getting a credit card limit increase

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I want to get the limit raised on my credit card. My bank doesn't raise it automatically like on my other card. I'm worried they won't raise it though since I haven't really put much on it in the last 6 months. The card doesn't give me points so that's why I don't use it, but it has a ridiculously low interest rate. The other one with a high interest rate I just pay in full every month. Do you think they will decline my request if I haven't used the card much?
 
Haven't seen a credit card limit increase even knocked back...

However, if I'm having a particularly heavy month (like December is Council Rates, Gas, Electricity, Water, and Christmas), I'll just pay $1k off really early to free up balance.
 
All the bank cares about is making your money theirs. If you are financially okay, and you occasionally pay a penalty for late payments, then they are going to love you. Of course they will increase your limit. The more you owe, the more they make.
 
Originally Posted By: simple_gifts
why do you want the limit raised if you don't use it?
A higher limit should increase his credit score.
 
Originally Posted By: steveh
Originally Posted By: simple_gifts
why do you want the limit raised if you don't use it?
A higher limit should increase his credit score.


For a rainy day. This card doesn't give me any incentives like my other one, but it only has a 7.9% interest rate so if I need money to get me by for a few months before I can find another job. It doesn't help me much by putting a bunch on a credit card that has a 22-29% interest rate if I can't pay it off at the end of the month like I have been doing. Does that make sense?
 
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Originally Posted By: steveh
Originally Posted By: simple_gifts
why do you want the limit raised if you don't use it?
A higher limit should increase his credit score.



Not a bad idea either...
 
Do I have this correct? You pay the bank money for the privilege of spending your own money? How much more does that make everything you purchase cost?

If you were to tough it out for some period of time and saved some money could you then be your own bank? Then you could set your own credit limit and charge whatever interest rate you liked.

I did just that. It was really tough getting the system started but after that it was well worth the effort. I worked in Africa, Alaska and the Mid-East. This should be done when you're young and full of energy and don't know any better. I've never financed a car and after the first house I purchased on credit I never used credit again for the next two. On my second house I negotiated a big discount over other serious offers because we were able to close the deal in 5 days for cash. I've actually made payments to myself on things I already owned as part of my budget. I put the interest in a separate account. I called it the retirement account and it became just that.

Getting started is really, really difficult but the payoff of living debt free will last a lifetime and dramatically increase your buying power and sense of well being.
 
Originally Posted By: OneEyeJack
Do I have this correct? You pay the bank money for the privilege of spending your own money? How much more does that make everything you purchase cost?

If you were to tough it out for some period of time and saved some money could you then be your own bank? Then you could set your own credit limit and charge whatever interest rate you liked.

I did just that. It was really tough getting the system started but after that it was well worth the effort. I worked in Africa, Alaska and the Mid-East. This should be done when you're young and full of energy and don't know any better. I've never financed a car and after the first house I purchased on credit I never used credit again for the next two. On my second house I negotiated a big discount over other serious offers because we were able to close the deal in 5 days for cash. I've actually made payments to myself on things I already owned as part of my budget. I put the interest in a separate account. I called it the retirement account and it became just that.

Getting started is really, really difficult but the payoff of living debt free will last a lifetime and dramatically increase your buying power and sense of well being.




I do have money saved up. I could probably make it 6 months. Main my question here, which was answered once already was should I start using my credit card for a few months again before I go in and ask for an increase?
 
If I'm understanding you guys correctly then it shouldn't really matter if I don't use the card much to ask for an increase?
 
I guess don't ask BITOG if you should ask for an increase?

Worst they can do is say no.
 
I wouldn't want my credit card to be randomly . Actually none of my cards have been doing that.


As far as the score going up; you need to also check/confirm to see if they are doing a hard pull on your credit report when they are evaluating your request which will reduce your score, or if it's an automated/softpull based on data they already have.

Ask for it whenever you want it. Typically it's not related to usage, it's related to payoffs.

But if you just got increased already like 2weeks ago, and you're immediately asking them to increase again, it may bypass the auto-approval, and then to decision your request, they may need to do the hard pull which negates your benefit, if you are just doing this for fun.
 
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Originally Posted By: raytseng

As far as the score going up; you need to also check/confirm to see if they are doing a hard pull on your credit report when they are evaluating your request which will reduce your score, or if it's an automated/softpull based on data they already have.

+1 - Hard pull is not the end of the world score wise but it's certainly a possibility.
 
7.9% is not low. Inflation is around 0, Fed rate is around zero. What makes it right to charge 7.9%?
 
I've been checking into this myself for the same reason - rainy day (without having to obliterate my savings). My local credit union must make their credit decisions with a Magic 8 ball. A friend of mine pays his credit card off every two weeks, but maxes it out regularly, and they raised his limit automatically without him asking. I use mine sparatically, and when I do use it, I pay the balance in 30 days. I'll go months without using it sometimes. When I asked for a limit increase, it was denied.
 
I only have one card, but in my experience when i wanted a limit increase i just asked and they increased it by another $5000, even though i needed no where near that much credit. If you request an increase they will likely give you one whether you charge it up often or not. The real factor will likely be if you have had the card a little while.

If you've only had it a month and ask for and increase i would expect a no. If its been a year you will likely get and increase if you request one.
 
Originally Posted By: kozanoglu
What makes it right to charge 7.9%?



Maybe the fact that it is an UNSECURED credit line?
 
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