Dell/Capital one...loads of new credit...is this bad?

[jetset]

Good morning all,

I have been wanting to purchase a new laptop for a few months now, and do not want to use my cash emergency fund to do so, so I applied for the dell premier account which will offer me 0% on the laptop I want (the XPS m1330 - any thoughts on dells?) Well, I applied and got the "7-10 day response" and from past experience I figured that was a no.

I've had capital one for over a year now and find them to be very good, never any problems. So I applied for a card that was offering 0% until September, with no annual fee and I get points for a reward program. Figured I'd give it a shot and they gave me a $2,000 limit!!!!!!!! The highest limit I have is $500 on my other capital one account, and that started off at $300.

Well. luck would have it, Dell finance ended up approving me in the end for 1500. Now I'm worried that I will have too much available credit. I have 2 other cards, the first capital one and an orchard bank card, that have no balance. I basically have 4500 in available credit and my debt to credit limit ration is 0%. I feel like somehow this is a bad thing for my credit score, but I don't want to close accounts and make it worse.

What should I do?

By the way, if I were to close an account, it would be orchard bank. It is the only account I have that charges a fee, which is $79.00, BUT, it is also the account that I have had the longest since discharge, so I'm afraid for this reason, my score could really be hurt by closing them.

As of 1/24/08 credit scores are
TU: 590
EX: 633
EQ: 628

I'm still in the never ending process of removing negatives. I'm surprised at TU, it seems to have the least amount of errors, yet is still the lowest score.

[Flamingo]

First do not apply for any more credit at any time soon. The best thing you can do at this point is keep those 4 accounts in good standing; i.e., make a small purchase every now and then and pay it off in full prior to the bill due date. I am almost certain you will use your Dell account for your latptop so if you do purchase one, be stellar with payments and pay more if you can then the minimum payment. While these accounts are not a bad thing, getting two at one time may look bad on your credit reports for a while and that is why I state do not apply for any more credit for a while. If I were you I would use this situation to your advantage and be extra stellar with the credit you have and it will work to your advantage.

[rrockinggramma]

I agree do NOT close any accounts. Just put the cards in a sock drawer. Buy a tank of gas and then PIF each month. That will rocket your scores to the top.

[FLBK7]

By the way, if I were to close an account, it would be orchard bank. It is the only account I have that charges a fee, which is $79.00, BUT, it is also the account that I have had the longest since discharge, so I'm afraid for this reason, my score could really be hurt by closing them.

Try not to close any accounts as that brings your score down, not by much, but still a couple points. Next time the $79 fee is up, you may try calling them and asking them to waive the fee for good, due to your good history with them, etc., etc. They just may do that.

Crap1 (sorry, but I just HATE Cap1!) waived the fee on my 2nd year (I had zero balance) but then refused to waive it on the 3rd year (again with zero balance), so I went ahead and closed the account. I'm 4 years post discharge and have successfully rebuilt my credit, bought a home and have other cards with high limits, so if my score drops by a couple points it won't have much of an effect for me.

You have nothing to lose by asking.

[jal1129]

Watch the account with dell if you use it because if you are even 1 day late they will charge you ALL of the interest back to the time of purchase, not just what you have left on your balance.

[Flamingo]

Crap1 (sorry, but I just HATE Cap1!)

I am dying laughing. We have a lot of travelers in our office and I will share with you "US Scair" - LOL!

[jetset]

Thank you all of the advice. It looks as though I will keep the cards open and PIF, and yes I probably will use the dell. Even maxing that credit line out would keep my credit utilization at 31%, thanks to the capital one card being open now. With the computer I have my eye on, credit utilization will be around 23% So maybe having the extra available credit will help with that portion of my credit score.

I'm on my second year with Orchard, and the fee comes due in October. I tried to get them to wave the fee last October and they wouldn't, even after a year of on time payments. I will definately try again this year. I live by the advice of Suze Orman and she says never have a card with an annual fee - obviously we here at BKForum know, that's not always possible for people who have experienced bankruptcy, I'm glad to say I only have one card that is charging me an annual fee.

As far as capital one goes...I know, I hear horror stories about them, but I have only good things to say about them. They've treated me very well and their call center is not in India as opposed to HSBC/orchard.

Thanks for everyone's advice!

[jetset]

Unbelievable.

I log into my original capital one account just after posting that last reply. My credit limit increased from $500 to $1,000.

Absolutely unbelievable.

[FLBK7]

I am dying laughing. We have a lot of travelers in our office and I will share with you "US Scair" - LOL!

That is funny! I've never flown US ScAir but I've heard some horror stories about them.

Some if not most of you may be too young to remember, but I personally think the airlines basically went to hell when the industry was deregulated in the 70's. Yes, deregulation gave way to competition and lower prices, but the price we ended up paying for our "lower" fares is terrible service -- plastic-tasting food if you're lucky to get some, as most of the times you're lucky to get a pack of peanuts; long flight delays; lost baggage; indifferent employees, and countless other issues.

Before deregulation, travelers chose an airline based on service alone, so all the airlines constantly went out of their way to be the best of the best.

Just my $0.02. This doesn't belong in this thread either. LOL