I’ve recently saw a video posted a few weeks ago that discussed how it’s starting to get more difficult to get approved for the Chase Ink cards. Specifically if you don’t own a real business with spend and revenue.
I was going to apply for the ink unlimited or cash card (their $0 AF cards). I currently don’t have a legitimate business but plan to spend some funds on building a residential property (with a partner) while they grant me the intro 0% apr. This would go under a sole proprietorship for my end though.
Has anyone had experience with the ink cards and having a higher chance of denial?
There is recent anecdotal evidence to suggest that Chase is getting more stringent with Ink cards. However if this is your first Ink card then your chances are still very high for approval.
In the churning subreddit there is some data on this. There are theories that chase is tightening up a bit because interest rates are going down and specifically towards sole proprietors. Apparently this happened in the beginning of the pandemic. It’s hard to make specific links as to why there’s a lot of denials but overall they are increasing and there’s some links to the amount of inks you have open. If you don’t have any then you might have a shot but it also depends on your chase velocity and how much credit they have extended you, among other things. I have opened 4 but was recently denied so my ink train is likely over. I’d say give it a shot and apply and see what happens but for sure don’t lie about your business income since they can do a financial audit.
blake said: @Finley
In a similar spot. What’s your next play if more Inks aren’t an option? Will you retry for an Ink at some point?
It’s been over 48 months since my last sapphire preferred SUB so probably that if there’s an elevated offer in the next few months. The plan is to retry for an ink at some point probably after I’ve closed additional one and it’s been about a month or so. If all that fails then maybe some brand specific cards but I like the flexibility of points.
blake said: @Finley
Any use trying biz cards from C1? The MSR for most Amex biz is pretty steep, but I thought C1 was less.
For C1 biz it really depends on the card. Some are very steep spend too and a lot of them will count towards your 5/24 if you care about that part. Many of the ones that don’t count towards 5/24 have the very high spend. I know C1 is very finicky about their approvals on the personal card side but I don’t know if it’s the same deal on the business end. I haven’t applied for a C1 biz card yet.
From the data I saw, Chase doesn’t want people churning them anymore for the SUB. Getting the first Ink Card is the same difficulty as before, but it gets increasingly hard as someone accumulates more.
I got the Ink Preferred 5 months ago and was approved for the Ink Cash 4 days ago. Both applications were through a sole proprietorship.
I think it is helpful to regularly put spend on your Chase cards after earning the SUBs since they’ve been more focused on credit utilization recently. Your overall line of credit across all Chase cards as a proportion of income also seems to matter.
If you’re not churning, 1st/2nd ink cards are really easy to get approved for. If you get denied, call their reconsideration line.
Things that can hurt approval chances is if you have too many chase cards open (I have 4 personal, 3 inks and got denied), too much balance on your credit cards. You’ll also get denied outright if you have more than 5 personal credit cards taken out in 24 months.
It might be tougher but not impossible. I just got approved for the CIC this Wednesday as a sole prop and I don’t have a legitimate business yet either. I listed my side income from selling on eBay. I do also have a full trifecta and a checking account with them though so maybe the relationship helps.
