Secured credit card builds credit?

[TySnyder]

I have heard conflicting opinions on whether or not a secured credit card can help build credit. Does anyone have any experience with one and know for a fact that it is reported to the credit bureau's? If so, which bank?

 

[Brackis]

Yes, I believe. Search the finance forum @ FW.

 

[TySnyder]

Originally posted by: Brackis
Yes, I believe. Search the finance forum @ FW.

Thats where I read that someone got a secured credit card and it was never reported to the credit bureau's. Thats why I am hoping someone else can confirm/deny this.

Link to FW post

 

[Brackis]

Would it be a "credit" card if no credit bureau got info?

 

[TySnyder]

Originally posted by: Brackis
Would it be a "credit" card if no credit bureau got info?

I had a pre-paid credit card that never was reported, and I have heard that they are a way to build credit. I don't want to waste my time with another credit card that had no affect on my rating.

 

[RossMAN]

Originally posted by: TySnyder

Originally posted by: Brackis
Would it be a "credit" card if no credit bureau got info?

I had a pre-paid credit card that never was reported, and I have heard that they are a way to build credit. I don't want to waste my time with another credit card that had no affect on my rating.

Was it a pre-loaded GIFT CARD or actual credit card where your credit was checked?

An actual SECURED CREDIT CARD (where you deposit $$$ as collateral) should be reported to the credit bureaus. Use it, pay it off every month, repeat for 1-2 years.

 

[Brackis]

The person you are discussing most likely opened a secure CC with cash collateral and used the collateral to pay off the card, rather than using more of their own cash, thus why it wasn't reported.

 

[compuwiz1]

Get one from a local major bank, not one of those mail in offers.
I believe Wells Fargo and Bank of America offer them. I think US bank does too. I'd call around and ask questions, if it were me.

 

[QED]

Whether a credit card company reports to the bureaus or not is entirely up to them.

Ask them if they report to the bureaus. Also, ask if they report it a secured line or not-- a secured line listed on your report may not be of much help.

 

[RCN]

My first card was a Citi secured card. It was reported.....

 

[Zim Hosein]

Originally posted by: MathMan

Whether a credit card company reports to the bureaus or not is entirely up to them.

Ask them if they report to the bureaus. Also, ask if they report it a secured line or not-- a secured line listed on your report may not be of much help.

Really? I didn't know that!

 

[AnonymouseUser]

Have your parents add you as an "Authorized User" to at least one of their credit cards (provided they have good credit). You will not receive a card, you will not be liable for their debt, but you will automatically have a credit history based on their history with that card.