Its time to get started on round two. I may be shooting my wad a bit prematurely, as my last A0R was last October, but all inquiries are bumped, EXP is frozen (so getting approvals may take some time if I have to unfreeze it for anyone) and no inquiries will fall off in the next month anyways, and frankly I need something new to distract me right now.
My only concern is that I have 8 accounts that are 11 months old, so I might get flagged as having too many new accounts.
As before, I own a legit, operating C-Corp and will be applying for Biz cards under the corporate name/TaxID.
Household Income - $80,000 Business Revenue - $300,000
Credit Scores via PrivacyMatters-123: TU: 750 EQ: 766 EXP: unknown (EXP frozen so PM123 cant update it, last score was 668 back in April. I'd ballpark it at 690-700 right now)
Scores include reported balances totaling $55,000, which will be paid off before applications are submitted.
No inquiries on TU or EQ, EXP will show about 20 (the most recent 7 being 11 months old) if someone insists on pulling it.
Goal is to pay HELOC back down to $0 (from $60k), and acquire $50-$75k cash between personal and biz accounts to put into savings accounts/CDs.
Existing Open Accounts (includes both personal accounts and corporate accounts):
Card Limit Date Opened
AMEX Blue Cash $20,000 8/03
AMEX Blue $ 7,000 8/03 (per credit report)
Bank of America Plat $24,400 10/07
Bank of America Plat $ 1,000 9/03
Bank of America AAA $ 500 7/03
BofA Elite Rewards $ 1,000 8/03
BofA Personal LOC $10,500 8/03
Chase Disney $ 1,000 10/06
Chase Sony $21,000 10/07
Citi AT&T $ 500 10/07
Citi Professional $10,000 10/07
Discover Card $ 1,502 8/95
Hooters Card $ 9,750 10/07
Juniper Nat Parks $ 7,700 10/07 (increased to $22,900 via Bank Atlantic Biz reallocation)
Key Bank $ 4,000 8/06
Key Bank Pers LOC $10,000 9/03
Nat City Lifespring $11,000 10/07
US Bank Baylor $18,000 10/07
Wachovia $ 5,000 2/07
(report is littered with misc closed accounts as well)
BIZ CARDS:
Advanta Biz $12,500
AMEX Blue Cash Biz $ 5,000
AMEX Plat Biz $20,000
Bank of America Biz $20,000
Bank of America Biz $17,750
Bank of America Biz $24,000
Bank Atlantic Biz $15,200 (now closed, line moved to National Parks card)
Chase Biz Cash Rew $ 1,000
Chase GM Biz $18,000
Citizens Bank Biz $ 5,000
CitiBusiness $15,000
Citi PremierPass Biz $10,000
Discover Biz $22,500
National City Biz $ 9,000
HSBC Biz $ 5,000
The plan:
1) Draw $60,000 from HELOC on 8/25.
2) Send pay-off payments to all* cards with outstanding balances on 8/26. Most have statement close dates at the end of the month, so these payoffs should correspond with their regular reporting cycles.
*Advanta, AMEX Plat Biz, and Discover Biz will still carry 0% balances, which is why those issuers have been excluded from my application list. Advanta has 4 months to go on its promo, AMEX has no useful cards right now, and I dont plan on utilizing my Discover limit unless I can find a Biz account application with a decent 0% BT offer.
3) Once payment posts (~8/28), consolidate Citi PremierPass Biz with CitiBiz, to avoid the upcoming annual fee for the PP card.
4) Once payment posts (~8/28), close Bank Atlantic Biz card and reallocate limit to Juniper National Parks card (to later be reallocated to a new Bank Atlantic card per Mr. Crawfish).
5) Once all payments post (~8/28), dispute outstanding balances with all three CRAs.
6) Once all accounts report zero balances (verified via PM123), pull trigger. Assuming that this will be around the 10th of Sept.
Experian will remain frozen. Previous EXP pullers include Bank of America, Chase, US Bank, and Elan (M&T, Cambridge). Last spring Citi insisted on pulling EXP for a CashReturns application (I didnt let them and the app was denied) although they've always pulled EQ until then. Any that will not pull an alternate report, I will unfreeze my report for a week (or give them my pin).
New applications (in order of appliction):
I'll reallocate my Juniper/Barclays lines to the new Bank Atlantic card, so the I Fly card would just add another new account on my credit report. Word is only one Barclay's Biz card allowed at a time, so Eastern Bank is out (although I might try it at the end to see what happens). And I already mentioned excluding Discover, although I might apply for the camera once the Biz card balance is paid off in November. Moved UPS Store and Cambridge Trust to 'maybe' list in agreement with markkundinger's opinions.
