The Student Room Group

How long to have a credit card before applying for one with a better rate?

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Original post by Reality Check
You said you have a Barclaycard with a limit of £9,100 and a marbles card with a limit of £3,300. That's £12,400 in total.


no my barclay card has £1500 on it, and my marbles card has 3.3k, it is 9k altogether i meant.
Original post by milliemogs
The only reason your credit limit keeps getting extended is because they know they can make money out of you.
You've said before that you've never defaulted on a payment and most of the time just make the minimum monthly repayment. Therefore you are accruing a significant amount of interest. The banks know if they lend you more money then you're probably silly enough to spend it meaning you have to pay them more interest.
You are not the winner here, no matter how much you think you are. You're just going to become more and more in debt.


i think you have a good point here?!
Reply 22
Original post by john2054
outstanding and avaiable credit are two different things. My balance is now around £3000, with roughly £6000 available credit left over. A total of 9k available (when they are all pad off).

I used to subscribe to experian paid credit expert, as well as noddle and equifax (now clearscore), and it was this, experian, that told me that the total credit available, is what makes your score go up. The highest card i have s with marbles, another new day card, with a limit of £3300.

I understand where you are coming from. In that when i go in to my highstreet bank, they tell me to close down the credit cards, and reduce the limit. But this is not my experience.


How did you get your Barclaycard if you're unemployed?

I followed the application process and they don't have a student option and so I clicked unemployed, and i was rejected on the basis of no job. Although I do have an income of 11k. (summer job, xmas job, bursaries etc)
Original post by lxbsly
How did you get your Barclaycard if you're unemployed?

I followed the application process and they don't have a student option and so I clicked unemployed, and i was rejected on the basis of no job. Although I do have an income of 11k. (summer job, xmas job, bursaries etc)


I am the homemaker. I also have an income, i also have an excellent credit score, and my wife who i also live with, also already has a barclaycard account. She earns alot, btw!
Original post by john2054
I am the homemaker. I also have an income, i also have an excellent credit score, and my wife who i also live with, also already has a barclaycard account. She earns alot, btw!


You said the other day that she only earns £18k...
Original post by milliemogs
You said the other day that she only earns £18k...


Yes and I get less then half of that!
Original post by john2054
Yes and I get less then half of that!


So she doesn't earn a lot.
Original post by milliemogs
So she doesn't earn a lot.


Relatively speaking she gets loads.
It will be sensible to apply for another one. If you use it as well as your first card, it will show creditors you ate able to handle more than one creditor and that will stand you in good stead when you make future applications.

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