are still many who don't.

WayDownSouth

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6227 on: January 02, 2024, 11:35:27 AM »
I would say Amex has been very good for me and has made me the most money over 3 1/2 years.  Of the two brokers I sell through, one does use it as a throw in to other sales/packages they do to help give a client who bought other TLs an extra boost.  My card is 60k CL so it's meaningful.

Have sold around 170 spots over that time, thought it's certainly slowed down.  Had one account review with Amex that I passed and I continue to use them for signup bonus hacks. Once you've added 99 to a card that card is done for a few years but easy to add a new card and transfer CL.

 

For what it's worth, I've kept a running file based entirely off of what I've seen on this 123 page thread about what cards are likely to work and which ones won't. I'll post it here for anyone's edification, but I will not vouch for it nor can I say it's up to date, though nothing I've seen lately obviously overturns it all. If anyone knows better, just say so and I'll update my file:

Good:

Discover
TD Bank
Barclays
PNC
Associated Bank
Amex
Wells Fargo (not currently accepted)

Maybe:

Capital One
US Bank
Citi (requires over the phone)

Bad:

Chase (will shut down all accounts)
Bank of America (lots of shut downs)
Elan Fidelity

**

I personally have only used a Discover card through Old Company and have had nothing but good results. I have not been as aggressive about doing the TL thing as a lot of people, but then again I'm happy to make a few hundred bucks here and there for little effort without any stress. And props to arebelspy as usual for having been cool enough to make this something that the community can use.

AmEx is not good at all. There is an important reason why, and it's that AmEx doesn't post to an authorized user's credit profile with the true age of the card. While the credit report WILL display the correct credit limit, the authorized user is seen as "new" and therefore the account is shown as "new".

There are very few circumstances when an authorized user wants to purchase a card that is going to figure into their credit score as brand new because obviously this alters their average card age which in turn affects their overall credit score. Typically, the limit would need to be astronomically high in order to outweigh the loss of age - unless your particular problem/goal/strategy as an AU is to temporarily lower your utilization by an extreme amount.

Point is, it has it's purpose but I think sellers of AmEx should be very aware of this. Some bad players in the industry sell Amex (they love to slip them into packages mixed with other lines that have an old age and lower limit) to buyers who don't know better and who aren't trying to solely minimize their overall utilization. I don't think that's fair or moral but you have the right to ask your brokerage what they're doing with your AmEx and/or how it's being offered to AUs. A good brokerage would explain or leverage this tool in the proper way. Other brokerages will simply allow any random user to buy, and let the process proceed as normal without informing the AU of what I spoke about.

As far as reporting, they report very well. But the way in which they report and the way this is misused, misunderstood and manipulated is something that puts any AmEx card into "special use only" zone when it comes to selling. 

Many of you know this but there are still many who don't.

I won't disagree they're not problematic about adding/removing AUs and they will sell a lot if you have a high limit. Still as mentioned I think their are a lot of companies doing an injustice with that card by packaging it. 3 tradelines bought and if one has 0 years, that really brings the average age down but as we know there's a reason and situation it could be useful.

I think for the typical buyer it's not a useful purchase yet they're sold on the "great idea". As mentioned, each situation varies. I see big brokerages continually take advantage of buyers with AmEx so I can't say I'm a fan of that.

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6228 on: January 02, 2024, 12:38:37 PM »
Yeah I guess it's a fair point that it might not be the best for some buyers if it affects age.  I will say for family members who needed a boost who I added to a few of my cards it did seem to help. 

WayDownSouth

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6229 on: January 02, 2024, 12:45:13 PM »
Yeah I guess it's a fair point that it might not be the best for some buyers if it affects age.  I will say for family members who needed a boost who I added to a few of my cards it did seem to help.

Especially if youngsters or if they only have cards of lower age, super-beneficial in the long-run.

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6230 on: January 02, 2024, 01:00:35 PM »
Good point about buyers with low AA of A. A lot of the time, buyers are just in from other countries with no credit file here, right? So it would theoretically make more sense for them as well as for younger Americans.

One would hope that tradeline companies can advise their buyers on what purchases are best for them so sellers don't have to worry about it.

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6231 on: January 02, 2024, 05:56:53 PM »
On the Discover limits, I did hit it and they told me when I could add again.  Seems to be a rolling limit.  So if you go over the limit but an AU that had been added the end of January means that at the end of January, your # of AUs added in a year now is one less.  Since my denial and wait of like 2 months, I've since added 3 AUs in 3 months.  So that's good news, I think.

