SpookyCookie

They are declining applications if you have a high loan to value on your mortgage. Given all the foreclosures, I guess that makes sense.

Sometimes you can dispute it but that only works if it is inaccurate.

Pay your bills on time.

Generally no. Lenders report delinquencies as 30, 60, and 90 days late so you have to miss a whole cycle.

Underwriting, which is the technical term for both the approval and the credit limit of a credit card application, can vary for different credit card companies. A company's underwriting criteria is often a closely guarded secret since it can determine how profitable any given company can be.

There is a good article from Credit Karma about it: http://blog.creditkarma.com/credit-cards/how-a-credit-card-limit-is-determined

Like everything else, it depends on the limits and context. Generally speaking, you want to have access to high credit and low debt. When it comes to access to credit, higher is better than lower within reason. Having $25,000-$100,000 in available credit is probably reasonable. Having $500,000 in credit card is probably excessive and could make other lenders think you are a risk because you have access to too much credit. The answer for debt is simpler. Lower debt is better. You always want to have a lower balance.

Because there are over 200 attributes that go into computing your credit score, general answers are very difficult.

Yes, you can get multiple "dings" from one derogatory credit account. In a similar fashion, you probably have 30 day, 60 day, and 90 day delinquencies from that same charged off account. All of these things will lower your credit score. With that said, the effects aren't completely additive. Credit score models usually take this into account. It may not seem fair but these are the realities of defaulting on a loan.

I was a little hesitant given the comments below, but with a score of 768 I had no problems at all. Quick and simple process.