Thread: Curious as to what to do next.

First of all, hello! Found this forum recently and already I've found it to be quite helpful!

I got my first credit card in Sep/2010. It's a Capital One Platinum card with a $500 dollar limit. My credit knowledge was, and pretty much still is pretty limited, but I had heard they were decent for those just starting out in building credit.

It's been over 2 years now though and I'm keen on looking in to getting a new card but I don't know what step(s) to take next. Instead of a lack of information there is too much and I just can't make sense of it.

I'm low income and frankly the $500 limit is plenty at this point as I usually only charge about half of that on the card. So I don't need a new card, but I'd like options if and when I start looking.

I just checked yesterday and my FICO score is 803. Additionally I've never missed a payment, and made each payment in full.

Ideally I'd like something that would let me travel maybe once a year. I'd like to see more of the US (What's this New York I've been hearing about) and possibly take a trip to England in a few years. I think what I would do (and if there are alternative suggestions I'm open to them) is continue to use my Capital One for everyday purchases and use the new card for larger ones.

Can anyone suggest a good place to start looking? A lot of the lingo and such confuses me but I find that if I at least have an idea of what I should be looking for then the information is much easier to find.

Any and all insight is appreciated.

I use Capital one world card which has no annual fee. That card gives me 1.5% cash back. I have reserved this card for purchases at
1) Sams club
2) Walmart
3) eBay purchases using paypal option

I get 1% immediately by check in mail when $25 threshold is reached and remaining 0.5% once a year which happens to be in December.
Not bad really because no other card gives me flat 1.5% on Sams club. I donot like Tier structure on Sams Discover.

Originally Posted by agp

This is actually pretty bad... I really do not understand why people use Capital One. And getting checks in mail? I remember getting checks in the mail from my bank about 10 years ago.

CapOne is really a mixed bag because their credit cards range from "awful" to "not to bad". I have heard horror stories about their customer service but have yet to experience anything myself. I do agree that their starter cards leave a lot to be desired.

On topic:
I have to agree with the advice given earlier. Look for a good rewards card without an annual fee (based on your credit scores should not be hard to find). I also try to "stack" my inquiries so they fall off around the same time.

Originally Posted by agp

Start with Chase Freedom, Discover More, American Express Blue Cash Everyday, 2 of the three, or all 3. If you do apply for more than 1, apply and call recon on the same day. And once you get a new card, stop using that Capital One card, doesn't matter how small your purchase is.

Thanks for the suggestions. The only reason I went with Capital One in the first place is because I had no credit at all and it was suggested to me. Had I known better at the time I wouldn't have. But that's hindsight for ya. With the cards listed, are these good options for long term? What I mean is outside of perhaps getting a larger credit limit or better options would there be any downsides to keeping these cards?

You didn't confirm whether your Capital One card had an annual fee? If it doesn't, I certainly wouldn't worry about it.

re: the Freedom/More/Blue, anyone can sockdrawer a perfectly fine card for any reason. I sockdrawered the Freedom for about 11 months a while ago... I took the kids down for a few days to visit their grandparents, and the husband stayed home to work, and obviously both of us using the same card in two different cities (400 miles apart) triggered something. I didn't find out until I tried to gas up to go home, and the card kept getting rejected. Since I was just an AU at the time, they couldn't do anything for me. I used another card to get home, and fumed the whole way. :oP They made up some silly story about "Oh, we noticed a strange charge for $2.15 worth of digital prints..." rather than saying, "Oops, our bad." I had DH promote me to joint cardholder status as soon as I walked in the door. :oP

But, yeah. It's always good to have an extra card or two in your pocket... what if the place doesn't take your card, or what if something bizarre happens that causes one card to be rejected, or something. If your Capital One card isn't costing you anything to keep, I'd hold on to it just for the time that it adds to your history. If it does cost you something, I'd apply for at least two, or maybe all three, of those abovementioned cards, and actually get them in my hands before I canceled.