WayDownSouth

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6232 on: January 02, 2024, 08:02:06 PM »
On the Discover limits, I did hit it and they told me when I could add again.  Seems to be a rolling limit.  So if you go over the limit but an AU that had been added the end of January means that at the end of January, your # of AUs added in a year now is one less.  Since my denial and wait of like 2 months, I've since added 3 AUs in 3 months.  So that's good news, I think.

It's definitely a rolling limit. That's confusing at first. You could have all allowed slots available or just one depending on the last 12 months of activity. If you added all your AUs over a period of 3 months, it'd be 15 months before you could add that same number again, but only 12 months before you'd have at least a slot ready.

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6233 on: January 02, 2024, 11:04:16 PM »
I've never been pushed for an explanation of who I'm adding as an AU, but, my go to is along the lines of 'My girlfriend's brother is getting into home renovation and I'm giving him some work to get on his feet, the AU is one of his workers who will be buying supplies from Home Depot and I want the points."

If they ask for a reason he's being removed, "Yeah, change of plans on the renovation"

I use a similar line: "My wife's boyfriend is the coolest guy I know, he needs a card for weekly purchases of Monster energy drinks, steroids, and Cialis, this is his legal name but we all know him as Chad Thundercock"

EliteZags

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6234 on: January 02, 2024, 11:06:17 PM »
anyone had issues adding Barclays in the past few days? I keep getting an error:

"Authorized user not added
The information you have entered is incorrect.

Please contact our Customer Service department as soon as possible at 888-232-0780"

tried calling to add twice, first rep said the first name is showing as not matching, second one was getting an error and was told by service dept that they are under maintenance and to try again after 24 hours
I should be at <20 lifetime AU's still


edit- called again to ask apparently I've had 38 adds so ya likely done, however when I further inquired the rep said I've only hit the limit for online adds and I can still add by phone, doesn't sound promising though might still try with the next one
« Last Edit: January 03, 2024, 05:01:28 PM by EliteZags »

secondcor521

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6235 on: January 03, 2024, 12:32:42 AM »
anyone had issues adding Barclays in the past few days? I keep getting an error:

"Authorized user not added
The information you have entered is incorrect.

Please contact our Customer Service department as soon as possible at 888-232-0780"

tried calling to add twice, first rep said the first name is showing as not matching, second one was getting an error and was told by service dept that they are under maintenance and to try again after 24 hours

You've possibly hit the lifetime limit.  For me it happened at about 38 AUs.  Nice Lady at Good Company said "Over 35 AUs is usually when we start seeing it."  This was December 2022.

WayDownSouth

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6236 on: January 03, 2024, 02:57:49 PM »
I've never been pushed for an explanation of who I'm adding as an AU, but, my go to is along the lines of 'My girlfriend's brother is getting into home renovation and I'm giving him some work to get on his feet, the AU is one of his workers who will be buying supplies from Home Depot and I want the points."

If they ask for a reason he's being removed, "Yeah, change of plans on the renovation"

I use a similar line: "My wife's boyfriend is the coolest guy I know, he needs a card for weekly purchases of Monster energy drinks, steroids, and Cialis, this is his legal name but we all know him as Chad Thundercock"


LMFAOOO

"Ok sir, thank you very much for providing that information, your authorized user has been added and you'll be receiving their card in 7 to 10 business days. Anything else we can help you with today?"

Enough

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6237 on: January 04, 2024, 07:53:45 AM »
Can someone send me a PM with the current TL Company or their recommendation?

I have a citi card that I opened 4 years back for the sign on bonus and never closed.  Figure I might try this out rather than canceling it.

Nutty

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6238 on: January 04, 2024, 08:03:11 AM »
Can someone send me a PM with the current TL Company or their recommendation?

