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Interesting stuff. I can’t believe I just found out about all this. Are all American Express cards charge cards? Do they also offer regular credit cards?
According to this Bankrate article, Amex dominates the charge card market: http://www.bankrate.com/finance/credit-cards/is-a-charge-card-same-as-a-credit-card.aspx
I got the BOA card while I was doing my undergrad and actually started as a student card. It was later upgraded to a points rewards card. I’m not sure which one, but I could redeem for gifts or get cash back when I had enough points.
The cards you mention sound great. I’ve never had a charge card before. What is the difference between a charge card and a debit card?
I agree there are still not enough people posting here. The forum is only 3 weeks old, so I’m sure it’s just a matter of time. Please don’t be discouraged by this, more and more people are coming to the forums to register every day. So you are actually helping a lot by posting.
Hi Amy,
Right know pretty much any unsecured card would do for me! But If I could choose, I would like to have my Bank of America rewards card back. I am going to request to have this account reopen as soon as my score improves. I had this card for a few years so hopefully I’ll get it back. It would look good on my report.
In general, my ideal card would be a rewards card of some sort, with low interest and a medium credit limit. I’m not too picky about specific banks but it could be with Bank of America, Citi, Chase or TD Bank.
It looks like you’ve been doing a little bit of research. Why did you pick those cards/banks?
I’m trying to get a few things removed from my report right now. I think this would be a handy thing to have. It’s great that you got half off when you tried to cancel.
Would the paper copies be any different from the pdf’s you can get online?
Hey ambersun,
Are you subscribed to any of these monitoring services? I’ve been thinking about it for the last few days and wanted to hear some feedback (I’ve been looking at myfico and experian). Experian offers a credit tracker for $14.95 a month. Unlimited access to your report and score, plus daily monitoring from all 3 Bureau credit reports. Sounds like a good deal.
Do you think it’s worth it?
HI Amy and welcome to the forums!
Congratulations on being approved! Not only is your post informative but you can definitely tell a story. Thanks for sharing it. I wish I had been as responsible and smart as you when I was in college, it would’ve saved me a lot of headaches. Having a plan and following it is very important and you’re definitely on the right track!
Quote:treat credit cards like debit cards with NO OVERDRAFT PROTECTION! Only spend less than what you can afford, because you need some savings in case of emergencies.Excellent advice! I’m trying to follow this myself (but came to this conclusion only after doing the opposite and ruining my credit). I find it easy now that I have a low credit limit, let’s see how I do when I have more. I like thinking that I have learned my lesson.
If you don’t me asking, what credit score do you have when you don’t have credit? I know I didn’t check my score until i had ruined it, so I’m not sure what mine was when I didn’t have any credit. I’m sure your score will change once your card shows on your report, which I suppose will happen after your first statement.
Keep us posted!
Hi Melanie,
Welcome to the forums, I’m glad you joined. Congratulations on getting your card. Keep up the good work and make sure to keep us posted with your progress.
No problem Christie. Best of luck with the application process. Make sure to stop by and let us know how everything went.
For me the best strategy is paying in full. You don’t pay any fees if you pay in full so you’re saving money. As you mentioned the most important thing is to pay on time (also, don’t max out your cards).
Hi Christie0909,
Welcome to the forums! I’m sorry to hear your credit was ruined because of medical reasons. That’s not fair. I think health care in this country needs a drastic change, but that’s a topic in itself. Hopefully everything went well with your surgery and your now healthy which is the most important thing.
About the secured card. I got the Capital One card with a lower credit score than yours, plus I have bad credit history so I think you should be able to get it as well. I don’t think living with your parents will be an issue when applying for this card. I remember somebody commenting on the blog was in the same situation and was approved (if I remember well this person reported paying a little bit of rent, you may want to check the blog comments for this info).
Luckily you are still young so you have time to rebuild. Trying to do something about it and informing yourself about how credit works is the first step so you are moving in the right direction
You mention that there are two reasons that you are still hesitant. I would happy to try to answer any doubts you may have. And thanks for sharing your story!
Great post, thanks for sharing! I actually didn’t know about some of the things you mention, that’s why it would be great to hear from other people here using this card as well. We could all learn a few things
I have a few questions for you:
Have moved my due date to the beginning of the month so it would be more convenient to pay in full
I didn’t know this was an option! Did you call Capital One and ask for this, how does it work? It would be a lot more convenient for me to have this, I’m always forgetting when my due date is.
At that time I asked about the card unsecuring. The rep. said that the only way to get my deposit back would be to close the card and I can always apply for an unsecured card.
I suspected this but didn’t know for sure. Thanks for making it official! This is probably one of the only things I don’t like about this card. It would make more sense if after a certain point they graduated you to an unsecured card and refunded your deposit. Considering that closing a credit card looks bad on your credit report, I think that a card that is made for “repairing your credit” should become unsecured once you have proven you can handle credit responsibly.
I thought for sure when I signed up for the card, it said that the card would go unsecured and that they would mail me my deposit back after about a year.
I also thought the same thing! I know you got this card like 6 months before I did, have you checked the documents you originally received when you got your card. I’m curious to know if maybe they changed their policy regarding deposits.
I have read that card issuers like to issue cards to the limits you already have so I want to see higher limits granted.
I didn’t know this either, but it makes sense. Thanks for sharing this info! It gives me new ideas. I hope you get an unsecured increase eventually. I think you deserve it since you’ve always paid on time. Going over the limit might have been the reason for not seeing an increase I think. When was the last time this happened?
