So, where the hell do I apply for a credit card? Denied by Chase (amazon)

[Safeway]

Originally posted by: FelixDeKat

Originally posted by: Safeway

Originally posted by: LeetViet
I had trouble applying for a credit card and was denied by my own bank and others as well. I'm going with a secured CC in a few weeks to build credit.

You shouldn't have to start with a secured credit card. They have low and mid level credit cards aimed at specific credit score ranges.

Then again, a secured credit card is practically guaranteed acceptance.

If he's not careful he might wind of signing up for one of those "its a trap" credit cards if he feels desparate enough. They give you a $200 credit line and charge you $175 fees in 30 days to "get you started". Then, you get to pay that back at 23%!

Total ripoff.

Ouch, yea. That would be bogus.

 

[LeetViet]

I read the fine print and the only downside is an annual fee. Everyone has to start somewhere and I have tried store credit cards and other banks with no success.

 

[RaistlinZ]

Or perhaps you could just save your money and pay for things that you can actually afford.

 

[dullard]

Originally posted by: RaistlinZ
Or perhaps you could just save your money and pay for things that you can actually afford.

If he uses a credit card properly, he'll only pay for things that he can actually afford AND save tens of thousands of dollars (lower insurance premiums, lower loan rates, possibly better jobs or better apartments, rewards, cash back, etc). His choice.

 

[hanoverphist]

Originally posted by: FelixDeKat
First of all a debit card is not a credit card even though it may look like one. Using one doesnt build credit history! :light:

First of all you might want to consider a secured card whereby you deposit funds that are used insure against default on your part.

and lastly.....

First of all you really should avoid credit cards altogether if you can, otherwise try the secured card idea to build a history. A year from now try again.

that made my brain trip

 

[TuxDave]

Originally posted by: loki8481
debit card =! credit card

if all else fails, capital one will probably give you something.

they were my first CC back in the day, when I was 16... $300 limit represent!

You poor man... I started with a $500 limit.

 

[edro]

My first card was a Sears charge card that I bought a college laptop with.
I paid the minimum balance for a year, and my balance grew!

The interest was over 25%. I finally learned my lesson and paid it off in a few months of lump sums.

Anyway... the moral of the story is to get a store credit card, but use it wisely and understand how minimum payments and interest work.

 

[erub]

Originally posted by: Exterous

Originally posted by: A5
Try to get a card from the bank where you have your debit card. If that doesn't work, you may just have to wait until the credit crunch is over.

Or get a cell phone plan in your name (or anything else that you have to pay monthly) as this will help you establish credit

Cell phones and similar don't really establish credit. They CHECK your credit, to see if you have a history of paying things on time, but I've never seen a cell phone bill show up as 'paid in full' on a credit report.

 

[PhaZe]

My first was a capital one cc that started at $300, then a few months later was bumped to 500. I started that one in 2004 and it has been at $500 until last month when it was mysteriously bumped to $4,500.00. Doesn't make sense to me. I used that card for small purchases since the apr is still high.

 

[nakedfrog]

Originally posted by: FelixDeKat
First of all a debit card is not a credit card even though it may look like one. Using one doesnt build credit history! :light:

First of all you might want to consider a secured card whereby you deposit funds that are used insure against default on your part.

and lastly.....

First of all you really should avoid credit cards altogether if you can, otherwise try the secured card idea to build a history. A year from now try again.

Using credit cards to make money is better than not using them at all. I think I'm up $275 on my Chase Amazon card for the year.

 

[JTsyo]

I had the same trouble finding a credit card for mine wife to get her some credit history build up before we looked at houses. Applied for a few cards but none would give her a card. I was considering the secured ones but BoA finally accepted her. After about 5 months though she started getting tons of applications. I had also added her to my cards and that helps. Maybe your parents can add you to their card and you just never use it. Also I hear having too many credit checks in a short period looks bad.

 

[Woosta]

Originally posted by: sswingle

Originally posted by: Woosta
"We regret that we are unable to approve your request for the following reasons:

Few revolving accounts opened long enough to establish credit history.
Not enough accounts opened long enough to establish a credit history.

"

I've had a debit card for nearly 3 years now. Eh? This was from Chase, I believe I applied for one of the smaller cards like the Amazon one. Any advice? This was like the 3rd time I applied for a CC.

There be your problem

Originally posted by: FelixDeKat
First of all a debit card is not a credit card even though it may look like one. Using one doesnt build credit history! :light:

Well, OBVIOUSLY I have no credit history, but I was thinking there had to be SOME banks who do let people with no PRIOR credit history get a card, otherwise no one would ever have a CC. So go with my own bank then, huh?

