Thanks to all the FWF AOR gurus. I read the finance forum and learnt about AOR. After reading and reading and reading, I feel that there are still more to read and learn, and I am not sure if I am ready. Anyhow, I am eager to launch my first AOR. I am at the preparation stage right now.
Purposes: - Air mile bonus - 0% BT offers - Get more CL to consolidate and re-allocate into those CCs with 0% BT offers
Existing Credit Cards: Personal Chase United Mileage Visa $8,000, 1 year (08/2006) Chase Platinum Visa $8,500, 8 years (05/1999) Chase Buy.com Visa $17,000, 1 year (04/2006) Chase Rewards Mastercard $5,000, 3 years (10/2003) [AMEX Starwood Preferred Guest (AU) $10,000] AMEX Hilton HHonors Platinum $15,000, 6 years (07/2001) Citi AA Mastercard $20,400, 1 year (09/2005) Citi Dividend Mastercard $6,800, 2 years (02/2005) Discover Card $15,500, 8 years (06/1999) Patelco Gold Visa $25,000, 9 years (04/1998) Target Visa $7,000, 2 years (05/2005) Macy Visa $6,000, 2 years (08/2005)
Total Personal CL: $134,200
Business Chase Business Visa $16,500 AMEX Business Blue $15,000 Capital One Miles Business Visa $7,000 Advanta Business Mastercard $7,500
Total Business CL: $46,000
Total CL: $180,200 All credit cards have very low or no utilization. No BT with any of them currently. No mortgage (mortgage ended when house sold in Dec 2004), renting myFICO: 807 Privacy Guard: EQ – 767, EP – 779, TU – 766
Questions: - Are there any other cards that I should add or remove? For example: Are there any other good GM cards to apply? PNC bank Visa card now only offers 4 billing cycles, and there is no max on BT fee?
- Are there still any perks going through cardoffers.com or cardselections.com? Should I bother to go through those or any other referral sites?
- Some people have reported a limit of 2 Citi applications per 60 days but it is YMMV. Is it 2 personal + 2 business applications, or 2 applications altogether? Does it hurt to try to apply more?
- Some people suggest moving the billing cycle towards the end of the month. Will it create two billing cycles in a month? E.g. if an original billing cycle ends on the 18th, if I request to move to the 30th, will the credit card company create another billing cycle from 19th – 30th?
- Any other advice or recommendations?
Here is the final list of Credit Cards that are applied, in the priority order:
Citi AT&T Universal Rewards Card, 6,000 TYP, 0% BT 12 months, no BT fee Discover 0% For Life, apply over the phone, 0% BT 12 months, max BT fee $50, 2 purchase per month after 12 months
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Lost my AOR virginity on 8/21/2007 (Tuesday). The following shows the progress on each credit card:
(The cards are grouped by big issuers with multiple CC applications, followed by issuers with only 1 application. Within each group, it always lists the personal cards first, followed by business cards. The first card of each big issuer is the BT card. In each group, the declined cards are put at the end.)
AMEX Business Blue(existing card) - Pre-AOR on 8/20: increase CL online - 8/22: CL: $15,000 -> $500 (allocated to SimplyCash by AMEX)
AMEX IN: NYC, 0% BT 6 months, no BT fee - instant approval, CL = $10,000 - 8/24: Got a call and CSR told me that all the AMEX cards are approved. - CL: $10,000 -> $72,400 - 8/28: BT $35,475 (49% = $35,476) to Citi Dividend. - Shift billing cycle to from the 7th to 25th of the month.
American Express SimplyCashSM Business Card, 0% purchase 12 months - instant approval. Don't know CL yet. - 8/24: Got a call and CSR told me that all the AMEX cards are approved. - CL: $39,500 ($14,500 allocated from Business Blue by AMEX) - CL: $39,500 -> $1,000, allocated to IN:NYC.
AMEX BUSINESS GOLD REWARDS CARD, 25,000 bonus points with 1st purchase, 1st yr fee waived - instant approval, not sure what CL is. - 8/24: Got a call and CSR told me that all the AMEX cards are approved. - NPSL (No Preset Spending Limit)
Citi Dividend Platinum MasterCard (existing card) - 9/5: Saw BT fund $55,475 ($35,475 from AMEX +$20,000 from National City) deposited into the card. - 9/6: Saw additional BT fund $11,125 from National City deposited into the card. - 9/6: Request to issue credit balance check $66,600 online.
