Credit card issuers that were burned by defaulting consumers are now making their credit checks a bit more personal. Spotless credit records are no longer enough to ensure a line of credit; instead, banks are now taking a look at your job and even the city in which you live. Credit card executives insist that the heightened focus is directed especially at residents of states hit hardest by the housing slump, like California, Florida and Nevada. Meanwhile, card holders who work in the construction or financial industry are also seeing their credit tighten up.

The increased scrutiny reflects lenders' attempts to slow the rising number of delinquencies and losses from their consumer businesses. Companies like Washington Mutual have seen their credit card losses rise from 9.5% to 10.5% this year compared to just 6.9% last year. Other companies like JP Morgan are experiencing similar problems. In fact, some 30% of all banks are taking actions to tighten their lending standards, according to a Federal Reserve survey. This compares to just 10% of those companies surveyed in January.

In the end, credit card issues are caught in between a rock and a hard place when making these types of decisions. They have to limit their exposure in order to protect themselves, but if they are too aggressive, they may end up tarnishing their reputation and brand. It will be interesting to see just how much more these standards are tightened and if they end up working to reduce the issues that many are facing.