I am closing on my first home at the end of August (got a great rate thanks to the help I got here the past 3 years!) and need to have a larger CL on my Home Depot card but am not sure how to go about it. Here's the facts: I have had the card for about 4 years. I charge between $25 and $100 a month and pay it off in full every month with the exception of Christmastime when I usually charge about $300-$400 and pay it off in 2-3 months. My CL was $200 at the beginning and slowly crept up to $900 where it has remained for the past year and a half or so. My mid scores are 645, 670 and 710. Can I get a CLI without an inquiry? If so, how much? If I wait 'til after the closing and take the inquiry what could I expect? Does it do any good to explain why i want a decent increase (to get stuff for the house)? I was also thinking about getting a Lowe's card as they just opened in the area. How generous are they? Thanks for any advice! Boomer
I would NOT apply for any new credit until you close on the house. Very bad move. You need to make sure HD doesn't do a hard pull on a CLI before you close either. Bad bad. If you need $900 (or...ugh..more) to charge stuff for your new house then you need to think twice about buying a house. Or just wait until you have cash. Save your HD card for when your fridge goes out or you need a new AC unit on the house. Not for lawn hoses or a new screwdriver. Take it easy on the credit card thoughts until you close.
Thanks for the advice. I will not do anything to any of my cards until AFTER I close. I have a decent sized savings account with enough funds to cover most emergencies. I was looking to get CLIs to take advantage of the 0% financing for 1 year on purchases over $299 as I will need to get a washer and a dryer and would rather defer payment than using savings.
That makes sense, to use someone else's money. But I agree, don't do ANYTHING until after closing. You can call and ask if you can get an increase without a pull. But if you're not going to buy anything major (like a car) it won't matter if your scores take a temporary hit. I'd wait until after closing, get the increase and try for the Lowe's card as well. I think HD is Citi, not sure who has the Lowe's card. Citi is usually good with increases on their MasterCards, I don't know about the HD card though.
