A simple plan..

In a few days I'm selling my house. The money will be in the account for a few days before it's used to secure my next house so for a few days my bank account will be highly inflated. I was thinking that it would be a good time to apply for credit at a few new casinos.

The last time I applied for credit it was downtown and 2 days after I applied a host was contacting me with inducements. I was wondering if it would be the same on the strip. Show up money? Limos, suites, etc....what will they offer if anything. Personally I like the show-up money the most.


Mind you, I'm only going to play at my normal levels and not at the level that the credit line would indicate so this little trick will work only once at each place.

Any thoughts?

Good idea in principle, but the casinos look at the average balance over the past two to three months so you will need to keep the funds in there longer than three days. Also some of them re-run your bank balances (essentially, re-certify you to some extent), annually, so your party there might be pretty short lived even if you do manage to get by today.

As far as what you get with a big line (mine are mostly mid to high five figure lines), you might get one free comp'ed stay on the way in based on projected play, but after your first stay you'll get only what you have earned based on actual play.

You mention "show up money" - uhuh, you won't get any of that until after your actual play warrants it.

In general though whatever level you play at you will usually get more with a line behind you, versus being a cash player. Of course, some hosts will claim otherwise, "that having a line makes no difference one way or another," but my experience is that an established line at least tells them that they have a chance at that much money more than once, since you will have to pay it off if you lose (or risk prosecution, at least in Nevada).


Casino Credit, how it works:
https://wizardofvegas.com/member/mdawg/blog/#post1785

Quote: MDawg

..the casinos look at the average balance over the past two to three months so you will need to keep the funds in there longer than three days.

and

Quote: MDawg's blog

3. They will verify the average balance at the checking accounts you give them, over the past 90 days.

Is that true of how any kind of credit check works in America?
HOW do they look at the balance, ever?

In the UK, credit checks never reveal the balance of a checking or savings account at all. Here, lines of credit are based on proven levels of income and are not usually based on capital in the bank.

Here's what Experian has to say...
http://www.experian.com/blogs/news/2012/09/17/credit-score-myths/

Quote: Experian

Myth #5: Great credit is tied to how much money and assets a person has.
FACT: Credit reports don’t list bank account balances or assets, so those numbers don’t impact credit scores.

Information about income, investments or assets such as stocks or bonds will also not be in a credit report. Likewise, there is no information about savings accounts, certificates of deposit or other non-debt banking relationships.

Quote: MDawg

You mention "show up money" - uhuh, you won't get any of that until after your actual play warrants it.

True.

Casinos don't much care how much you have in the bank or up in your room or in your wallet. Casinos care about how much you put at risk. Their house edge is what makes money for them and they know it only applies to funds that you put at risk.

Casinos check average bank balances and often do a financial update from time to time. Casinos are only mildly curious about your potential, they are far more focused on your ACTUAL PLAY.

Do a wire transfer to them and they will salivate.
Bring in a great big wad of cash and they will salivate.
Show them a bank balance statement and they will smile politely.
The cage, the computers and the hosts focus more on actual play than anything else.
A one-time bluff with a humungous bank statement will only annoy them and if they put a notation into your computer file, it will be shared with other casinos, other hosts, through both formal and informal pathways.

Quote: OnceDear

and


Is that true of how any kind of credit check works in America?
HOW do they look at the balance, ever?

In the UK, credit checks never reveal the balance of a checking or savings account at all. Here, lines of credit are based on proven levels of income and are not usually based on capital in the bank.

Here's what Experian has to say...
http://www.experian.com/blogs/news/2012/09/17/credit-score-myths/

Casino credit has little to nothing to do with your credit score. I've been told it is almost exclusively about how much you have in your checking account, as casino credit is a misnomer. All they are really doing is floating you an advance on a post dated check.

Quote: OnceDear

Is that true of how any kind of credit check works in America?
HOW do they look at the balance, ever?

In the UK, credit checks never reveal the balance of a checking or savings account at all. Here, lines of credit are based on proven levels of income and are not usually based on capital in the bank.

To answer your questions, OD, when applying for a loan or line of credit in the US, lenders primarily look at your income and your FICO score/credit history. Other factors may come into play, but not necessarily.

But BillRyan is right. "Casino credit" is not the same as what the rest of the world thinks of as "credit."

As BillRyan said in Nevada casino credit is not credit. They just want to know if you are worthy of writing a check at the property. There is not much exposure for the casino because as Bill said you are just writing them a check that they won't deposit until after you lose. If the check bounces it is a felony in Nevada and the court system gets involved.