Citi AT&T Universal Rewards Card, 6,000 TYP, 0% BT 12 months, no BT fee - applied on 8/20 (Monday), as this card is the target Citi BT card. - 8/23: Got a call and CSR told me the CL of this card is $6,800. Can't request CLI, but I can re-allocate CL from other 3 cards: 1. Citi Universal: $9,600 -> $500 (I don't even know I still have this card) 2. Citi AA Advantage: $20,400 -> $2,000 3. Citi Dividend: $6,800 -> $500 - the total CL will be $6,800 + $ 9,100 + $18,400 + $6,300 = $40,600 - 8/29: Called and re-confirmed that CC is approved on 8/24 with CL = $40,600 (re-allocation).
Citi ProfessionalSM MasterCard, 15,000 TYP, 0% BT 12 months, no BT fee - 8/29: Called and was told that CC is approved on 8/28 with CL = $2,200.
Citi PremierPass® Card - Elite, 25,000 TYP, 0% BT 15 months, no max BT fee, $75 annual fee waived for Citigold member - 8/29: Called and was told that CC is denied due to > 2 applications within 60-day period.
Citi® Platinum American Express® Card, 15,000 TYP after $300 purchase, Free Airport VIP Lounge Access, 5xTYP on EDS - 8/23: Received email that application is denied due to > 2 applications within 60-day period.
Citi Business AA, 20,000 AA miles with $250 purchase, 1st yr fee waived - 8/29: Called and was told that CC is approved on 8/21 with CL = $15,000.
Citi Thank You Network - 9/1: Called and assigned username and password.
Chase Sony, $100 credit, 0% BT 12 months, max BT fee $75 - 8/29: Login online. See new Sony card with CL $5,500. - 8/30: Called and re-confirmed that the application is approved with stated CL $5,500. - CSR said that the new card is not showing up on the computer yet. Wait for a few days to consolidate CL. - 9/6: Called to activate the card. BT $35,000 (89% = $37,291) to Patelco Credit Union. - CSR said it will take 14-21 business days (instead of 3-5 business days because Patelco does not accept electronically.)
Chase United Mileage Plus Signature Visa® Card, 25,000 UA miles with $250 purchase, 1st yr fee waived - 8/30: Called and was told that the application is still pending. But it will soon be denied because it is > 1 personal & 1 business application. - CSR asked if I would like to drop the pending application and I said just let it sit there.
Chase Business Cash Rewards, 0% BT 12 months, max BT fee $75 - 8/30: Called and was told that the application is denied because > 1 personal & 1 business application.
Amazon.com Business Visa® Card, $30 Amazon credit after first purchase - apply on 8/22, day after AOR. - 8/30: Called and was told that the application is denied because it is > 1 personal & 1 business application.
Bank of America® Platinum Plus® MasterCard®, 0% BT 12 months, no BT fee - instant approval, CL = $17,200 - 8/29: Called and re-confirmed CC is approved on 8/21 with CL $17,200. - 8/30: Called and re-allocate CL from $17,200 to $21,600. - BT $21,500 to BoA checking account.
BoA Financial Rewards® Visa® Platinum Plus®, 0% BT 6 months, no BT fee - 8/29: Check online. Approved with CL $10,000. - 8/29: Called and re-confirmed CC is approved on 8/28 with CL $10,000. - 8/30: Called and re-allocate CL from $10,000 to $12,600. - BT $12,500 to BoA checking account.
BoA Rewards American Express Card, $50 credit, 0% BT 12 months, no max BT fee - 8/29: Called and was told CC is approved on 8/29 with CL $7,500. - 8/30: Called and re-allocate CL from $7,500 to $500.
BoA Platinum Plus® Business Rewards MasterCard®, 0% BT 9 months, no max BT fee - 8/27: called and told that it is approved. Don't know CL yet. - 8/29: Called and was told that CC is approved on 8/24, with CL = $15,000. CSR doesn't waive or cap the BT fee, so I can't BT with the business card. - She also mentioned that the CL cannot be re-allocated between personal and business cards. - 9/5: Received and activated card. Try to cap and waive BT fee but in vain. - 9/6: Called again but they don't waive the BT fee. They also had record about the BT fee conversation on 8/29.
BoA Bank Account - 9/4: Check BoA account and saw $21,500 from BoA MC deposited into checking. - Transfer the money into NEA checking account.
Discover 0% For Life, apply over the phone, 0% BT 12 months, max BT fee $50, 2 purchase per month after 12 months - applied on 8/20 (Monday) over the phone - got instant approval with pending CL = $10,000 - need to fax 1040 and W2 to finalize CL - 8/28: Got a call from Discover. My fax was received and the CL $10,000 is now approved. - Re-allocate from old Discover Card. CL $10,000 -> $27,000.
