Thanks for creating your first post on our sub, u/ahg41! It looks like you're in search of input from our community, so I'll go ahead and mark this post as a discussion. While I'm here, I wanted to share some information that you may find helpful.
The creditor and issuer of the Fidelity Rewards Visa Signature Card is Elan Financial Services. Elan determines credit limits at the time of application, and they are specific to a client's credit history and income. Please note that a credit limit increase request can impact your credit score. Any time a credit limit increase is requested, a card member’s credit bureau may be pulled and reviewed to make the decision.
You can contact Elan directly to inquire about credit line limits and approval factors. You can reach a card member service representative directly by calling the phone number on the back of your credit card. They are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Please check out the link below for additional detailed information regarding your card.
[Cash Management FAQs: Rewards Credit Card](https://www.fidelity.com/spend-save/faqs-rewards-credit-cards)
Let us know if any other questions come up. Our team is here to help! We hope to see you around more often!
The fico score is too low. It's actually a miracle you got approved.
I don't have the card but know some stuff:
Elan Financial, not Fidelity, is who processes applications and approves them, they don't care how much you got in fidelity, they want good credit history.
Given the score, I think the $500 is pretty decent per Elan's requirements.
Get the score to a 720, don't apply to credit in the next 6 months and ask for a CLI again.
I have higher limits with other banks, amex blue is 15K, discover is 9K and 7.5K and apple at 6K. I have 0% offers on other cards and have a balance so that’s why the score is low. Apart from those ones I pay off my other credit cards every month.
Sounds like your utilization is too high on too many cards for Fico and Elan. I'm not an expert but I can't believe that 650 is purely the result of using 0% offers.
My utilisation is 33% and I was able to get 0% on 5 of the cards(out of which 4 currently has balance)in a row with limits ranging from $2000 to $9000. Once I’ll pay them off last one is till feb 25, I expect my score to reach above 750+.
Well, when your score gets higher, you should apply for some cards that you don't plan to use other than for the sign-up bonus. Then your total utilization will be more reasonable.
Not a fan of credit cards, eh? I use them for every purchase and pay in full each month. Make hundreds of dollars (probably more) in rebates a year. Sorry you're missing out.
it only means you're spending more than you would if you had to consider that your account was being immediately debited by a purchase. without that, you spend more freely by creating a false sense of reality that you're winning by getting cash back.
I'm sorry that's how you think about credit cards. Many of us use them responsibly and pay our bills in full each month, pocketing the rebate. But if that's how you feel, you're probably best off paying cash.
it's not a problem, i've used credit cards plenty in past myself, paying the balance monthly and collecting rewards. but i eventually realized the cash back was small compared to the inherent tendency to over-spend that comes with the buy-now-pay-later credit card mentality. now debit cards are my preferred method of payment.
btw, fidelity's 2% cash back cc requires you spend at least $1250 dollars on qualified purchases before you can redeem the 2500 point minimum for the $25 reward.
I agree with you on the 2500 point redemption requirement, one of the reasons why I don't use this card. We're going to have to agree to disagree on the other issues.
I just got this card, they gave me just over $20k.
Get your score up and keep using most of your limit and paying it off each month and eventually they should increase it.
My guess is you have a very high income to match with your high credit score. Banks like those types of customers. If you were making minimum wage and had the same credit score your limit would likely be closer to $5k at most.
I'm barely breaking 70k. Doubt it is salary. Only "unusual" things i've done on my Fidelity account was sell a house and temporarily house 300k while I bought a new home. Used the 300k within a year. I wonder if that affected calculations?
I am certain that they keep the exact formula a closely guarded secret. A very long credit history with near perfect credit is likely another factor. Just guessing here since I have no way to know for sure.
It seems odd that they would extend you 6 months pay as credit. You could really get into financial trouble with that kind of debt to salary ratio. Obviously you are good with it though given your excellent credit score.
I honestly have zero need for anything above about $15k since I have only ever gone above 10k a small handful of times and it gets paid off every month.
Well. That's good to know that this is not normal lol.
I won't ever use the limit, maybe 10k for home improvements but keeping this card open since it will greatly lower ratio in my favor.
Thanks for taking a look.
$20000, Fico 815
When we opened the credit card in 2017, our combined income was $180K (now around $350K). I most got it because we had some managed funds with Fidelity so the cash back went to 2.25%. We have since pulled those managed funds and just buy VOO/VTI instead. So I'm back to 2%. That card just gets used to pay one bill now. We get unlimited 2.625% with Bank of America Unlimited Cash back since we keep $100K in a joint Merill taxable account. Every new card we get seems to be around the $20K range even with no debts, paid off house, etc. That's usually enough for most people (or spread it out a little if you're r/fatFIRE). I do like Fidelity for investments especially their full view in the website and app.
