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Schwab has long been a favorite bank for travelers and credit card enthusiasts thanks to worldwide ATM reimbursements on the debit card and the ability to cash out Amex Membership Rewards points for 1.25c each with the Schwab Platinum card. There’s a bit of good news for those who are interested in a Schwab account but do not currently have one: According to Doctor of Credit, they are no longer doing a hard credit pull for a bank or brokerage account.
Most bank accounts and brokerage accounts do not do a hard credit pull these days but rather a soft pull to verify identity information. Schwab has long been an exception to this as they have long done a hard pull for a bank or brokerage account.
Fortunately, according to Doctor of Credit, Schwab is no longer doing the hard pull. Adding on to that, they are also apparently removing hard pull for some people who have recently opened accounts. Personally, I think the influence of hard pulls is a bit overblown — especially in an era of rules like the 5/24 rule, the 2/3/4 rule, etc. That said, in an era when most banks don’t do them for bank or brokerage accounts, it’s nice to see Schwab match the standard and makes them that little bit more attractive for those who do not yet have a bank or brokerage account with them.
H/T: Doctor of Credit
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I have just chatted with Charles Schwab. They said they are still doing the hard pulls and they are familiar with these articles saying they stopped hard pulls, and the articles are baseless, not produced by them!!!
Do you have reason to think that the person you talked with knows the right answer? In my experience, call center agents usually do not.
What is the 2/3/4 rule?
Bank of America: No more than 2 new BOA cards in a rolling 60 days, 3 in 12 months, or 4 in 24 months. The limits are higher for those with a BOA deposit account:
https://frequentmiler.com/possible-new-boa-application-restructions-3-12-or-7-12/
Do hard pulls really harm your credit any more?
29 EX, 20 TU, & 9 EQ say no. Still churning earning and burning.
I just got a card so it went down from 812 to 800 it will go up in a month or two.I have had a Lot of pulls Hard and Soft really doesn’t harm ur credit . It hurts u IF the cc company gets upset by to many pulls in the last 24 months.
I have points coming back so I really don’t need more cards and where can u go ?
#stayincave