Quote :

"Congratulations on your new credit line increase, and thank you for being a credit card holder. We hope you enjoy the increased purchase power now in your hands."

Basically what they mean is, "Stop paying your balance on time, and oh, here's some more money!"

5/4/2008 1:14:20 PM

[/care]

5/4/2008 1:15:04 PM

well, i know who I wont be spending my increased credit line on.

5/4/2008 1:17:49 PM

[care!]

5/4/2008 1:18:33 PM

i got a letter saying i won some money in some class action suit. i dont remember filing anything



CALL CLARK

5/4/2008 1:22:21 PM

actually it is pretty common that they increase the credit line of the people with bad credit. They will tend to carry a large balance and pay late so they rack up the late fees and lots of interest.

5/4/2008 1:24:58 PM

^That's not really true. Your risk of default goes up and they want to make sure they get their damn money, so they'd be more likely to lower your credit limit.

5/4/2008 1:27:01 PM

yeah actually its not common at all to get a credit raise, especially in april 2008, with risky credit

not exactly the stimulus they're looking for

5/4/2008 3:16:03 PM

If credit card companies don't want us to pay our bills on time, why would they reward us for that kind of behavior?

5/4/2008 3:20:20 PM

Usually by paying bills off on time and having good credit, they'll raise your credit limit.

Probably done in the hopes that you'll be tempted to get into the cycle of not being able to pay it off each month so they can make $$$.

5/4/2008 3:24:04 PM

i actually have to remember to use my credit card sometimes...just to build credit. otherwise i'll just use my debit card for all my purchases.

5/5/2008 11:45:57 PM

Is it bad to carry a balance then? Would it be better to just pay it all off at the end of the month? I have a lower credit limit and I keep a balance on it. I have enough to pay it all off, but someone told me the CC companies like you better when they are making money off of you.....the only reason I have a card is to build credit so I want to be doing what is most effective......

5/6/2008 9:50:59 AM

It's normally better to pay it off every month, because that increases your credit score. I think, though, as long as you pay at least the min. balance on time, your score will increase as well. I've kept a balance on mine for almost a year and have made pretty large payments on it on time every month and they raised my limit by $500.00 dollar bucks. I'm currently attempting to pay it all off and only use it to pay my cell phone/cable bills so I can pay off the full balance every month.

5/6/2008 10:02:44 AM

Quote :

"It's normally better to pay it off every month, because that increases your credit score."

i thought this was true, too, but apparently you'll get a better/faster credit score increase if you carry a balance from month to month (doesn't have to be much), and pay off in the middle of each month...for example:

balance on may 1: $20
balance on may 15: $0 (paid off)
balance on may 30: $20 (buy something small)
repeat each month

you get a higher credit rating because you've "proven" you can responsibly handle money over the long term...in theory, as long as you pay off the purchase within 30 days, and you have no annual fee, you shouldn't pay any interest, and you make the system work for you

the idea of credit is that you can borrow and pay it off, sure, but one day there will come a time when you'll need to borrow more than you can pay off within 30 days (like a home loan), and they want to know that you're capable of managing your budget (or so it was explained to me...makes sense)

my credit score was just shy of 800 when i got my home loan, but my financial planner was convinced it could have been a bit higher had i carried a balance or had a car loan or something

*shrug*

5/6/2008 10:29:35 AM

Quote :

"well, i know who I wont be spending my increased credit line on."

snow?

5/6/2008 10:31:10 AM

haha

i got an increase from wachovia on the cc when i moved into private advisory class accounts

i can buy a lexus with it

5/6/2008 10:34:01 AM

Quote :

"i got a letter saying i won some money in some class action suit. i dont remember filing anything"

I didn't think the CCF Settlement looked real when it arrived in the mail, but sure enough those folks gave me $25

[Edited on May 6, 2008 at 10:45 AM. Reason : in other words, I didn't file anything but I still benefited from a class action lawsuit]

5/6/2008 10:38:29 AM

Credit card companies make plenty of money to keep running by legit citizens using their cards and paying it on time. Businesses don't pay a fee for each use for no reason.

I think it's crappy that they'll increase your limit without asking your permission first. I mean, they say you're only liable to a certain amount if it gets stolen, but that's still x many more dollars of your money someone could spend if they stole your card.

5/6/2008 10:55:26 AM

Quote :

"i thought this was true, too, but apparently you'll get a better/faster credit score increase if you carry a balance from month to month (doesn't have to be much), and pay off in the middle of each month...for example:"

Not necessarily. It depends on what criteria the bank is looking for. They are all different. Some want you to carry a balance over the long term so they make money on interest. Some don't care if you pay in full the day you make a purchase.

5/6/2008 11:09:47 AM

I got a letter saying that i may have already won $10,000

5/6/2008 11:21:47 AM