How To Increase Credit Limit
Want to know how to get a credit limit increase on your credit card?
During the boom years of last decade (you know, when you could buy a $400,000 house using stated income) it was extremely easy to get credit limits of 10, 20, even 50 thousand dollars on an average income.
Of course times have changed since then so what’s the best way to do it today? Should you simply request a credit card limit increase – or did asking for it fail – and now it’s time to bring out the heavy artillery? Well, I will share with you two different strategies of how to increase your credit card’s limit – the first one is common, the second one isn’t. In fact, credit card companies probably don’t want you to know about strategy #2.
Strategy #1: Plead your case
First of all, the zombies in level one customer support may not be much help. They’re limited in their power when it comes to this. About the only thing they can do is click a “request credit limit increase” button and give you whatever number the computer spits back at them.
Bypass the first tier of support and specifically request to speak to the department that solely handles credit limits. They are known as credit risk departments but surely the issuer will have a more pleasant sounding name that doesn’t have the word “risk” in it.
Once you have them on the line, think about it from their perspective: Why should they give you a higher credit limit? If you think it would be beneficial to discuss any of the following, then do it…
- Income: Has your income on file been updated since you’ve had the card? If you have a higher income now make sure to tell them. But don’t fib – they might ask for tax returns as proof!
- Occupation: Each occupation has a different risk rating assigned to it (or in other words, the chance you could be laid off from your job). So keep that in mind when discussing your occupation. I have read posts on the forum where people have accidentally screwed up by misclassifying their occupation – i.e. Saying “manufacturing” when what they actually do is information technology (IT) for a manufacturing company. When you just say “manufacturing” it sounds like you might be an assembly line worker, and hence have less job security.
- Account History: How long have you been their customer? Play this aspect up and remind them how great of a customer you’ve been.
- Credit History: If you have an amazing credit history, say it and give specifics – i.e. I’ve never made a single late payment in my life.
- Current Debt: If you’re in an attractive situation and currently have little to know debt, make sure you tell them.
- Balance Transfers: A lot of times they will make special exceptions for those who are going to be doing a balance transfer to the account.
And as the cardinal rule, banks like giving money to people that don’t need it. If you act desperate and say something like “I need this to pay my car repairs otherwise I won’t be able to get to work” you probably won’t get very far when you request your credit limit increase. To get a higher credit limit, you need to act like you want it but not like you need it.
Strategy #2: The backdoor double-trouble
Are you troublemaker? If so, the backdoor double-trouble may be right up your alley…
Have you already attempted to get a higher credit limit and was denied? Or maybe it was increased, but it wasn’t raised as much as you would like? Well, that’s where the backdoor double trouble can save the day…
In a nutshell, the backdoor double is applying for a second (new) credit card from the same bank and then after you are approved, transferring that credit limit to your other card.
For example, let’s say your current credit card has a $14k limit and that is the max they will give you. You can try applying for a second (different) card with them and then re-allocating your credit lines. Assuming you have great credit and no reason to be denied for a new card, the odds of approval are good. I have used this strategy a number of times to increase my credit card’s limit by tens of thousands of dollars.
One word of caution: The credit card backdoor double has become a lot harder to do in today’s economy. Some banks have banned it, others have not. Ask on Credit Card Forum to see if anyone has recently had luck with your issuer.
How much should you ask for?
Don’t try asking the person on the other end of the phone how much you should ask for; all credit card companies prohibit their employees from giving guidance on choosing an amount for a credit card limit increase. You will be on your own with this one.
My advice is to shoot for the moon but not for the stars. If you aim too low, you get less than what was possible. If you aim too high, for an outrageous amount, you might get your account flagged as suspicious (meaning, an account review). But if you go for a credit limit increase that is high, but not high enough to raise concerns, then the worst that can happen is they might come back with a lower approved amount than what you asked for.