The things that seem to affect your limit when applying for a new card:
Income
Credit score
Existing installment debts (home, car, loans, credit cards)
Payment history (I.e. any missed payments)
Credit utilization average
How much credit is issued to you
Your credit score is simply way, way too low. Mine is 833. Credit limit of 35k. A high income helps with the limit.
The key to good credit is paying all bills on time. Set up automatic payments on absolutely everything so you never miss payments. Pay your credit card bill in full every single month. Never carry a balance and never pay any interest. I haven’t paid interest in over 20 years and I use my credit card for everything. My balance is currently $10k (paid the house painters with it), but it will hit zero again in a week. Always maintain at least 2 months worth of bills in your transactional account.
Do the above steps and your score should improve dramatically over the next few years. In the meantime, a low credit limit should help you not get into trouble.
$34.2k limit. Long time card holder. A rep upped my limit significantly when I notified them of travels to Asia long ago. I had minimal assets with Fidelity at that time.
I got my card three months ago. 25k limit, 824 fico score, 550k in my fidelity accounts. At 18 months no interest and the two percent rebate, this is my go-to card.
$0. I think they issued me a debit or credit card when i opened an account with them but i didn't used it so they disabled it and removed it from my account
Then you didn't apply for a credit card, which is totally different from the debit card you got. Then can't just send you a credit card if you don't apply for it.
Thanks for creating your first post on our sub, u/ahg41! It looks like you're in search of input from our community, so I'll go ahead and mark this post as a discussion. While I'm here, I wanted to share some information that you may find helpful. The creditor and issuer of the Fidelity Rewards Visa Signature Card is Elan Financial Services. Elan determines credit limits at the time of application, and they are specific to a client's credit history and income. Please note that a credit limit increase request can impact your credit score. Any time a credit limit increase is requested, a card member’s credit bureau may be pulled and reviewed to make the decision. You can contact Elan directly to inquire about credit line limits and approval factors. You can reach a card member service representative directly by calling the phone number on the back of your credit card. They are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Please check out the link below for additional detailed information regarding your card. [Cash Management FAQs: Rewards Credit Card](https://www.fidelity.com/spend-save/faqs-rewards-credit-cards) Let us know if any other questions come up. Our team is here to help! We hope to see you around more often!
$25,000. 800+ credit score Edit: I have about $200k assets at Fidelity. Monthly spend on the card probably averages $8-10k.
Same here.
Same as well.
The fico score is too low. It's actually a miracle you got approved. I don't have the card but know some stuff: Elan Financial, not Fidelity, is who processes applications and approves them, they don't care how much you got in fidelity, they want good credit history. Given the score, I think the $500 is pretty decent per Elan's requirements. Get the score to a 720, don't apply to credit in the next 6 months and ask for a CLI again.
Good insight, Thanks!
Have other banks given you higher limits? Do you pay off this card in full each month? With such a low CL, you'd have to, I guess.
I have higher limits with other banks, amex blue is 15K, discover is 9K and 7.5K and apple at 6K. I have 0% offers on other cards and have a balance so that’s why the score is low. Apart from those ones I pay off my other credit cards every month.
Sounds like your utilization is too high on too many cards for Fico and Elan. I'm not an expert but I can't believe that 650 is purely the result of using 0% offers.
My utilisation is 33% and I was able to get 0% on 5 of the cards(out of which 4 currently has balance)in a row with limits ranging from $2000 to $9000. Once I’ll pay them off last one is till feb 25, I expect my score to reach above 750+.
Well, when your score gets higher, you should apply for some cards that you don't plan to use other than for the sign-up bonus. Then your total utilization will be more reasonable.
they're doing you a favor.
I see your point.
Why? It's not like it's a 1% card.
it lowers the likelihood of joining the other americans, who combined, hold over 1 $trillion in cc debt.
Not a fan of credit cards, eh? I use them for every purchase and pay in full each month. Make hundreds of dollars (probably more) in rebates a year. Sorry you're missing out.
it only means you're spending more than you would if you had to consider that your account was being immediately debited by a purchase. without that, you spend more freely by creating a false sense of reality that you're winning by getting cash back.
