@IcyCool7227 wrote:I have fair credit. Even when I had great credit in the 730s I never got approved for a card with more than $5000 SL and never had a card past $7500. So I see a lot of posters saying they have all these $10k plus CLs but how does that happen? Do you need excellent credit or just a very high income or both?
There appear to be lots of ways to get to individual credit limits of ten-grand or more, and there are many posts from folks here who've achieved limits well in excess of that threshold with only middling credit ratings.
In my case, with my credit ratings hovering in the mid to high 700s (they were all over 800 early last year before applying for a new credit card and a car loan); I achieved limits above that mark in two very different ways:
- After my Chapter 13 was discharged in 2020 I applied for a secured TDCash card with a $5,000 limit; the card graduated to unsecured six months later, got an auto CLI about 14 months later to $8,500, and then another auto CLI 10 months after that bringing my limit to $11,500.
- Last month I took a gamble at a Chase Sapphire Preferred and was stunned to see my starting limit set to $11,700.
Some of it depends on the relationship. I have been with Amex (according to them) since 2003, when I came back, they started me out with very nice CLs. Navy Federal, I have been with them for many years, and as such, when I have applied for credit cards, I always get their initial max of 25k.
Some people with no relationship get those, but, I am not sure how. I just know from my perspective, relationships are what helps me.
There are a lot of factors that go into this, obviously it's going to be profile specific, your history, scores, income and other factors such as DTI, etc… weigh in. Also some issuers can be more generous than others. You don't need excellent credit per se, as stated up thread there's been plenty of posts on this forum of people getting big SL approvals even after a BK and/or less than stellar histories, or even short histories.
As an example, I have a relatively short history AAoA of 2.8 years, but I do have an excellent income and no mortgage or rent. Still, my highest approval for a personal card was only around $2500. I gardened what I had for about 7 or 8 months, then in November of last year I got two new cards, one with a 17k SL and the other with a 20k SL. I was shocked to say the least... x 2!!!
I'm sure if you would share some more detailed DPs on yourself, others will chime in with some more solid advice and their experiences.
I'm new but as far as I can tell relationships matter a lot too for some banks.
A year ago I applied for my first US credit card, BofA CCR. It only started with 1.5k SL. I also have a checking account with them. I know BofA is not very generous to a lot of people but I think my checking account helps me a lot for CLIs.
6 months later I requested an increase to 3k, approved. 3 moths later another one to 6k. 3 more months, requested 10k, got 8.3k. The only reason given for partial increase was high utilization, which is fair. I'm at about 30% with 1 card at 50%. BofA is at 30%.
I think once I lower the balance (should happen in a few months) 10k will be possible.
I may have missed it mentioned, but verifiable income can also play a big roll in a $10k+ SL.
Lenders generally won't be too quick on handing out five figure limits for income under $20k per year. Even at $30k per year, one would need an internal relationship or a solid credit history and potentially thick file to make the lender comfortable enough.
Back in the 90s it was easier to get $10k limits without having to prove income. Not so much these days, especially after 2020 and the economic downturn.
50k+ incomes can sometimes have a hard time getting a $10k+ limit with proof of income if their credit history is poor and/or have a thin file.
@IcyCool7227 wrote:I have fair credit. Even when I had great credit in the 730s I never got approved for a card with more than $5000 SL and never had a card past $7500. So I see a lot of posters saying they have all these $10k plus CLs but how does that happen? Do you need excellent credit or just a very high income or both?
There are multiple factors. Credit scores are just one.
Others include income, utilization, debt to income ratio, recent inquiries and accounts, average existing limits.
@IcyCool7227 wrote:I have fair credit. Even when I had great credit in the 730s I never got approved for a card with more than $5000 SL and never had a card past $7500. So I see a lot of posters saying they have all these $10k plus CLs but how does that happen? Do you need excellent credit or just a very high income or both?
As others have mentioned, There are multiple factors! Also having a right bank and card makes a difference too.
For me only recent two Chase, USBANK and X1 card have been over 10K. Everything else was through CLI.
For example you can get certain CCs even with lower SL to go well over 10K.
Sync Bank: Easy to get CLI to 20K with SP
AMEX: 3X CLI with SP
Citi: About every 6 months CLI SP to around 30K
Discover: Easy CLI SP 20K+ (if they see usage)
FNBO: 20K+ CLI with SP over the phone!
I'm not even mentioning Cards from CUs.
This is basic generalization and over simplification of getting cards with right banks that can grow easy, provided you meet other conditions!
Good luck.