Discover Miles Business, 0% BT 12 months, max BT fee $75 - Got a call today (8/23). CSR knew that I had a personal card and another personal card under application. He told me that no more new credit can be granted. I can either cancel the business card application, or wait until the new personal card is approved and re-allocate some credit limit to the business card. - From this thread, sole proprietorship will have their business credit reported to the personal credit report.
Washington Mutual Platinum MasterCard®, 0% BT 12 months, max BT fee $75 - Can't apply through the link in OP. It seems that there is a mix up. It is a personal card application, but the form asked for business information. When I clicked the "Confirm" button, it displayed a warning that it is missing some fields which I believe belongs to the personal form. - Called Wamu and CSR said that I had submitted a personal card application. (I suspect the business link in the OP is a personal application instead of business card application. I think both links are messed up.) - It was declined because the system thought that I don't have a checking account. I told them I do have a checking account and finally got approved with CL $3000. 8/31: Called and tried to BT $3,000. Only $2,825 is allowed, because a minimum of $100 has to be retained, less the $75 BT fee. In the last minute, I backed out and told the CSR not to do the BT as I think the amount is too small, and the BT fee is expensive. - 9/6: Called again and performed BT of $3,000. Only $2,825 is allowed (min $100 + $75 BT fee).
Washington Mutual Business Platinum MasterCard®, 0% BT 12 months, max BT fee $75 - instant decline. - For business application, she told me that I need to have the invitation letter, or go to the financial center to apply. I guess she doesn't know what she is talking because I can definitely apply a Wamu business card online from the Wamu website.
National City Elite Visa, 0% BT 6 months, no BT fee - 8/24: Got a call and CSR told me that CC is approved with CL: $12,500. - 8/28: Called to perform BT $11,125 (89% of CL $12,500) to Citibank Dividend.
National City Visa® Business, 0% BT 6 months, no BT fee - 8/22: Got a call. They need to fax me some paperwork to obtain signature. - 8/24: Got a call and CSR told me that CC is approved with CL: $15,000. - 8/28: Called to perform BT $20,000 to Citibank Dividend after CLI to $20,000.
National City Bank - 9/6: Called to apply checking account and debit card in order to get the points.
Juniper National Park Foundation Platinum Visa Card, 0% BT 12 months, max BT fee $50 - instant decline. It stated that I need to provide additional information. - 8/22: Called and CSR told me that I need to mail them a copy of green card, birth cert, or passport. - 8/31: Checked online and saw that application is denied. - Called to try to appeal, but CSR said that the credit department is closed. Have to call back on Tuesday.
Bank Atlantic Rewards Business Master Card, 0% BT 15 months, max BT fee $75 - 8/28: Called and CSR said that she couldn't locate my application. Maybe wait for a few days and call again.
Baylor USBank Visa, 0% BT 6 months, no BT fee - apply on 8/22, day after AOR. - 8/28: Called and was told that application is canceled. CSR said, "Not want to extend the relationship with you. Too many credit inquiries. Lived in an apartment with good income earned. Not sure the intention of applying the credit card. Very suspicious." He was quite impolite at the end.
M&T Bank Business Platinum Rewards Card, 0% BT 6 months, no BT fee - Got a call today (8/23). CSR asked the business name and I said I used my name as business name. And there is no business license. I told her I am selling stuff on eBay. Since I used the home address as the business address, she said that I need to submit lease agreement and pay stub. - 15 minutes later, she got back. She talked to her supervisor and said that they need business license. Just selling something part time online is not considered as a business. They cannot continue to process my application. Application is denied.
Patelco Gold Visa (existing card) - Post-AOR on 8/21: request CLI. They will call me back with result in 24 hours. - 8/22: CL increases from $25,000 -> $50,000.
RBS Platinum™ MasterCard®, 0% BT 10 months, max BT fee $60 - applied on 8/16 (Thursday) with BT request = $24,000 - got instant approval - called on 8/20 (Monday) to confirm that CL = $16,000. - request BT during application - 8/27: called and told that BT check of $16,000 is sent to Patelco credit union on 8/24.
Wachovia Visa Card, 0% BT 6 months, no BT fee - applied over the phone. - 8/27: called and told that CC is approved with CL = $8,000 - 8/28: Called 3 times and all 3 CSRs said that it is a new account and CL can only be increased after 6 months. - 8/31: Called and talked to CSR at underwriting department. BT $8,000 to Patelco Credit Union. No BT fee. It will take 10-14 business days.
