6K credit line too low.

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Keepcalm
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6K credit line too low.

Post by Keepcalm »

My priority is to consolidate/simplify my banking footprint. Think minimalism. Tidyness. This sacrifice is worth a few dings on my FICO score if need be.

Anyway, I have a Capital One Venture card I use, which is nice as I travel once per year on vacation and can continue to earn ticket rewards throughout the year. The CL on this card is 24,000 and I never see myself ever needing any more than that, if even a fraction of it at any given time. The only reason I could think of using more than 15% of it at a time would be an unexpected emergency.

I also have (2) USAA cards. One has a limit of 6,000 the other 7,000. Because of my Capital One Venture card, these are bothering me having them laying around because I do not see myself using them. It also prevents me from having all my banking under one simple roof (Capital One). I have a Checking and Savings with Capital One as I do USAA however, I'm going to migrate my entire banking over to which ever companies credit cards I decide to retain.

So, my main question is out of your experiences with the two banks, and taking the CL of the cards into consideration. With simplicity the priority who would you go with?


Keep USAA's two cards and cancel my C1 card, or keep the C1 card and cancel the (2) USAA cards? I will then end up banking entirely with that bank.

Cheers.
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Pajamas
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Re: 6K credit line too low.

Post by Pajamas »

I think it would be best to have have one card from each of two issuers if you are going to have two cards so that you aren't reliant on one issuer in case of anything unexpected.
sport
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Re: 6K credit line too low.

Post by sport »

IMO, it is not a good idea to use a credit card issued by the bank where you have your checking/saving accounts. The reason is this: Credit card terms and conditions generally include a provision that in the event of a dispute or non-payment, the bank has the right to raid your other accounts to make them whole. I don't want my CC companies to have access to my bank accounts.
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ResearchMed
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Re: 6K credit line too low.

Post by ResearchMed »

Agree strongly with both of the previous comments.

You could also ask to increase the credit line on those smaller, and then perhaps only use one of them, rather than keeping both.

But keep a backup card active, always, in case of some problem with the main one (especially if while traveling!).

RM
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flamesabers
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Re: 6K credit line too low.

Post by flamesabers »

OP,

Which USAA credit cards do you have? If you have the 2.5% cashback Limitless Visa and/or the 5% cashback on gas Amex card, I suggest keeping them. If you don't have them, I suggest getting them unless you already have better cards elsewhere.
Pajamas wrote:I think it would be best to have have one card from each of two issuers if you are going to have two cards so that you aren't reliant on one issuer in case of anything unexpected.
I agree with this. If USAA or Capital One ever decides to close your credit cards out of the blue, it's always good to have a backup card to minimize the disruption.
sport wrote:IMO, it is not a good idea to use a credit card issued by the bank where you have your checking/saving accounts. The reason is this: Credit card terms and conditions generally include a provision that in the event of a dispute or non-payment, the bank has the right to raid your other accounts to make them whole. I don't want my CC companies to have access to my bank accounts.
You could always keep a minimum balance in your checking account until you need to payoff your credit card or other types of bills. That's what I do with my USAA checking and credit cards.
student
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Re: 6K credit line too low.

Post by student »

Pajamas wrote:I think it would be best to have have one card from each of two issuers if you are going to have two cards so that you aren't reliant on one issuer in case of anything unexpected.
I agree. If possible, have one VISA and one Mastercard.
Topic Author
Keepcalm
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Re: 6K credit line too low.

Post by Keepcalm »

Thanks for all the feedback.
jlcnuke
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Re: 6K credit line too low.

Post by jlcnuke »

For ease and simplification, if none have an annual fee I'd just keep them all. Doing nothing is the simplest solution...
kelvan80
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Re: 6K credit line too low.

Post by kelvan80 »

If you are active duty and deploy, USAA offers 0% interest during the deployment and for awhile after.
mega317
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Re: 6K credit line too low.