Quote: billryan

Casino credit has little to nothing to do with your credit score. I've been told it is almost exclusively about how much you have in your checking account, as casino credit is a misnomer. All they are really doing is floating you an advance on a post dated check.

If that's the case, and I take your word for it, then presumably they ASK you to show evidence of your bank balance. They surely cannot get the info from your bank.

Or are they getting you to write a huge post dated check with the attached threat of criminal action just for doing so?

That's as outrageous as a used car salesman asking you 'how much money have you got' as you walk onto the lot.

The answer I'd give to such an intrusive question would be short and would start with 'F' and end with 'f!'

$:o)

All valid questions and points made above.

I get into this in detail in my blog,
https://wizardofvegas.com/member/mdawg/blog/#post1785
also in some posts I made in some other thread where I was discussing this with FCBLComish
https://wizardofvegas.com/forum/gambling/gambling-with-an-edge/33213-parttime-ap-prospects/13/#post726731
- when you apply for casino credit they engage an outside agency which currently for most casinos in the US is VisuaLimits LLC (aka NCC Reports). This outfit BOTH pulls your regular consumer credit AND engages with your bank to get an average (over past 90 days) balance for the bank accounts you give them, plus is capable of determining whether the bank account you gave them matches with your name. You give authority for the casino via NCC Reports to obtain all of this information as part of your application for casino credit.

Quote: MDawg

All valid questions and points made above.
... This outfit BOTH pulls your regular consumer credit AND engages with your bank to get an average (over past 90 days) balance for the bank accounts you give them, plus is capable of determining whether the bank account you gave them matches with your name. You give authority for the casino via NCC Reports to obtain all of this information as part of your application for casino credit.

An excellent reason to always read the small print. If my bank ever revealed my balance to such an agency, even if the agency presented my 'permission' I'd discontinue my relationship with that bank. and tell them the same two words.
UK and European privacy laws are apparently far more strict than those on your side of the pond.

Quote: OnceDear

and


Is that true of how any kind of credit check works in America?
HOW do they look at the balance, ever?

In the UK, credit checks never reveal the balance of a checking or savings account at all. Here, lines of credit are based on proven levels of income and are not usually based on capital in the bank.

Here's what Experian has to say...
http://www.experian.com/blogs/news/2012/09/17/credit-score-myths/

In many U.S. casinos "Credit" is a little misleading. Essentially you link a checking account, and they give you a cash advance.
They do a credit check if its your first time at the casino, but its pretty irrelevant, since your line of credit is mostly based on cash you have available in your checking account. And, usually a few days after your trip ends your account will be charged for the line of credit.

The method in the above post will not work, as during the credit check, they will probably see that you are buying a new house, and will assume the large cash balance is from a sold house. Also, most casinos check an average of the balance in your checking account (so that having a large amount for just three days will not really change anything in what they offer).

Honestly, I would not recommend doing this. Your line of credit will be no different than applying at any other time (the brief cash influx is irrelevant), and you will damage your credit by unnecessary hard inquiries (one from every casino you apply to).


-Edit, there is a way around this (which I strongly do not advise), you can withdraw all of the cash, and go to the credit office of the casino in question, give them the cash, and ask for a cash based marker, this will avoid all of the credit and bank stuff. However, several hundred thousand cash deposit for a marker will trigger IRS stuff, and will likely just lead to a lot of alarm bells (and not a lot of comps), especially if you only end up playing a small percentage of your marker. This would not be a good idea, but if you really are set on the idea of having a large marker, this is one possibility....

In that we've heard only once from the OP I think he's abandoned the scheme.
Someone mentioned "withdrawing cash" to go play with front money at a casino. Why make it complicated? Draw a cashier's check and deposit that to play against. But it seems like LoveComps needs the money back "within a few days" to apply to the downpayment on his new house, so I don't think he has that luxury of time to use the funds for much of anything.

By the way, consumer credit VERY MUCH does count when granting a casino credit line. They do pull your credit, anyone who says otherwise has never applied for a US casino credit line. (Some do a soft pull, which leads some to think nothing was pulled - but it was pulled - most do a hard pull which leaves an inquiry for two years for the world to see.)

They will even run your consumer credit - asking for your passport and social security number - before they allow you to enter the Grand Salon at the Casino de Monte Carlo. I know this from personal experience.

Consumer credit matters: no deadbeats allowed, and real life deadbeats are just as unlikely to pay their casino debts as any other debts.