Credit Card application

Which of the following is easier/easiest to apply? Citibank Platinum Morgan Stanley Platinum/Gold Nationwide B.S Gold (i am an existing Nationwide customer) Marks & Spencer &more card

I am asking because despite earning enough to apply for a platinum card and no debts (i.e., decent credit history), when I applied for an Accucard that has 7months 0% balance transfer, they only give me a 1,000 Limit (I have much higher credit limit with Capital One, and my credit file should show not only the high credit limit, but the fact that I pay off the balance on time every month). I wonder if this is because I have asked for a balance transfer of > 1,000 ?

Perhaps if I ask for NO balance transfer initially, then it would be eaiser to get a credit card (with a high credit limit)?

Also what is the normal minmum credit limit for a platinum card in the UK?

Reply to
peter
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Probably this one.

I dunno but I have a new Amex Platinum and its got 10,000 to start off on it.

Reply to
127.0.0.1

I suspect the Nationwide might be easier to apply for since you already are a customer, they might ask you fill in fewer forms than the others.

Reply to
Tumbleweed

How much does one normally need to earn to get a Citibank Platinum or an Amex Platinum then?

Reply to
peter

Credit limits are not generous, however.

I've had 3 of the above and got 10k from Morgan, 10k from Citi, but only

5k from NWide.

Check to see who's behind the M&S one - might be a Morgan or MBNA re-pop.

Reply to
The Blue Max

At least 8k per year.

Reply to
The Blue Max

Well, I would like to have a platinum if it's not going to be too much hassle. The only thing bad about my credit history is that my latest credit card bill is 1K +, which I hope to pay off with a balance transfer. Would my latest credit card statement balance show up on my credit file?

Also wonder how much is required to open a platinum card in general and with Citibank? Cos I think with Citibank, even with a current account, one have to have an opening deposit of 1K or something... just a rumour though!

Reply to
peter

Are you kidding, only 8k per annum to get a *Platinum* card? Now, is this taking the mickey or something? It's 8K for a "standard" entry level credit card, isn't it?

Reply to
peter

I applied for the amex platinum as it's got 2% cashback once you spend over

5k, but they wrote back saying I would have to cancel my amex "blue" as they don't allow you to have both.

I'm worried that I might loose all the cashback I have accrued on my blue if I do this, as I've still got a few months to wait till the anniversary date, but otherwise it sounds quite a good deal at 2% cashback.

Reply to
Adrian Boliston

Yep. It's taking the mickey :-)

The main thing I think is to be in a job, not be obviously poverty-stricken (i.e. your job's at McDonald's), and to have a sound credit history. 'Sound' means your payments are up to date and paid to terms. What you owe is less important as long as it's evident that you can handle it. 1k won't put them off. There is some evidence that having too many cards can impair your history in the eyes of some lenders. A flurry of credit searches looks bad too - suggests that others have turned you down.

Go to

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and sign up for the 30 day free trial. This enables you to view your Experian credit file online as often as you like. After 30 days they charge you 50 a year membership. I cancelled on day 29 - it's 8.25 a time if you don't subscribe and hopefully you won't be looking more thna 6 times a year. Your file shows your payment record on every agreement going back 6 years including closed ones. They like a lot of history to judge you by. If you don';t have any cards to begin with you'll struggle to get them. No form, see?

In the order I took them out I have:

MBNA limit 15,000 Morgan Stanley 10,000 (now cancelled - 0% scam only) Egg 10,000 (ditto) Halifax 10,000 (ditto) RBS Advanta 6,000 (ditto) Marbles 5,000 (ditto) Accucard 4,000 because they used to do 1.6% cashback for 6 months - now

0.8% Lloyds TSB: declined, I think because I already had an Accucard which is also Lloyds Nationwide 4,750 - initially for 0% purposes, now used as a 1% cashback card but soon reverts to 0.5% Amex Blue 8,000 - initially for 2% cashback purposes, now at 1%; keeping till they pay out my cashback Capital One: applied for 0% cashback, was offered 5.9%; I passed Citibank 10,000 - my current 0% deal.