I have a citi card that I opened 4 years back for the sign on bonus and never closed.  Figure I might try this out rather than canceling it.
The preferred company is not taking Citi cards.  I never opened a Citi card and do not know the reasons for why they are not using them.  From my limited experience, failure to post is a big issue for some companies. 
Best wishes!

smacpa

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6239 on: January 10, 2024, 10:54:00 PM »
6 years ago I applied for my first credit card with the purpose of starting the clock to get involved in selling tradelines, I read through this entire thread.  I got busy with work and doing bank bonuses for extra cash but now I have a 6 year history card with Barclays.  Now I want to make extra cash to throw at the mortgage to payoff in 3 years.  How can I get involved?

secondcor521

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6240 on: January 11, 2024, 12:07:33 AM »
6 years ago I applied for my first credit card with the purpose of starting the clock to get involved in selling tradelines, I read through this entire thread.  I got busy with work and doing bank bonuses for extra cash but now I have a 6 year history card with Barclays.  Now I want to make extra cash to throw at the mortgage to payoff in 3 years.  How can I get involved?

Doesn't the very first post or two tell you everything you need to know to get started?

smacpa

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6241 on: January 11, 2024, 05:26:53 AM »
6 years ago I applied for my first credit card with the purpose of starting the clock to get involved in selling tradelines, I read through this entire thread.  I got busy with work and doing bank bonuses for extra cash but now I have a 6 year history card with Barclays.  Now I want to make extra cash to throw at the mortgage to payoff in 3 years.  How can I get involved?

Doesn't the very first post or two tell you everything you need to know to get started?

I guess I don’t follow why people are referencing old company and good company, last time I was here Apple by was starting just his own company for this.

secondcor521

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6242 on: January 11, 2024, 12:25:40 PM »
6 years ago I applied for my first credit card with the purpose of starting the clock to get involved in selling tradelines, I read through this entire thread.  I got busy with work and doing bank bonuses for extra cash but now I have a 6 year history card with Barclays.  Now I want to make extra cash to throw at the mortgage to payoff in 3 years.  How can I get involved?

Doesn't the very first post or two tell you everything you need to know to get started?

I guess I don’t follow why people are referencing old company and good company, last time I was here Apple by was starting just his own company for this.

Ah.  Those are answered somewhere in the thread, but I couldn't find it easily.

The references to Old Company and New Company (or Not So Great Company That Pays Late and Good Company - all terms refer to the same two companies) are just to keep the company names private.  You can get the company names by PM to either @arebelspy or me.

There was talk of starting a TL company, but as far as I know that never materialized.

WayDownSouth

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6243 on: January 11, 2024, 01:43:03 PM »
6 years ago I applied for my first credit card with the purpose of starting the clock to get involved in selling tradelines, I read through this entire thread.  I got busy with work and doing bank bonuses for extra cash but now I have a 6 year history card with Barclays.  Now I want to make extra cash to throw at the mortgage to payoff in 3 years.  How can I get involved?

Doesn't the very first post or two tell you everything you need to know to get started?

I guess I don’t follow why people are referencing old company and good company, last time I was here Apple by was starting just his own company for this.

Ah.  Those are answered somewhere in the thread, but I couldn't find it easily.

The references to Old Company and New Company (or Not So Great Company That Pays Late and Good Company - all terms refer to the same two companies) are just to keep the company names private.  You can get the company names by PM to either @arebelspy or me.

There was talk of starting a TL company, but as far as I know that never materialized.

Kind of off topic for the question at hand at this specific moment but I hope him or yourself are trying/testing a card or two with that potential "3rd" service provider so you can give your feedback. I think it's a no-brainer, but... Not my thread.

solon

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6244 on: January 11, 2024, 01:51:05 PM »
6 years ago I applied for my first credit card with the purpose of starting the clock to get involved in selling tradelines, I read through this entire thread.  I got busy with work and doing bank bonuses for extra cash but now I have a 6 year history card with Barclays.  Now I want to make extra cash to throw at the mortgage to payoff in 3 years.  How can I get involved?

Doesn't the very first post or two tell you everything you need to know to get started?

I guess I don’t follow why people are referencing old company and good company, last time I was here Apple by was starting just his own company for this.

Ah.  Those are answered somewhere in the thread, but I couldn't find it easily.

The references to Old Company and New Company (or Not So Great Company That Pays Late and Good Company - all terms refer to the same two companies) are just to keep the company names private.  You can get the company names by PM to either @arebelspy or me.

There was talk of starting a TL company, but as far as I know that never materialized.

Kind of off topic for the question at hand at this specific moment but I hope him or yourself are trying/testing a card or two with that potential "3rd" service provider so you can give your feedback. I think it's a no-brainer, but... Not my thread.