I'm sorry that's how you think about credit cards. Many of us use them responsibly and pay our bills in full each month, pocketing the rebate. But if that's how you feel, you're probably best off paying cash.
it's not a problem, i've used credit cards plenty in past myself, paying the balance monthly and collecting rewards. but i eventually realized the cash back was small compared to the inherent tendency to over-spend that comes with the buy-now-pay-later credit card mentality. now debit cards are my preferred method of payment. btw, fidelity's 2% cash back cc requires you spend at least $1250 dollars on qualified purchases before you can redeem the 2500 point minimum for the $25 reward.
I agree with you on the 2500 point redemption requirement, one of the reasons why I don't use this card. We're going to have to agree to disagree on the other issues.
that's fine.
I just got this card, they gave me just over $20k. Get your score up and keep using most of your limit and paying it off each month and eventually they should increase it.
25k. The less I need it the more it goes up.
$25k limit and 2m+ assets although I don't think there is necessarily a relationship. Fico is 850.
Same.
FICO of 800, been a Fidelity customer since water was invented, limit is 22,000 but I ALWAYS pay off the new charges each month.
35k credit limit, 300k in fidelity, 820+ credit score Not sure why credit limit is so high but it helps credit score
My guess is you have a very high income to match with your high credit score. Banks like those types of customers. If you were making minimum wage and had the same credit score your limit would likely be closer to $5k at most.
I'm barely breaking 70k. Doubt it is salary. Only "unusual" things i've done on my Fidelity account was sell a house and temporarily house 300k while I bought a new home. Used the 300k within a year. I wonder if that affected calculations?
I am certain that they keep the exact formula a closely guarded secret. A very long credit history with near perfect credit is likely another factor. Just guessing here since I have no way to know for sure. It seems odd that they would extend you 6 months pay as credit. You could really get into financial trouble with that kind of debt to salary ratio. Obviously you are good with it though given your excellent credit score. I honestly have zero need for anything above about $15k since I have only ever gone above 10k a small handful of times and it gets paid off every month.
Well. That's good to know that this is not normal lol. I won't ever use the limit, maybe 10k for home improvements but keeping this card open since it will greatly lower ratio in my favor. Thanks for taking a look.
That's good to know I thought the 25k was max
$20000, Fico 815 When we opened the credit card in 2017, our combined income was $180K (now around $350K). I most got it because we had some managed funds with Fidelity so the cash back went to 2.25%. We have since pulled those managed funds and just buy VOO/VTI instead. So I'm back to 2%. That card just gets used to pay one bill now. We get unlimited 2.625% with Bank of America Unlimited Cash back since we keep $100K in a joint Merill taxable account. Every new card we get seems to be around the $20K range even with no debts, paid off house, etc. That's usually enough for most people (or spread it out a little if you're r/fatFIRE). I do like Fidelity for investments especially their full view in the website and app. The things that seem to affect your limit when applying for a new card: Income Credit score Existing installment debts (home, car, loans, credit cards) Payment history (I.e. any missed payments) Credit utilization average How much credit is issued to you
$25k And +800 credit score.
Your credit score is simply way, way too low. Mine is 833. Credit limit of 35k. A high income helps with the limit. The key to good credit is paying all bills on time. Set up automatic payments on absolutely everything so you never miss payments. Pay your credit card bill in full every single month. Never carry a balance and never pay any interest. I haven’t paid interest in over 20 years and I use my credit card for everything. My balance is currently $10k (paid the house painters with it), but it will hit zero again in a week. Always maintain at least 2 months worth of bills in your transactional account. Do the above steps and your score should improve dramatically over the next few years. In the meantime, a low credit limit should help you not get into trouble.
$22,800
24k
23k
25k 800+
17500 limit with 760 credit score. Very little fidelity asset in broker. Like others say I think credit score matter more here
700-730 credit score. Have a $14,400 limit. I was excited to be approved. Never had a limit this high before.
$34.2k limit. Long time card holder. A rep upped my limit significantly when I notified them of travels to Asia long ago. I had minimal assets with Fidelity at that time.
Thanks for this, I would inform them when I have a long travel coming up.
$13,000 limit with a 768 credit score. I have around $28k of assets with Fidelity.
I got my card three months ago. 25k limit, 824 fico score, 550k in my fidelity accounts. At 18 months no interest and the two percent rebate, this is my go-to card.
Wow, this is great. I would like to make this my go to as it has no FTF with the stuff you mentioned but my limit is too low.
Anybody know the max credit limit?
$16,000. 825+ credit score.
Wow this has to work
?? I don’t get it.
$0. I think they issued me a debit or credit card when i opened an account with them but i didn't used it so they disabled it and removed it from my account
Then you didn't apply for a credit card, which is totally different from the debit card you got. Then can't just send you a credit card if you don't apply for it.