BT stretegy includes reallocating/consolidating accounts to allow for a single, large limit on Bank America Platinum, Chase Platinum, Citi Associate Bank, CitiBusiness, Chase Business Rebate, US Bank ProBull, and Bank Atlantic Biz. Wachovia Biz, M&T Biz, Cambridge Biz, and HSBC Biz will also be utilized assuming their limits make it worthwhile.
BT money will be cashed out via welcome checks/ACH deposits when available, pushed to my HELOC if needed, or filtered through a Citi account (Bank Atlantic).
Citi AMEX is included for the 15k TYP bonus, and to be my spender for the next year. Once the dust settles, I will also revisit Google Checkout, as 3% return is higher than the 2% GCO fee. Yes, the net is only 1%, but at a steady $2k every 4-5 days (my transaction rate per account last fall) that'd net ~$1500 profit over a year for minimal effort.
Should I drop the Chevy Chase Biz and UPS Store Biz cards, as they are also issued by Chase? I think I will gain minimal new limits from them on the personal side, but I dont know about the Biz side. These can be reallocated to other Chase cards, correct?
Will US Bank reallocate? Do they even allow multiple accounts?
Anyone know of any Biz cards from other issuers that have 0% BT promos? I'd like to add 3-5 more apps, but dont want to add any more personal accounts.
Why do the heloc advance so early? I'd be tempted to do it more like around 9/10.
We don't hear a lot about people getting Wachovia cards. Maybe they're getting denied.
Right now, you probably have a lot of cards that are both very new and have very small credit limits. It probably wouldn't hurt anything to close/consolidate this with older, bigger cards, just as cleanup.
4 Chase apps seems excessive, especially since you'll probably be reallocating.
At least one person has failed to reallocate between two US Bank personal cards.
I think I see two Elan biz apps and 1 US bank peronal app, that would be one app to many for US Bank, in my opinion.
I received a targeted offer for a Disco Biz card, 0% purchase for 6 mo or 1.9% BT for 15 months, so they're not completely dormant.
markkundinger said:Why do the heloc advance so early? I'd be tempted to do it more like around 9/10.I'm going to draw on the HELOC the day prior to sending pay-off payments. HELOC is BofA, checking account is BofA, and all payments will either be pushed or pulled from BofA checking, so the whole process can be completed, from HELOC draw to all credit card balances at zero, within 3 days. I want to do it now, as most of my accounts have statement-closings at the end of the month, and are typically updated on their own the first week of the month. This will minimize the number of accounts I have to dispute (and the length of time I have to wait) to get everything updated with a zero balance.
markkundinger said:Right now, you probably have a lot of cards that are both very new and have very small credit limits. It probably wouldn't hurt anything to close/consolidate this with older, bigger cards, just as cleanup.Believe it or not, it is rather cleaned up. My personal BofA cards (except the newest one) all have ex-MBNA billpay, so I'm reluctant to close any of them. I want to leave Chase and Citi an extra account hack at if they get the urge, and I'm hoping to get a capped BT offer on one of my BofA Biz cards before consolidating them. Not too many other consolidation options. The Bank Atlantic and Citi PremierPass Biz will be closed soon, as will the National Parks card after reallocating to the new Bank Atlantic card, Sony card after reallocating, newest BofA Platinum after reallocating, AT&T card, etc.
Its time to get started on round two....Should I drop the Chevy Chase Biz and UPS Store Biz cards, as they are also issued by Chase? I think I will gain minimal new limits from them on the personal side, but I dont know about the Biz side. These can be reallocated to other Chase cards, correct?IMO, don't drop them... if denied, call for reconsideration (i.e., if I close my Chevy Chase Biz, would I be approved for this CHASE Biz Rebate?)Will US Bank reallocate? Do they even allow multiple accounts?I'm unfamiliar with reallocation, but I am almost certain they do not approve for more than one...other members??? data points?
as for closing the National Parks card after reallocating to the new Bank Atlantic card... Why close when you can leave it open as a 3.0 destination for your 2.0 used Bank Atlantic line? (rinse and repeat).
Glitch99 said:Experian will remain frozen. Previous EXP pullers include Bank of America, Chase, US Bank, and Elan (M&T, Cambridge). Last spring Citi insisted on pulling EXP for a CashReturns application (I didnt let them and the app was denied) although they've always pulled EQ until then. Any that will not pull an alternate report, I will unfreeze my report for a week (or give them my pin).
Green for you.
Anyways I am preparing for my AOR2.0 as you have probably seen. But I am still a little confused as the process of dealing with a frozen EXP.
When do you plan on applying for these EXP pullers? (especially the BoA cards?)