HSBC Platinum Mastercard w/ Cash Back, 0% BT 12 months, max BT fee $99 - apply on 8/22, day after AOR. - 8/26: Approved by checking here. CL = $600. - 8/27: called to increase CL but no dice. - 8/28: Called and talked to CSR. I wanted to make sure that the BT of $24,500 did not go through because I have only got $600 CL. CSR said he is pretty sure but would transfer to CSR in credit department to confirm. - Found out that BT of $450 is already performed. Darn. There is a $15 BT fee. Can't cancel now. There is certainly risk to request BT during application.
Kroger 1-2-3 Reward Mastercard, 0% BT 12 months, max BT fee $75 - 8/31: Called and said that application is denied due to excessive inquires in CR.
Advanta Business card with Rewards, 0% BT 15 months, max BT fee $50 - instant decline. It stated that I already have an Advanta. - 8/22: Called and CSR told me the only way is to cancel the old card and re-apply for the new card after 48 hours. - canceled existing Advanta card on 8/22 after denial due to having one already - 8/27 morning: called to re-process denied application (no new credit pull required) - 8/27 afternoon: received emails stating that application is approved. Don't know CL yet. - 8/29: Called to check the new application status and CL. CC is approved with CL = $2,500. Apply an appeal to the credit department. CSR asked for business information and personal income. Will know in a few days.
Capital One® Visa® Business Platinum Credit Card, 0% BT 12 months, no BT fee - instant decline. - CSR said the application is expired. I think because I applied through the saved link, which isn't the latest link. - Per Capital One policy, cannot apply for the next 45 days
Fifth Third Bank Business MasterCard, 0% BT 12 months, no BT fee - 8/29: Called and CSR said she couldn't see my application. But I did see them pulling my credit report. Has someone got similar experience? I will wait for a few days and call again.
Total: 9 out of 16 business credit card applications approved. 13 out of 19 personal credit card applications approved.
Message edited by: jleung on 2007-09-06 14:18:07 CDT
its 2 citi cards of each type, 2 personal cards, 2 business cards, and the professional card (which is a hybrid personal/business card) you should be able to get.
i think you are doing good. leave one citi personal and business card alone because you will have to BT launder cards that can't send checks or direct deposit to checking (such as the bank atlantic biz card) through a citi card and do a credit balance refund.
as for the chase cards, reallocate/consolidate your chase personal cards to the Sony (it comes with a welcome BT check), I think the chase business cards come with a BT check as well from what i've read in other AOR's, the citi cards you can request BT checks online, BOA will direct deposit to checking, Kroger personal finance 1-2-3 rewards comes with a BT check a week after you get your card, and discover will send BT checks upon request.
that is a boatload of new cards...slow your roll, my friend.
you already have several chase and citi cards, so i'm guessing you're near the max CL exposure with them. therefore, there's no need to apply for 15 chase and 15 citi. just pick one or 2 cards (preferably business) from each issuer.
also, remember to reallocate. for example, no need to apply for 2 AMEX in:XXX cards - 1 is fine.
as far as specifics...
BofA - looks like you're a BofA virgin! nice, they're gonna love ya. apply for 2 or 3 personal and 2 business. find that "generic" personal card with 0% for 12 months and no bt fees. this will be the destination for all your new BofA credit. (your cardoffers link for the Financial Rewards card is only 6 months).
USAA - careful - they are no longer credit balance friendly (look for the adbracadabra thread). the good news is they offer no fee cash advances, but you need to take the CA BEFORE you transfer a balance. (btw, does your patelco card have no fee cash advances?)
- You mention miles as a priority, but with whom? You've got America, United, Midwest, along with an existing Starwood. Any particular loyalty to any particular joint that should be a concern in tweaking your AOR? - Too many citibank cards, 4 personal, 1 AT&T, 1 Prof, and 2 business? - Too many Chase cards (4 personal, 3 business, including a couple with no particular "deal" that other cards don't have?). - Two AMEX IN cards. - Five BofA cards, and not a single one is the zero-fee BT card that's been done in previous AORs. - USAA is sometimes very credit balance unfriendly.
One final thing to not about the UA cards. If you're really gung-ho about United, there's a super premium card that not only grants you miles, but EQMs to qualify for elite status, as you spend. Annual fee is unavoidable on that one, though.