Did @arebelspy ever talk to them?

WayDownSouth

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6245 on: January 11, 2024, 02:46:10 PM »
6 years ago I applied for my first credit card with the purpose of starting the clock to get involved in selling tradelines, I read through this entire thread.  I got busy with work and doing bank bonuses for extra cash but now I have a 6 year history card with Barclays.  Now I want to make extra cash to throw at the mortgage to payoff in 3 years.  How can I get involved?

Doesn't the very first post or two tell you everything you need to know to get started?

I guess I don’t follow why people are referencing old company and good company, last time I was here Apple by was starting just his own company for this.

Ah.  Those are answered somewhere in the thread, but I couldn't find it easily.

The references to Old Company and New Company (or Not So Great Company That Pays Late and Good Company - all terms refer to the same two companies) are just to keep the company names private.  You can get the company names by PM to either @arebelspy or me.

There was talk of starting a TL company, but as far as I know that never materialized.

Kind of off topic for the question at hand at this specific moment but I hope him or yourself are trying/testing a card or two with that potential "3rd" service provider so you can give your feedback. I think it's a no-brainer, but... Not my thread.

Did @arebelspy ever talk to them?

We exchanged a few PMs but I'm not sure if he spoke with them or is testing them out or whatever. I have a tendency to write too much when I'm excited and I don't want to bother him about it. I already feel like I smothered him lol.

secondcor521

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6246 on: January 11, 2024, 03:14:25 PM »
6 years ago I applied for my first credit card with the purpose of starting the clock to get involved in selling tradelines, I read through this entire thread.  I got busy with work and doing bank bonuses for extra cash but now I have a 6 year history card with Barclays.  Now I want to make extra cash to throw at the mortgage to payoff in 3 years.  How can I get involved?

Doesn't the very first post or two tell you everything you need to know to get started?

I guess I don’t follow why people are referencing old company and good company, last time I was here Apple by was starting just his own company for this.

Ah.  Those are answered somewhere in the thread, but I couldn't find it easily.

The references to Old Company and New Company (or Not So Great Company That Pays Late and Good Company - all terms refer to the same two companies) are just to keep the company names private.  You can get the company names by PM to either @arebelspy or me.

There was talk of starting a TL company, but as far as I know that never materialized.

Kind of off topic for the question at hand at this specific moment but I hope him or yourself are trying/testing a card or two with that potential "3rd" service provider so you can give your feedback. I think it's a no-brainer, but... Not my thread.

Did @arebelspy ever talk to them?

We exchanged a few PMs but I'm not sure if he spoke with them or is testing them out or whatever. I have a tendency to write too much when I'm excited and I don't want to bother him about it. I already feel like I smothered him lol.

I'm personally satisfied with Good Company and don't really feel the need to try out any others.  But YMMV obviously.

tj

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6247 on: January 11, 2024, 06:46:19 PM »
6 years ago I applied for my first credit card with the purpose of starting the clock to get involved in selling tradelines, I read through this entire thread.  I got busy with work and doing bank bonuses for extra cash but now I have a 6 year history card with Barclays.  Now I want to make extra cash to throw at the mortgage to payoff in 3 years.  How can I get involved?

Doesn't the very first post or two tell you everything you need to know to get started?

I guess I don’t follow why people are referencing old company and good company, last time I was here Apple by was starting just his own company for this.

Ah.  Those are answered somewhere in the thread, but I couldn't find it easily.

The references to Old Company and New Company (or Not So Great Company That Pays Late and Good Company - all terms refer to the same two companies) are just to keep the company names private.  You can get the company names by PM to either @arebelspy or me.

There was talk of starting a TL company, but as far as I know that never materialized.

Kind of off topic for the question at hand at this specific moment but I hope him or yourself are trying/testing a card or two with that potential "3rd" service provider so you can give your feedback. I think it's a no-brainer, but... Not my thread.

Did @arebelspy ever talk to them?

We exchanged a few PMs but I'm not sure if he spoke with them or is testing them out or whatever. I have a tendency to write too much when I'm excited and I don't want to bother him about it. I already feel like I smothered him lol.

I'm personally satisfied with Good Company and don't really feel the need to try out any others.  But YMMV obviously.

How have you balanced signing up for cards with actual good signup bonuses vs cards that the good company pays you for?


