Credit limit doubled!

[Andrew Jackson]

Got a nice surprise this morning. Chase automatically raised my credit limit from $1,000 to $2,000. I had previously called them about a year ago requesting a credit limit increase and was denied for having to many enquires on my record. I always pay my bill in full every month so the higher limit shouldn't be a problem for me. But this should hopefully help my credit score. I use this card for practically all my purchases and even pay some accounts with auto pay so it can easily rack up $600 in a normal month. It was also a pan having to split my purchases on two cards when buying big ticket items i had saved up for, such as an engagement ring and plane tickets.

I wasn't aware that credit card companies up limits without a recent request. Also, my fiance has the exact same card and when she signed up for hers (after I got mine) she was given a $2,000 limit despite me making double what she makes.

[disneysteve]

FYI you should not charge more than 20-30% of your credit limit. So if your limit was $1,000 and you were charging $600, that actually counted against you. Keep your charges lower, which will be easier now with a higher limit, and you'll see your score rise and hopefully further increases in your credit line.

[JoshuaHeckathorn]

Which Chase card do you have? Credit issuers haven't really been increasing limits without requests for quite some time, so I find this very interesting that they doubled yours a year after you made the request.

DS makes a great point too. Keep your monthly purchases at least under $600 with a $2,000 CL.

[Andrew Jackson]

Originally Posted by JoshuaHeckathorn

Which Chase card do you have?

It is an amazon chase card. Signed up for it two Christmas'ago when they offered me $30 at check-out.

DS- I've known about the 30% rule for a while. But I've been more obsessed with racking up points than raising my score at the moment. And I don't have any plans on applying for any needed credit in the next 18-24 months. Now that I have a more reasonable limit I'll probably try to keep the balance below $600.

Question- Is it okay to charge say $500 and pay it all off and then charge another $200 in the same month and pay it all off. Or would that show up as a $700 balance on my $2,000 limit?

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by Andrew Jackson

Question- Is it okay to charge say $500 and pay it all off and then charge another $200 in the same month and pay it all off. Or would that show up as a $700 balance on my $2,000 limit?

I believe your score/report would only reflect your balance at the moment the report is generated. It wouldn't show cumulative charges including ones that had already been paid.

[snafu]

If you aren't planning a significant purchase like car or house or new insurance carrier, why all the fret over FICO score?

[Andrew Jackson]

Originally Posted by snafu

If you aren't planning a significant purchase like car or house or new insurance carrier, why all the fret over FICO score?

That is what I was trying to say. I knew I was breaking the 30% rule but didn't care because I did not/do not have significant purchases planned. But it was a pain for me to pay for half the engagement ring on my Chase card and the other half on another card that doesn't have as good a point system.

[snafu]

congratulations on your new status

[JoshuaHeckathorn]

Originally Posted by Andrew Jackson

Question- Is it okay to charge say $500 and pay it all off and then charge another $200 in the same month and pay it all off. Or would that show up as a $700 balance on my $2,000 limit?

Actually, all that matters is what balance is on the card when Chase reports it to the CRAs. Credit issuers all report at different times of the month, so it can be hard to track, but they often report just prior to when your billing cycle ends. So, if you paid off your balance a week before the billing cycle ends, you might find that your card is reported as a 0 balance to the CRAs.