Credit cards and credit

[Howard]

1. Does it hurt your credit to apply for a higher credit limit?
2. Does it hurt your credit to apply for more credit cards?
3. Does it hurt your credit to have your CC application denied?

 

[kranky]

Questions 2 and 3 are the same thing WRT effect on your credit score, because it will generate an inquiry on your report. The inquiry will have a small negative impact - a few points, in most cases. Whether you are approved or denied won't matter - it's the application for credit (the inquiry) that affects the score. Additional inquiries generally have a smaller impact. Inquiries count against your score for 6 months, and stay on your report for 2 years. Some issuers will decline new applications if they see a large number of inquiries, others don't care.

Question 1 might or might not matter to your score. Some CC issuers will increase your limit without pulling your credit report again, and in that case, there won't be any inquiry. Some will do a "soft pull" which does generate an inquiry. Some will do a "hard pull" which DOES generate an inquiry.

 

[imported_Lothar]

1. No.
2. Debatable (temporary ding in your score from bank checking, but you'll be reducing your utilization ratio if you get approved for it).
3. Don't think so.

 

[IEC]

1. No, most cases it's a soft pull.
2. Yes, temporarily dings by a few points due to inquiry (hard pull)
3. No, it's the inquiries that matter.

If you're thinking of doing an AOR, be wary because it's not as profitable as it used to be since CC companies have (somewhat) wised up...

 

[Dulanic]

Originally posted by: Spartan Niner
1. No, most cases it's a soft pull.
2. Yes, temporarily dings by a few points due to inquiry (hard pull)
3. No, it's the inquiries that matter.

If you're thinking of doing an AOR, be wary because it's not as profitable as it used to be since CC companies have (somewhat) wised up...

1. Is a 50/50 shot as to whether or not they will pull a hard inquiry. Chase usually does, BoA and Amex do not unless they tell you they need to.

2. Minor ding at first but down the road if you only have 1 or 2 cards now, getting more will help your credit score.

3. See above.

For example 3 years ago I had maybe 2 cards and then I applied for a few and shelve em and after a couple months my score went up as the inquires had less and less of an effect and having more credit helped out.

Now I actually have like 20 cards (AoR) and my score dumped for a while and in a year when I pay em all off and make my profit, my score will likely be higher than before.