Author Topic: Help me get approved for a credit card  (Read 912 times)

salt cured

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 367
Help me get approved for a credit card
« on: February 26, 2021, 12:20:18 PM »
The last four times I've applied for a credit card, I've struck out (these were pretty basic no-fee cards from Wells Fargo, Capitol One x2, and Amazon). I have 12 cards, the most recent being an Apple card opened in Dec '20 and before that a Chase Freedom Flex in Oct '20. I use 5-6 of these regularly. Available credit is $200k (1% usage). Credit score is around 810. Income is $220k. I have had 9 inquiries in the last 2 years.

Is it a matter of waiting for some of those inquiries to drop off? Nine does seem high, but I started getting denied back when I had 5. Should I close some of the cards I'm not using to bring down my available credit? Should I increase my usage?

What do the pro churners recommend?
« Last Edit: February 26, 2021, 12:21:57 PM by salt cured »

Catbert

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 3298
  • Location: Southern California
Re: Help me get approved for a credit card
« Reply #1 on: February 26, 2021, 12:51:37 PM »
So you've applied for 4 cards in the past 2 months?  What reason was given for the turn downs?  Especially if it's "too many recent inquiries" you need to take a break.

DH and I each stay around 5/24 so we get 2-3 new cards a year each.  Not a massive churner but plenty for us.  For us it's a marathon, not a sprint.

ixtap

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4561
  • Age: 51
  • Location: SoCal
    • Our Sea Story
Re: Help me get approved for a credit card
« Reply #2 on: February 26, 2021, 12:55:16 PM »
If I were in your shoes, I would cancel any cards that you don't use regularly, have the limit reduced on others, then a few months for all of that to be reflected on the reports before trying again.

bacchi

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 7056
Re: Help me get approved for a credit card
« Reply #3 on: February 26, 2021, 01:42:50 PM »
What catbert wrote. Too many too soon.

Take a break. Work on some bank bonuses for a few months.

salt cured

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 367
Re: Help me get approved for a credit card
« Reply #4 on: February 26, 2021, 02:30:59 PM »
So you've applied for 4 cards in the past 2 months?  What reason was given for the turn downs?

Yeah I guess it was 4 in 2 months. I don't remember the exact reasons, but I think the Barclays letter implied I wouldn't carry a balance/make them money. Sounds like I need cool off for a while and maybe close a card or two.

Thanks all.

doggyfizzle

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 380
Re: Help me get approved for a credit card
« Reply #5 on: February 26, 2021, 02:34:01 PM »
Cap1 isn’t surprising - they pull from all 3 bureaus so all future issuers will note those inquiries.  Also, why on earth are you wasting inquiries on junky cards from WF, Capital1, and the Chase Amazon card?

I’d recommend you get a plan in place for what you want to accomplish with a new card.  Are you trying to build up transferable points? Cash back? Or just build out a credit card portfolio that optimizes category spend?  I’d suggest a 6 month cool-down period, and close some cards that don’t get used all that often, as AAoA isn’t really that much of a factor in your credit score compared to credit utilization and payment history.