 

[RedCOMET]

Originally posted by: Woosta
"We regret that we are unable to approve your request for the following reasons:

Few revolving accounts opened long enough to establish credit history.
Not enough accounts opened long enough to establish a credit history.

"

I've had a debit card for nearly 3 years now. Eh? This was from Chase, I believe I applied for one of the smaller cards like the Amazon one. Any advice? This was like the 3rd time I applied for a CC.

I get the problem all time when I try to apply for a CC... Granted i know my credit score is low, cuz of a screw of bills when i was in college.. but now that i have a real full time job and cash on hand..i still can't get a card.

good luck

 

[gorcorps]

Chase denied me before I got another CC too. They seem to be quite stingy about accepting folks with no prior credit. Try Citibank as that's who gave me my first and current CC.

 

[Mo0o]

Sign up for a citicard student CC. I think they have low standards

Chase has some pretty high standards, especially their higher level cards like FreedomRewards and Sapphire

 

[TotalLamer]

I wouldn't mind not having a credit card.... except that my stupid debit card is capped at $1000 per day! Which means it's nigh impossible to make a big purchase like a laptop or something. When I got my compy parts on Newegg I had to wait days for cash to transfer from my bank account to PayPal so I could put in my order.

 

[Adul]

how about getting a secured credit card?

 

[PieIsAwesome]

My parents helped me get my first card from Wells Fargo.

 

[nerp]

Originally posted by: RaistlinZ
Or perhaps you could just save your money and pay for things that you can actually afford.

It's OK to have a credit card to build credit history. Not everyone plans on buying cars and houses with cash. That said, you need a goddamn credit card to start. Get over the "Americans are in debt" BS. It's old.

 

[Modelworks]

Be careful with secured cards. They are legalized loan sharks.
Some terms from popular secured cards:

$35 annual fee, 29.49% APR, $200 min deposit
$59 annual fee, $99.95 for one card, 19.5% APR, no grace period
$99 annual fee, $129.95 processing fee, 22.44% APR, no grace period, $35 late fee, $35 over limit fee

 

[mugs]

Used to be that being a student or getting a secured card were the best ways to get started establishing credit. With the recent credit card reform bill restricting the ways in which CC companies can manage risk, they're re-evaluating who they offer credit to. Many people are having their cards canceled, and I wouldn't be surprised if young people have a harder time getting credit.

 

[marvdmartian]

Back when I first started out, the easiest places to get credit started were:

1. Gas station companies - you have to fuel your card anyways, they charge ridiculously high interest, so don't carry much (if any) of a balance).

2. Jewelry stores in the mall - again, ridiculously high interest rates, PLUS ridiculously priced jewelry, but easy to get and good for paying off over a few months time, which establishes good credit.

3. Department stores - JC Penney was always easy to get, Sears a little tougher, but in the bad economy we're in, they might be more willing to give credit in order to get business.

Good credit is earned, by paying off over time, paying on time, and paying off on time or early. Another good way to establish credit payments is if you have some cash you can afford to lose for 6 to 12 months, put it in a cd, then ask to borrow money using the cd as collateral for the loan. You're borrowing against yourself (basically), but it will help, as you're showing payments against a loan, over time, that you paid off on time.

 

[bobdole369]

http://www.orchardbank.com - I got a $300 card with a 580.

Capital one lets you "soft-pull" to see if you qualify for one of their cards, quite easy to get.

It used to be www.crownjewelers.com would open a $1500 line and report immediatly to all 3 bureaus, by just verifying a job - they are having problems and can only report to experian.

www.target.com - Target will approve you if you have at least 2 unsecured lines for a year and a bank account they can verify.

Walmart cards are kinda easy - the low credit line ones at least.

Stay away from the prime stuff and any offers until you get something revolving for a while. BTW your "debit" card is not a line of credit and is not reported as such.

Gas cards are quite hard these days - compared to years past.

www.freecreditreport.com is a scam

www.annualcreditreport.com is the government sponsored actual site to get your yearly credit reports (actually free)

 

[bobdole369]

Or get a cell phone plan in your name (or anything else that you have to pay monthly) as this will help you establish credit

False. Cell phones only report anything when you go into collections.

Most things that you pay monthly do NOT report lines to any bureau, so your electric bill, rent, internet, etc are useless.

Car Loans, Mortgages, secured and unsecured lines of credit are the only things that matter.

 

[bobdole369]

Try Citibank as that's who gave me my first and current CC.

Citi cards need about 640 - no prior revolving will autodeny you at a lot of places.

Sears is a terrible card with crazy interest, plus its prime, so no go there. Dunno how folks get that nowadays, it's not like the 70's where they handed sears credit out to bums it seemed.