HJM here are my balances:

Cap 1 - 1,000 cl Balance $402, will pif on Friday
Cap 1 - 1,000 cl Balance $385, 0% until Oct will pif next month after next cycle
JCP - 1,000 cl Balance $177, pay $40 per month then balance in Sept.
Dell Credit - 3,500 cl Balance $1300 pay 50-75 per month
Sam's Club - 300 cl Balance $166 will pif on Friday
Walmart - 125 cl Balance $120, use for gas only, I know it kills my UT %, need to get higher limit! Will pif on Friday
Best Buy M/C - 450 cl balance 100, pay $100 on Friday
Orchard Visa - 500 cl balance 168, pif on Friday
Direct Rewards Discover - 600 cl balance 382, (I know over 35%, will PIF Friday)

All of my cards are pif after they cycle except for JCP and my Dell account, but on these I always pay more than the minimum. These will be pif in September. The Dell account is killing my ut %. If you need anymore info, let me know!

Thanks!

Are you currently carrying a balance on any of those cards? If so, please list the amount. They don't have to be the exact amount, you can provide us with an approximate amount.

HJM, the cards I currently possess are:

Cap 1 - 1,000 cl (started at 300), opened 3/08
Cap 1 - 1,000 cl (started at 500), opened 5/08
JCP - 1,000 cl (started at 200), opened 3/08
Dell Credit - 3,500 cl (started at 1,500), opened 3/04
Sam's Club - 300 cl, no cli yet, opened 6/08
Walmart - 125 cl, not cli yet, opened 3/08
Best Buy M/C - 450 cl, opened 6/08
Orchard Visa - 500 cl (started at 300), opened 3/08
Direct Rewards Discover - 600 cl, no cli yet, opened 6/08

I had a BK in 2001 and had been rebuilding nicely to the point where we were able to buy our home in 2004, but at the beginning of 2007 I was self-employed and my business failed and we defaulted on our credit cards and our home, up to 90 days. This year I paid everything off and our house has been caught up since Oct. 2007. The only line of credit that I kept current was my Dell account, so I had to start all over again with new tradelines because the old ones were closed. Of course all of the baddies are still on my report, but they say paid. The last item will fall off in March, 2014, so I want to have the best credit I can at that time.

It has taken me ten years to learn about credit. I love this site and all of the information that I have found. I now only use my credit cards for groceries or gas and then PIF when I get the bill. I used to use my cc for just purchasing items and then running up my balance. By budgeting what I can spend on my groceries and then putting it on a cc and PIF, I am building my credit. I try to stay below the 35%, hence the need for so many new accounts. I know my scores have dropped about 40 pts, but I am hoping that in a couple of years they rebound well.

I hope this helps give you the information that you need. I do want to cancel my Best Buy M/C but, I don't want to decrease my score anymore. How are they at CLIs anyway?

Thanks for all of your input!

Amy, if you can list the cards you currently possess, we can help you a lot more.

Amy, HJM gave you great advice...

If your in the process of rebuilding your credit, you should expect to get lower CL's than most and possible AF's.

Just stick to the card for a while until you get better cards then bye bye HSBC.

Amy, I understand that you're upset with the card. If I were you, I wouldn't worry about the points because I used to have the same card. I closed it because I got better cards. Just forget about the points because you need t spend $500 for a ridiculous $5 Best Buy gift certificate. They don't even give you 1 pt for every dollar spent, unfortunately. Just keep the card, use it for a year, and then sockdrawer the card if they waive the annual fee. Build your credit history so other lenders can approve you for better cards or else you will be stuck in the same place for a long time. Use this card as a tool for getting other better cards.

Good Luck

Here is my story with this stupid card. I applied and was approved for a $300 limit with a $59 fee and I called 2 days later after the approval and stated that I didn't want the card with that low of a limit and an annual fee and that I wanted to cancel it before they sent it out. After being transferred, a nice account manager increased my limit to $450 and cut my fee to $29.50. I said I would try the card. I got the card and tried to register the member id on the back of it at the MyRewardZone.com site so that I could see my points (this was after I had used it and the purchases had posted to my account). No luck, it could not find my number. Well, after talking to a few different people and being transferred all over the place, for my trouble, the account manager removed the other half of the fee. However, I still cannot see my points. My statement tells me how much I have spent, but doesn't tell me my points.

Today, I called again and spoke to numerous departments and I finally got a hold of someone that was not sure what was going on with my account, but put in a service request and took the member ID # from my card and told me that it would be 2 weeks before it would be resolved. I doubt that it will be.

Anyway, I am going to wait the two weeks, but if it is not fixed, then I am thinking about canceling the card. If I can't redeem my points then it is useless. Has anyone else had this problem with this card? I am glad that there is no annual fee, but the limit stinks. I am also trying to rebuild my credit and since I just opened my account in June I am not sure what would happen to my credit if I close the account so soon, but I don't want to have a useless rewards card.

Any help or thoughts would be appreciated.

Thanks!

mousepad, on most store cards you can go over you credit limit and not get charged a OCL Fee...

The catch is... If you do go OCL it will b immediatly due on your next bill along w/ your minimum payment not only that but it will show on you CR as OCL and then may cause Universal Default w/ other Creditors that DO practice that.

I know this because... working at Citigroup, on most of our Retail Cards such as Goodyear, Radioshack, Gordon's/Zale's... or our Gas Cards like... ExxonMobil, Citgo, Shell will not get the OCL Fee but will b due asap...

Most of our customers keep charging on gas cards when OCL then when they cant pay the next min pymt they blame us for letting them use it. How much it will let you go over is based on your credit history and payment history you have w/ that creditor. Now its different w/ ALL CREDITORS. Even if we place a block on it they call and complain becuz they are stranded w/ no cash and only have OUR card... So b very carefull on how you use ur cards w/ no OCL Fee.... or even w/ OCL Fee's its usually due asap on ur next bill.

I am not for sure, i think I would call them and make sure. They may want it to look good (which they can be right) and then smack you with a 35% finance charge if you go over. Will they report it to the 3 cb's as an over limit? because if they do then it can cause your other creditors to hit you with lower cli's, and universal default rates. I think I would call to get a better understanding. Dont guote me, they could be right and you are blessed. But, double check.

i was reading the terms and where is says
Overlimit fee: in the event you exceed your credit limit, you will be charged an overlimit fee of $0
thats what it says in part 9:F of the card holder agreement.
so would that mean if i was to get a computer for $1500 and my CL is $1400 i would not get charged a fee? would it be like a temporary credit increase ?

Is that for once per year? Do they practice universal default?

did any one know that there is no over limit fee on best buy store cards.

The good customers are always the one who heavily utilize the card and pay on-time or pay in full. If the consumer doesn't pay off the balance in full before the statement cuts, they will be charged interest. Since the consumer is heavily using the card, it's obvious that he/she will be carrying a large balance and the creditor purposely raises the interest rate to charge the large balance and make a nice profit.

Thats starting to be the other way around, creditors are starting to rip good customers off with their higher rates.

Meya, it all depends on the credit report of the applicant. Creditors like to raise or give high interest rates to those who have sub-par scores but reward those consumers who have high scores and want to keep their business.