Squeezer99, thank you for your information on the BT. I am planning to reference the following links when the BT time comes after the AOR applications are approved: BT1 BT2 BT3
lhendricks92 said:that is a boatload of new cards...slow your roll, my friend.I thought in general, the more CCs you apply, the more CL you will get, isn't that true? I tried to apply more cards just to consolidate the CL together into 1 card.
lhendricks92 said:you already have several chase and citi cards, so i'm guessing you're near the max CL exposure with them. therefore, there's no need to apply for 15 chase and 15 citi. just pick one or 2 cards (preferably business) from each issuer.My utilization is low or zero in most of the cards. I am not sure if it is what you mean by "max CL exposure". I plan to request CLI on the existing cards right after the AOR. I apply some of the cards solely because of the air miles and bonus, not BT.
lhendricks92 said:also, remember to reallocate. for example, no need to apply for 2 AMEX in:XXX cards - 1 is fine.But will I get more CL when I am applying 2 cards? And then I can consolidate the CL together?
lhendricks92 said:BofA - looks like you're a BofA virgin! nice, they're gonna love ya.Yes, I am a BofA credit card virgin. But I do have savings, checking, debit card, and NEA account with them.
lhendricks92 said: apply for 2 or 3 personal and 2 business. find that "generic" personal card with 0% for 12 months and no bt fees. this will be the destination for all your new BofA credit. (your cardoffers link for the Financial Rewards card is only 6 months). I will find out and replace with the 12 months "generic" one.
lhendricks92 said:USAA - careful - they are no longer credit balance friendly (look for the adbracadabra thread). the good news is they offer no fee cash advances, but you need to take the CA BEFORE you transfer a balance.Maybe I should drop this card then?
lhendricks92 said:(btw, does your patelco card have no fee cash advances?)They are currently running a promotion with no BT or cash advance fee until August 31. Their BT rate is 8.9%.
all issuers have a maximum amount of credit they will extend to you. if you've reached this limit, applying for more cards will not gain you any more CL (caveat: some issuers treat business and personal CL somewhat separately). for example, citi gave me a $500 CL on my new driver's edge card. why? because i already had over $50K of credit with them.
remember, each new PERSONAL account will cost you FICO points. you want to be as efficient with new lines as possible.
EDIT: and not just FICO points..."too many recent accounts" is a common reason for application rejections. you should always be thinking about your next app spree.
Don't let BOA try to downsize your applications. They kept me to one biz and on personal card. If they call and try to get your to pick between your apps, make sure that they are giving you a sweet credit line, or don't back down. Say you need ALL of there cards. Be prepared to say why. They caught me off guard.
I had only one citi card, and they only gave me the professional and a business card. They denied me one the ATT one and another business. So while I heard the 2 in 60 days, for me, it was less. I got good lines at least.
markkundinger said:Oh man, I've got a bad feeling about this one.
- You mention miles as a priority, but with whom? You've got America, United, Midwest, along with an existing Starwood. Any particular loyalty to any particular joint that should be a concern in tweaking your AOR? - Too many citibank cards, 4 personal, 1 AT&T, 1 Prof, and 2 business? - Too many Chase cards (4 personal, 3 business, including a couple with no particular "deal" that other cards don't have?). - Two AMEX IN cards. - Five BofA cards, and not a single one is the zero-fee BT card that's been done in previous AORs. - USAA is sometimes very credit balance unfriendly.
One final thing to not about the UA cards. If you're really gung-ho about United, there's a super premium card that not only grants you miles, but EQMs to qualify for elite status, as you spend. Annual fee is unavoidable on that one, though.
I prefer UA and AA miles, as I need to travel between US and Canada a few times a year.
So in general too many cards from 1 issuer is not good? Again, my intent is to re-allocate the CL together into 1 card when/if the application is approved.
Again, maybe I should drop USAA?
I am not going to spend a lot, so I may not be able to collect a lot of miles with the UA premium card with annual fee. What is EQM?
find that "generic" personal card with 0% for 12 months and no bt fees. this will be the destination for all your new BofA credit. (your cardoffers link for the Financial Rewards card is only 6 months).
jleung said:find that "generic" personal card with 0% for 12 months and no bt fees. this will be the destination for all your new BofA credit. (your cardoffers link for the Financial Rewards card is only 6 months).
FYI, the Pulaski card may be a PIA. Here's a number to call before your app is submitted. Ask them what is needed in order to apply. They always seem to require a pay stub. Sometimes more. I just updated the FAQ link with their number. Here it is: 800-217-7715
Additionally you can look to cyberkost's experience here and here
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But I do have savings, checking, debit card, and 