Same day as the others? The day after?
When you say you will give them the pin, do you simply apply for the BOA card the same day you apply for everything else and then call them when they come back and say declined could not verify report?
I had good results (all approvals, many instant, good sized CLs) with a handful of 11 month old accounts last February when I did a micro-AOR (of about ~8 apps), so I think the 11 month old accounts shouldn't hold back your success.
You might consider the strategy of paying balances down, and waiting 1-2+ months to see what kind of tasty pre-approved offers roll in. When I did this (february '08) here were a few I got: Am Ex Blue 0% 12 mo $99 BT fee, Am Ex Gold 50k bonus MR points, Chase Freedom PLUS $300 bonus, Chase Platinum 15-mo 0% w/no BT fee on app, etc. Of course, pre-approved offers may vary and especially now with the worse credit climate, but maybe not and maybe you'll get something even better.
Also going 1-2+ months without holding a 0% balance might also help issuers view you as more likely of a profitable customer (and get you less liklihood of A/A) than going from one large 0% BT immediately into another. I know the cost would be an extra 1-2 months of no 0% BT profit, but the long term benefits may outweigh this cost.
DjPiLL said:Glitch99 said:Experian will remain frozen. Previous EXP pullers include Bank of America, Chase, US Bank, and Elan (M&T, Cambridge). Last spring Citi insisted on pulling EXP for a CashReturns application (I didnt let them and the app was denied) although they've always pulled EQ until then. Any that will not pull an alternate report, I will unfreeze my report for a week (or give them my pin).
Green for you.
Anyways I am preparing for my AOR2.0 as you have probably seen. But I am still a little confused as the process of dealing with a frozen EXP.
When do you plan on applying for these EXP pullers? (especially the BoA cards?)
Same day as the others? The day after?
When you say you will give them the pin, do you simply apply for the BOA card the same day you apply for everything else and then call them when they come back and say declined could not verify report?I'm going to apply for them all at once, and see what happens. Any that insist on pulling EXP (even after a phone call trying to convince them otherwise), I'll reevaluate, determine if I want to even bother, and if so then unfreeze it and let them at it. It will hopefully minimize the EXP pulls, and keep what ones there are all bunched into a day or two.
I dont know what any of them will do - pull an alternate, halt the app until I request an alternate pull, or require an unfreeze. Plus I dont even know what some will try to pull (Citi's always pulled EQ, but a CashReturns app last January insisted on EXP). I see no benefit to trying to time expected EXP apps verses the others; it should all be worked out by the time any new accounts report regardless.
jakeru said:I had good results (all approvals, many instant, good sized CLs) with a handful of 11 month old accounts last February when I did a micro-AOR (of about ~8 apps), so I think the 11 month old accounts shouldn't hold back your success.
You might consider the strategy of paying balances down, and waiting 1-2+ months to see what kind of tasty pre-approved offers roll in. When I did this (february '08) here were a few I got: Am Ex Blue 0% 12 mo $99 BT fee, Am Ex Gold 50k bonus MR points, Chase Freedom PLUS $300 bonus, Chase Platinum 15-mo 0% w/no BT fee on app, etc. Of course, pre-approved offers may vary and especially now with the worse credit climate, but maybe not and maybe you'll get something even better.
Also going 1-2+ months without holding a 0% balance might also help issuers view you as more likely of a profitable customer (and get you less liklihood of A/A) than going from one large 0% BT immediately into another. I know the cost would be an extra 1-2 months of no 0% BT profit, but the long term benefits may outweigh this cost.
Best of luck!Glad to hear of the success with 11-month-old accounts.
I dont want to wait, as I'll be carrying a $60k balance on my HELOC until its moved back to 0% cards. I'm not going to gamble on getting preapproval offers to justify that expense. And I churned about $200k worth of GCO purchases last winter using cards from many different issuers, so if I'll ever look like a profitable customer it's now.
jackcrawfish said: Will US Bank reallocate? Do they even allow multiple accounts?I'm unfamiliar with reallocation, but I am almost certain they do not approve for more than one...other members??? data points?I saw in SecondCor521's March A0R he both successfully reallocated with US Bank, and used an existing account's limit to establish a new account ("shiftage", in his words).
as for closing the National Parks card after reallocating to the new Bank Atlantic card... Why close when you can leave it open as a 3.0 destination for your 2.0 used Bank Atlantic line? (rinse and repeat).Good point, I prob will leave it alone with a minimal limit.
Balances are paid off, or payments are being posted today. Disputed the 5 outstanding balances showing on my personal credit on TU, EQ, and EXP using these links. When submitting the disputes, I noticed my US Bank Baylor account's limit was INCREASED to $18k at some point.