I make about 70,000 a year.

The pattern here seems to be that Morgan, Egg, Halifax, Amex and Citi do good credit limits even if you already have lots of others, and the others don't (and I bank with Nationwide too).

Reply to
The Blue Max

I wonder if you do many searches for your *own* credit file as held by Experian, would other lenders see that those as a recorded enquiry, or would those searches be recorded in the same manner as if you pay a few quid to Experian to see your own file?

I could imagine with 70K, you could probably be allowed a few platinum cards, but I wonder whether 8K (I think you probably earn more working at MacDonalds?) is good enough to get a platinum card?

poverty-stricken

Reply to
peter

I've heard that this both is and is not the case, but I haven't gone to the horse's mouth, i.e. Experian (or Equifax or whomever else). I imagine they'd tell you if you asked. Experian does show who has searched your file and does not include your own searches in that - at least, not online it doesn't.

I can't recall anyone asking for more than about 25k, aside maybe from Amex. I have always suspected that this sort of pseudo restriction was inserted to encourage total no-hopers to self-reject by not applying in the first place.

I say this because although many application forms ask what you earn and where you work, I've never heard of any of them asking for permission to contact your employer to check. I doubt if any payroll department would ever release this over the phone. I filled one out that asked for the switchboard and my extension number, so I suppose they could have rung the main line and asked if a Mr Max Blue worked there. It would have validated that I had a job, though not my actual salary.

I would just apply and see what happens, but if you have few cards as yet, go for Nationwide first. They are IMHO the John Lewis of banks. In most areas, if there's a fair way and a ripoff way to treat the customers, NW will always do the fair way. Daily mortgage interest, no penalties for repaying a loan early, no loading cedit cards for overseas charges...all that stuff. Plus you can speak to an actual person at a branch who'll tell you their name and extension and will call you back.

Once you've got one you can start building a credit history that shows you can handle debt and at that point the others will become easy to get. Then you can start doing the old 0% shuffle.

Reply to
The Blue Max

They seem to use their own discretion quite a bit. I've been accepted for Gold and Platinum cards in the past when I was earning well below 20k. What seems to matter is a good credit history, rather than just a high salary. In some cases, a high salary can seem to make people a bit cavalier with money, leading to a bad credit history. Someone in particular who springs to mind, pays every utility bill only when the final reminders come in, misses credit card payments month after month, and had his (very expensive) car taken by bailiffs after repeatedly failing to pay a

110 council tax instalment. This is someone who makes around 90k per year, routinely leaves a credit balance of 15-20k in their current account and has around 100k in a savings account, but doesn't pay bills simply because he forgets to post the cheques off! He struggles to get credit limits of more than about 2000 because of this bad payment history.

I've had numerous different credit cards, personal loans etc over the last ten years, but none has ever asked for proof of income. They often seem to ring my work number once when processing the application, but only to verify that I actually work there. The only time I've been asked to prove my income was for a mortgage application.

Nick

Reply to
Nick Read

My wife received a mailing from Lloyds TSB last week offering her a Platinum Lloyds TSB Visa card with an already approved £8k limit. She is a house wife whose only income is £100 per month Child Benefit.

I already have a Platinum Lloyds TSB Visa card with a £5k limit so I phoned them up and asked if they would, in light of their offer to my wife (we have a joint TSB current account), (a) raise my credit limit to £7500 and (b) make my wife an additional cardholder. The answer was no.

Don't see the logic myself!

Alan

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Reply to
Alan Norris

Why does your wife not proceed with the application, then add you as an additional cardholder?

Reply to
Doug Ramage

We simply don't want any extra credit cards! She is also not a great believer in credit - prefers cash in purse.

Alan

Don't reply to this e-mail address - messages will be deleted unread. To reply to me take away the news and substitute alanc

Reply to
Alan Norris

Paying off yours and closing the account will keep the cards at their current level. However, dealing with the wife's psychology is another matter. :)

My mother-in-law stated she did not like credit and would never use it. I asked who applied for her mortgage - end of conversation. :)

Reply to
Doug Ramage

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