Thread: Is this a good plan??

Hey guys,

I have 3 credit cards right now Amex Green [This May], 1 capital one MC and 1 HSBC MC.

My current 3 scores are 758, 766, 758 [drop from 780 but I think this is because of the new AMEX card as I pay all my balances]

I just got today a RSVP for the Marriott Premiere VISA card and I want to get it for the great travel deals and not get any more cards after that except to switch over to the AMEX gold next year when I'm eligible.

My questions are:

1 Do you guys think I'll be approved with my current score and I got an Amex in May?

2 Is it best for my score to leave a small [less than 25%] balance on my cards [not the AMEX] or should I keep everything paid off? I've heard it's good to leave a small balance and want the opinion of this forum

3. Is this plan a good one overall to build my score and keep good credit?

Thanks much this forum is the best and has helped me soooo very much!!!

1 yes I think you will be approved assuming you pay your capitol1 in full and your Hsbc in full. you have great credit cards. if I were chase, by looking at what you wrote I would approve you.

2 If I were you I would pay the bill in full, unless you have a 0% interest rate then you should ask an accountant this question. if you had these 2 cards over a year then absolutely pay in full. no reason to pay interest. who told you to leave a small balance on the 2 cards?

3 you have very good scores. just pay your bills in full. so how do you like your green card?

Thanks for your response!

To answer your questions:
2. Back when I didn't use my card at all I read a post on a different forum that suggested keeping about 25% open on the card because the CC companies need to see activity. And following this my score to grow but now that I'm more active on my cards that's not the way to go.

3. I like the Green card but I think I need some tips on how best to use it. Currently I've been making purchases [Macbook Air for 3x points!] and accumulating points but need a real AMEX plan of action - to "grow" the card any suggestions???

Everyone spending habits is different and there is no magical spending formula on how to grow your cards, simple limit the usage to what you can afford to pay and you will be heading for perfect credit.

Originally Posted by Tecboy1138

2. Back when I didn't use my card at all I read a post on a different forum that suggested keeping about 25% open on the card because the CC companies need to see activity. And following this my score to grow but now that I'm more active on my cards that's not the way to go.

What people were talking about was "activity." You want to make sure you use each card every three months or so. It does not help your scores to hold a balance. In fact, a 25% balance would actually hurt your CS. You want to have a utilization of 0-20%.

well tecboy, american express is so full of themselves, they think their cards are so great. I wonder if they ever stopped and thought of this.

they were once the number 1 credit card for travel. years later Visa and mastercard caught up with them. we both have the green card, the green card is used for both business travel and personal spending. wouldn't it be nice since we're both paying 95.00 a year that we could get some help making dining reservations? I'm not saying chilis but a local restaurant?

What American express wants you to use is their purchase protection. if you go to Pottery Barn and you were to break dishes by accident, you are covered up to 1,000 dollars. if it's 284.00 you are covered. another thing they would like you to use is car rental service. if your traveling to a big city like Chicago, when you get out into O'Hare just take a hotel bus to your hotel, the rest of the time you are in the city, just walk from places of business or take cabs. this goes for Boston, LA, New York. if you are going to the boon docks ask if your client can drive you around.

if you are 50 miles away and you are having car problems, you can call them. there's some sort of fee, that's what they want you to do. I'm not saying we should have airport access to lounges like the Delta crown room, I'm not saying we should get a concierge.

which would you rather have help making dinner reservations or purchase protection, car rental, 24 hour road side?

with my capitol1 I get a concierge service, help making travel arrangements, tickets to sporting events, and finding gift ideas.

we don't get a year end summary but you know what my annual fee is 0. american express is 95 for our green and 125 for the gold.

So I just got approved for the Marriott Rewards Premier card with some very nice perks! thanks for the advice and for your opinion on the Green Card - I have to say I may be a newbie with AMEX but I'm inclined to agree with you. I guess it's like you guys say its how you make it work for you.

Thanks for the tips and support!!

congratulations tecboy on your Marriott premier. See I was right, I said you would get approved.