A lot of the cards that seem to be on the good list a few pages back are from issuers I've never bothered with.

secondcor521

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6248 on: January 11, 2024, 07:28:36 PM »
I'm personally satisfied with Good Company and don't really feel the need to try out any others.  But YMMV obviously.

How have you balanced signing up for cards with actual good signup bonuses vs cards that the good company pays you for?

A lot of the cards that seem to be on the good list a few pages back are from issuers I've never bothered with.

For context, I have a long credit history, lots of cards from lots of issuers with lots of CL.  This is a result of an intertwined credit history with my Dad who shares my same first and last name, a good engineering manager salary, and playing a variety of credit card games for probably 20 years.  So now I already have pretty much as much CL from all the usual issuers that I can probably get given my credit and income situation.

It's also my opinions that a good piggybacking card is worth more than a signup bonus to me, and that the posts here opining on which cards were good/better/best/worst did not line up with my experience and personal preferences.

I've also decided that the "app-o-rama" approach that was popular a while ago doesn't work well for me any more.

Finally, as noted, I'm happy working with Good Company exclusively.  (If there were another trustworthy company that took cards I have that Good Company didn't/doesn't, I'd consider them.)

So what I do is every year or so, sit down and see which issuers Good Company supports that I don't have cards (or enough cards) with yet, and then see if there are any sign up bonuses for those cards.  That's how, for example, I ended up with a Barclays AARP card.  My previous Barclays hit the lifetime limit and I needed a replacement to start aging, and the AARP card had a $100 SUB on it.

But yes, I'm past the major issuers now, so I'm opening cards with the less common ones.  For example, I've recently got cards with NFCU and TD Bank, among some others.

Finally, personally I'm not scrapping for every nickel any more, so I'm aiming for a situation where I can have a lesser number of cards actively piggybacking with a higher dollar per slot commission.  It's the same work either way, so I'd prefer to get paid $200 per slot rather than $50 or $75.

As a consequence, I'm not really growing the number of cards in my piggybacking collection at this point very much.  I have six cards that don't piggyback for various reasons, 11 currently enrolled, and 5 that are aging and/or need work.

tj

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Re: Selling Tradelines / Piggybacking Part II: $1000+/hr, 20-40k/yr. Side Gig
« Reply #6249 on: January 11, 2024, 07:50:40 PM »
I'm personally satisfied with Good Company and don't really feel the need to try out any others.  But YMMV obviously.

How have you balanced signing up for cards with actual good signup bonuses vs cards that the good company pays you for?

A lot of the cards that seem to be on the good list a few pages back are from issuers I've never bothered with.

For context, I have a long credit history, lots of cards from lots of issuers with lots of CL.  This is a result of an intertwined credit history with my Dad who shares my same first and last name, a good engineering manager salary, and playing a variety of credit card games for probably 20 years.  So now I already have pretty much as much CL from all the usual issuers that I can probably get given my credit and income situation.

It's also my opinions that a good piggybacking card is worth more than a signup bonus to me, and that the posts here opining on which cards were good/better/best/worst did not line up with my experience and personal preferences.

I've also decided that the "app-o-rama" approach that was popular a while ago doesn't work well for me any more.

Finally, as noted, I'm happy working with Good Company exclusively.  (If there were another trustworthy company that took cards I have that Good Company didn't/doesn't, I'd consider them.)

So what I do is every year or so, sit down and see which issuers Good Company supports that I don't have cards (or enough cards) with yet, and then see if there are any sign up bonuses for those cards.  That's how, for example, I ended up with a Barclays AARP card.  My previous Barclays hit the lifetime limit and I needed a replacement to start aging, and the AARP card had a $100 SUB on it.

But yes, I'm past the major issuers now, so I'm opening cards with the less common ones.  For example, I've recently got cards with NFCU and TD Bank, among some others.

Finally, personally I'm not scrapping for every nickel any more, so I'm aiming for a situation where I can have a lesser number of cards actively piggybacking with a higher dollar per slot commission.  It's the same work either way, so I'd prefer to get paid $200 per slot rather than $50 or $75.

As a consequence, I'm not really growing the number of cards in my piggybacking collection at this point very much.  I have six cards that don't piggyback for various reasons, 11 currently enrolled, and 5 that are aging and/or need work.

I also share a first and last name with my dad - but how does that affect your own credit? Presumably your dad has a different SSN than you do?