So I'm building my credit for the first time. I had some problems with a student loan a while ago, but other than that and an auto loan right out of undergrad I havent used debt at all in almost a decade. Of course that meant my credit score (after I got one) was only 522. One collection removed (incorrectly thought I owed something), and a little improvement and I got as high as 707 with EX in just a few months. First I started with a secured discover with a $300 CL (easy to get, but got to start somewhere). But I was able to use my newly nice high EX score to get a $1K CL on the Delta Gold Amex. And then lastly I got a Chase Slate with a $500 CL. The Chase Slate was initially rejected, but I was able to successful recon it earlier today.
Overall I was focusing on low per year fees (discover and slate both have a $0 per year), and good side benifits. The Delta card is only free the first year, but I fly delta enough that the first bag free alone is probably going to mean I spend less than the per year cost. So hopefully I can hold these cards for a while and increase my AAoA (the only thing really killing my credit score right now, other than an old derog which will drop off my report later this year). Because of the low per year fees, I should be able to keep them and not cancel them as I appy for better cards eventaully. The Chase Slate card provides a free monthly EX FICO score and the Discover provides a free montly TU FICO score, so good side benifits for me as I try to rebuild my credit.
I just wanted to say thank you for all the information I have learned from these forums. I never would have known that I even could recon the Slate card (yet alone the # to call) but for these forums.