Post by mega317 »

jlcnuke wrote:For ease and simplification, if none have an annual fee I'd just keep them all. Doing nothing is the simplest solution...
I was going to post the same thing, but then I realized I'd monitor the activity anyway looking for fraud. You might be able to set up text alerts for all transactions, but that probably takes as long as cancelling the card.
bayview
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Re: 6K credit line too low.

Post by bayview »

Call USAA and ask if they'd combine the credit limit onto one card. They might want to go $1-2k less than the combined limit, but that's not the end of the world. If they will, then close the other.

Whichever your Cap One card is (Visa vs MC), keep the opposite USAA card. You want to diversify both the lenders and the card type. I'm guessing it's a Visa, in which case you'd want to keep the USAA MC, if you have one. If your second USAA card is AmEx, that's not the end of the world.

I wouldn't dump USAA yet. I'm still grimly waiting for their 2.5% card to be offered in my state. 30+ year member, grrr.
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Gronnie
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Re: 6K credit line too low.

Post by Gronnie »

You need a minimum of three cards in order to get the best FICO score, so just keep them all. Ask the existing ones you are considering closing if there is a no hard pull credit line increase available.

It has also been mentioned above that it is a terrible idea to have all your eggs in one basket, ie do all your banking at one institution. I would have backup cards as well as at least one backup checking elsewhere.
rec7
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Re: 6K credit line too low.

Post by rec7 »

Gronnie wrote:You need a minimum of three cards in order to get the best FICO score, so just keep them all. Ask the existing ones you are considering closing if there is a no hard pull credit line increase available.

It has also been mentioned above that it is a terrible idea to have all your eggs in one basket, ie do all your banking at one institution. I would have backup cards as well as at least one backup checking elsewhere.
My score is 808 with two cards.
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Strayshot
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Re: 6K credit line too low.

Post by Strayshot »

If you already have the cards, and there is no annual fee associated with them, why cancel? In particular if you have them for a long time, they improve your credit score by increasing the average age of your credit accounts.

Some issuers will close your account if you do not use the card within a certain timeframe, but there is no reason I can think of to cancel a card you already have if there is no annual fee. You are protected against fraudulent charges in the event they occur, so that risk is a non issue. Put the unused cards in a drawer or folder and fuggadahboutit.
The Wizard
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Re: 6K credit line too low.

Post by The Wizard »

kelvan80 wrote:If you are active duty and deploy, USAA offers 0% interest during the deployment and for awhile after.
All Bogleheads pay their CC bills in full each month, so this doesn't really matter...
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takeshi
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Re: 6K credit line too low.

Post by takeshi »

Keepcalm wrote:So, my main question is out of your experiences with the two banks, and taking the CL of the cards into consideration. With simplicity the priority who would you go with?
I'd go with USAA but I'm already with them and have a high limit Limitless Visa card with them so I'm not sure my opinion is really going to be relevant to you. See if you can consolidate the USAA card limits (I'm not sure they'll do this) or close one and request the increase on the other. Why are the existing limits insufficient if you only expect to use 15% of $24K? Does your normal monthly credit card spend exceed $2,000?

That said, I highly recommend having at least 2 cards, preferably from different creditors. If something happens with one creditor or if you have fraud on a card and it needs to be replaced you may find yourself stuck.
Keepcalm wrote:Anyway, I have a Capital One Venture card I use, which is nice as I travel once per year on vacation and can continue to earn ticket rewards throughout the year.
Calculate out how much you're getting in rewards per $ spent. Does that exceed a straight 2.5% cash back -- that is, if the USAA Limitless is available in your state?
rec7 wrote:
Gronnie wrote:You need a minimum of three cards in order to get the best FICO score
My score is 808 with two cards.
While at least 3 maximizes it is certainly possible to have good scores with less than 3. Not everyone is looking to do everything possible to max their scores or is attempting to get 850's across the board. The top tier of FICO 8 scores generally starts around 740-760.
rob65
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Re: 6K credit line too low.