Called Citi to consolidate PremierPass Biz ($10k limit) into CitiBiz Plat Select ($15k limit). CSR said only $8k could be reallocated, submitted the request, should see online within a day or two. Will call back to close the PP card once it processes, as a annual fee will be charged in a month, and will try to consolidate the remaining $2k limit at that time.
Closed BA Biz card, and called Barclay's per this post by jackcrawfish to reallocate $15k limit to my Nat Parks card. First call, CSR sent me to BA customer service, who said it couldnt be done. Called back immediately, CSR submitted a request to Business Dept, saying it should be completed within 24-48 hours and they will call me when it is done. Per jackcrawfish's post, I called back again 20 minutes later, yet another CSR said the same. I couldnt get it done instantly, but it should be done within a day per multiple CSRs.
Glitch99 said:And I churned about $200k worth of GCO purchases last winter using cards from many different issuers, so if I'll ever look like a profitable customer it's now.*gasp!* And makes sense to me! Good luck.
props belong to lhendricks92 and markkundinger for my Barclay's experience...I was merely the soldier carrying out action plans / suggestions...Called Citi to consolidate PremierPass Biz ($10k limit) into CitiBiz Plat Select ($15k limit). CSR said only $8k could be reallocated, submitted the request, should see online within a day or two. Will call back to close the PP card once it processes, as a annual fee will be charged in a month, and will try to consolidate the remaining $2k limit at that time.good luck with that one as I was consistently (5-6 times) told this was not an option to move biz PPass line to biz PlatSelect line.
Glitch99 said:Closed BA Biz card, and called Barclay's per this post by jackcrawfish to reallocate $15k limit to my Nat Parks card. First call, CSR sent me to BA customer service, who said it couldnt be done. Called back immediately, CSR submitted a request to Business Dept, saying it should be completed within 24-48 hours and they will call me when it is done. Per jackcrawfish's post, I called back again 20 minutes later, yet another CSR said the same. I couldnt get it done instantly, but it should be done within a day per multiple CSRs.As of tonight, National Parks card shows available credit limit of $22,900. Score! Much thanks to jackcrawfish, lhendricks92, and markkundinger for working out this step.
(Now watch their computer reduce the line after a routine account review in the next couple days... **bites tongue**)
The question now - do I move the card down the list of apps, assuming there is no new credit to be had and I'll be getting a $20k limit (by reallocating) regardless?
markkundinger said:I would say the reallocation potential makes a Barclays app HIGHER priority, not lower.How so? My thinking was that I just need an approval as the credit limit already exists, whereas with Chase and (especially) Citi I'll have a chance of scoring atleast one decent new line.
Thats why I already have BofA and USBank halfway down the list, the new account will be established using my existing limit so I dont need them to see a clean report for a big new line, just good enough for them to say 'yes'. Or is this theory flawed?
Glitch99 said:markkundinger said:I would say the reallocation potential makes a Barclays app HIGHER priority, not lower.How so? My thinking was that I just need an approval as the credit limit already exists, whereas with Chase and (especially) Citi I'll have a chance of scoring atleast one decent new line.
Thats why I already have BofA and USBank halfway down the list, the new account will be established using my existing limit so I dont need them to see a clean report for a big new line, just good enough for them to say 'yes'. Or is this theory flawed?Although I'm prone to doing as mark says for nearly all other points he makes, I am inclined to siding with you on this one, Glitch...
An added reason to place them lower on your list is they pull bumpable TU...
Depending on how hard TU gets hit with your first 6 apps, you could
(a) wait to apply for Bank Atlantic card because within 4 weeks TU will see bumpage or if they don't get many TU hits,
(b) apply same day and get approved my shifting personal credit line over
NOTE: How many daily credit monitoring services do you have? If more than 2, might I make a suggestion? Use 1st service 60 minutes after 6th app (Citi AMEX as it stands now), observe inquiries. Apply for next set of apps. Use 2nd service 60 minutes after 10th app (ATT Biz) and again, observe inquiries. Anything after that card, IMO, is a bit desperate and not worth more inquiries...
You may change your order of APPS 7-10 based on inquiries observed. Also (self-serving), it would provide fellow FW members datapoints for how long some issuers take to pull credit report...
jackcrawfish said:(a) wait to apply for Bank Atlantic card because within 4 weeks TU will see bumpage The problem with this is that new accounts w/balances will have reported by then, and its likely Juniper will slash that $22,900 limit once they see the new balances so I dont want to sit on it too long. Their computer tried cutting my $7,700 limit last winter with similar outstanding balances.
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