Every situation is different so there is no general rule of thumb in terms of percentages or dollars. If you are unsure, ask on the forum to get advice from others.
Your thoughts?
Got tips on how to increase a credit card’s limit? Post them in the comments below!
I am curious about transferring credit-lines, I am new to the credit game so forgive me if I am still a bit confused.
I am currently rebuilding. I have 2 cards with capital one. I would like to have a higher credit line. When transferring a credit line, does it require a credit report to generate? How long should I wait before I ask for a credit limit increase?
Hello, I am 26 years old and make 6 figures a year. I have made well over $75k since I was 24.
When I was 18 I began to get store credit cards and was ill advised on how to properly manage my credit cards which led to collections. I was then offered a $250 credit limit with a bank and then got laid off (I was 19) and that led to collections as well but I immediately paid off that balance with them. Since then, I have cleaned it all up and have a better (still not great, but my report says better than 60% of the country) credit limit. Capital One gave me a $500 credit limit. I have never been late on a payment and pay every statement either half of the balance or in full.
How can I go about continuing to raise my credit limit and overall credit score? Other credit cards continue to deny me and I am unsure why after 6 years of maintaining great credit, I continue to get denied and no credit increases. Can you help me with this?
Hello, I recently moved from the UK to Canada. I have a well paid job, have zero debt and I applied and received a Capital One mastercard with a $500 limit January 2012. I have used it regularly by buying and immediately paying off the full amount (rather than the minimum payments) I currently have $300 left on the card and I am thinking of requesting an increase in my limit. What are the best ways? Should I apply for another credit card like Kate has commented?
I requested an increase on my Capital One card from $700 to $2000 because I wanted to purchase a camera online and wanted protection. I have amazing credit and income but this is the only credit card I have. I was denied so I spoke with a credit specialist and they recommended I apply for more credit cards, run them up to 20% and make minimum payments for 6 months then pay off the balance. I applied for 3 new credit cards in the same day; Chase Visa, American Express and Bank of America MasterCard. I was approved for all 3 cards; Visa 3k limit, American Express unstated limit, and MasterCard 3500 limit. A few weeks later Capital One sent me a letter that my credit limit had automatically been raised to $2,500. The correct management of these cards over the last 6 months has also increased my credit score by 42 points.
Credit building turns out to be the exact opposite of what I expected, the more credit you get and use, the more lendable you will be and the more credit you are likely to get when you request an increase.
Congrats! Something to keep in mind though is that carry a balance won’t help, because your balance is reported to the credit bureaus on a given day each month (usually the day your statement closes). So whether you pay those charges in full or over time doesn’t matter. What counts is that you are using the card regularly, so a balance will be reported each month (even though you pay the charges in full when they come due).
I would like to try number 2, however I go not want this go show up as a hard inquiry. Do you think it will?
Probably.
I’m just wondering if #2 can affect your credit though.. Isn’t it basically getting an inquiry and then opening a new account and then closing it right away? That affects credit history right?
Sorry I’m kinda new and looking to find ways to increase my limits with USAA. Currently I have two cards one at 10k and another at 7.5k and they wont budge at the moment.
You don’t have to re-allocate all of it. For example, if you were approved for a new card with $10k, you could re-allocate $8k to your old account while still keeping the new account open with a $2k limit.
Tried both methods…. And number 2 worked beautifully. Got 7500.00 limit right away. Thanks for the great advice
Hey I had my 1st credit card for only 3 years but i neva missed a payment. I want a higher credit limit, do u have any tips?
I didn’t even bother trying your 1st strategy with an existing card, since I was denied a CL increase earlier this year. However, I tried strategy #2 and was approved for a CC with a CL that is more than double than my other CC. Thanks for the tip!
Do credit card companies still do automatic credit limit increases? Because I used to get those all the time but haven’t during the past 3-4 years.
I tried your second technique and was able to go from a $7,200 limit to $16,500 total using your advice. Thanks man!!!