Post by rob65 »

While I understand the desire for simplicity, I really think you should keep cards from two providers. If a card gets lost/stolen/hacked or a company simply has a massive computer failure, it could be several days before access is restored. My experience has been that this type of thing invariably happens at the worst possible time.
Gronnie
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Re: 6K credit line too low.

Post by Gronnie »

rec7 wrote:
Gronnie wrote:You need a minimum of three cards in order to get the best FICO score, so just keep them all. Ask the existing ones you are considering closing if there is a no hard pull credit line increase available.

It has also been mentioned above that it is a terrible idea to have all your eggs in one basket, ie do all your banking at one institution. I would have backup cards as well as at least one backup checking elsewhere.
My score is 808 with two cards.
Do you have a very long credit history? Mine is higher than that with oldest account only about 6 years old.
rec7
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Re: 6K credit line too low.

Post by rec7 »

Gronnie wrote:
rec7 wrote:
Gronnie wrote:You need a minimum of three cards in order to get the best FICO score, so just keep them all. Ask the existing ones you are considering closing if there is a no hard pull credit line increase available.

It has also been mentioned above that it is a terrible idea to have all your eggs in one basket, ie do all your banking at one institution. I would have backup cards as well as at least one backup checking elsewhere.
My score is 808 with two cards.
Do you have a very long credit history? Mine is higher than that with oldest account only about 6 years old.
I have a closed 10 year old card but it has not fallen off the report yet. Most of my other credit is much newer. I hate to have cards open that I do not use anymore. That hurts my credit score some but I sleep better at night that way. It also lowers my ID theft risk.
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kelvan80
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Re: 6K credit line too low.

Post by kelvan80 »

The Wizard wrote: Fri Jul 21, 2017 8:55 am
kelvan80 wrote:If you are active duty and deploy, USAA offers 0% interest during the deployment and for awhile after.
All Bogleheads pay their CC bills in full each month, so this doesn't really matter...
While I'd normally agree with you, active duty sometime find themselves in situations where they have to front quite a bit of money either because of extended Temporary Duty, flying entire family home for a funeral from overseas, paying for a PCS completely out of pocket because of recent situations of orders being held because of the government running out of money. In these situations 0% interest rate is nice. A 6 month TDY can cost upwards of $15-20k and not all people want to use their emergency savings to pay the government's bill. It might be better to wait for reimbursement.
rgs92
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Re: 6K credit line too low.

Post by rgs92 »

I find it's pretty easy to get a card with at least a 1% rebate on all purchases with a credit line over $20,000.
I think everyone should have at least one of these types of cards (certainly for emergencies).

I never understood this simplicity thing for credit cards. All cards are easily set up as paperless with autopay.
As long as you are minimally organized so you don't lose them, what's the problem with a stack of cards?

All credit cards these days are basically in set-and-forget mode.

Just try and use one of the infrequent cards every year or so to keep it active.
takeshi
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Re: 6K credit line too low.

Post by takeshi »

rgs92 wrote: Sun Aug 13, 2017 12:11 pmI never understood this simplicity thing for credit cards. All cards are easily set up as paperless with autopay.
As long as you are minimally organized so you don't lose them, what's the problem with a stack of cards?
Don't conflate "I never" and "no one ever" -- on any topic. If one values simplicity and fewer cards that's just as valid as your lack of concern over a number of cards. I don't have any problem managing a number of cards (and I don't use autopay) but I don't assume that everyone does not. People vary.
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Alexa9
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Re: 6K credit line too low.

Post by Alexa9 »

I'm not familiar with USAA cards.

These are my favorite cards right now:
Chase Amazon (if you use Amazon Prime, 5% back)
Chase Freedom (5% rotating categories)
Citi Costco (if you use Costco)
Citi Doublecash (2% back, no AF) - better than your Venture Card unless your travel internationally frequently (No FTF)

In addition there are many travel cards with $400+ sign up bonuses for free flights. If you don't need a mortgage anytime soon, I would take advantage of many of these.
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