What does it take to get a credit card?!

[LuckyTaxi]

About 2 yrs ago I signed my gf up for an Old Navy card. They sent a denial letter a few weeks later. She has a joint credit card with me, but that does her no good. At the time when she applied for an Old Navy card, she just opened her first bank account. Three years later, she applied for a Macy card today. We were surprised when the woman said she was granted the card on the spot! Anyways, does this mean her credit file is getting somewhere? Should we wait until a few more months and then actually apply for a credit card?

my cousin is in the same bought. However, he just got a steady job a year ago and has had his checking account for a little over a year now. I told him he doesnt really want a credit card, but he has to establish credit one way or another. So, is there a rule of thumb when trying to apply for one?

 

[notfred]

You have to be 18, have an address, and not be dead. If you meet those conditions, remember to check your mail and you should get a minimum of one pre-approved credit card offer each week.

 

[LuckyTaxi]

Originally posted by: notfred
You have to be 18, have an address, and not be dead. If you meet those conditions, remember to check your mail, and you should get a minimum of one pre-approved credit card offer each week.

thats the problem. NOTHING comes in the mail. I on te other hand get like 4-5 a day.

 

[Insane3D]

Originally posted by: notfred
You have to be 18, have an address, and not be dead. If you meet those conditions, remember to check your mail, and you should get a minimum of one pre-approved credit card offer each week.

If only it were that simple...

 

[Bateluer]

You can run your own credit report for free.

https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp

Unless you live in Zone 4, anyway.

 

[hdeck]

Originally posted by: notfred
You have to be 18, have an address, and not be dead. If you meet those conditions, remember to check your mail and you should get a minimum of one pre-approved credit card offer each week.

this one time i got a pre-approved letter in the mail and replied just for giggles then was told they changed their minds, lol.

 

[RossMAN]

I would suggest going to your local bank and signing up for a SECURED credit card.

Use that for 1-2 years, pay it off every month before it's due.

 

[Insane3D]

Originally posted by: Bateluer
You can run your own credit report for free.

<a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp">https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp</a>

Unless you live in Zone 4, anyway.

 

[LuckyTaxi]

Originally posted by: RossMAN
I would suggest going to your local bank and signing up for a SECURED credit card.

Use that for 1-2 years, pay it off every month before it's due.

Yea, i think I started that way. $250 for my providian and now i have 3 credit cards that are unsecured. I think thats the route to go. Anyway we can apply for one online? I dont think our bank has one. Also, what would they secure it by? Just a downpayment?

 

[RossMAN]

Originally posted by: lilcam

Originally posted by: RossMAN
I would suggest going to your local bank and signing up for a SECURED credit card.

Use that for 1-2 years, pay it off every month before it's due.

Yea, i think I started that way. $250 for my providian and now i have 3 credit cards that are unsecured. I think thats the route to go. Anyway we can apply for one online? I dont think our bank has one. Also, what would they secure it by? Just a downpayment?

They secure it with collateral (your deposit). The minimum is usually $300 but that's a rather low limit. I would recommend $500 or $1000 if you can swing it. These funds will be FROZEN in a savings account or CD, so you cannot spend it. After 1-2 years of using it and making on time payments, close it and get a regular unsecured cc and you get a refund + interest earned.

 

[LuckyTaxi]

This looks good and they're reputable, no?

 

[Insane3D]

Just a FYI, you can get turned down for secured cards too...as stupid as that sounds..

 

[LuckyTaxi]

Originally posted by: Insane3D
Just a FYI, you can get turned down for secured cards too...as stupid as that sounds..

Yea, just noticed that on orchard bank's website.
There's this one site that claims ANYONE is offered a card as long as he/she puts a deposit down. Then again they only report to ONE credit bureau. The Wells Fargo one is looking pretty good right about now.

 

[Insane3D]

Originally posted by: lilcam

Originally posted by: Insane3D
Just a FYI, you can get turned down for secured cards too...as stupid as that sounds..

Yea, just noticed that on orchard bank's website.
There's this one site that claims ANYONE is offered a card as long as he/she puts a deposit down. Then again they only report to ONE credit bureau. The Wells Fargo one is looking pretty good right about now.

Kinda makes no sense to me if you have the money and want to give it to them...I mean there is zero risk...but oh well...we are a slave to this credit system we have...

 

[notfred]

Originally posted by: RossMAN

Originally posted by: lilcam

Originally posted by: RossMAN
I would suggest going to your local bank and signing up for a SECURED credit card.

Use that for 1-2 years, pay it off every month before it's due.

Yea, i think I started that way. $250 for my providian and now i have 3 credit cards that are unsecured. I think thats the route to go. Anyway we can apply for one online? I dont think our bank has one. Also, what would they secure it by? Just a downpayment?

They secure it with collateral (your deposit). The minimum is usually $300 but that's a rather low limit. I would recommend $500 or $1000 if you can swing it. These funds will be FROZEN in a savings account or CD, so you cannot spend it. After 1-2 years of using it and making on time payments, close it and get a regular unsecured cc and you get a refund + interest earned.

I still think paying someone else for the privelege of spending your own money is moronic. You can get a regular credit card without having a secured card first.

 

[gar3555]

walk on any college campus...fill out form...you'll qualify

 

[Insane3D]

Originally posted by: notfred

I still think paying someone else for the privelege of spending your own money is moronic. You can get a regular credit card without having a secured card first.

Sometimes that is the only way you can fix/establish your credit...

Not everyone can get a credit card easy as pie...

 

[LuckyTaxi]

Originally posted by: notfred

Originally posted by: RossMAN

Originally posted by: lilcam

Originally posted by: RossMAN
I would suggest going to your local bank and signing up for a SECURED credit card.

Use that for 1-2 years, pay it off every month before it's due.

Yea, i think I started that way. $250 for my providian and now i have 3 credit cards that are unsecured. I think thats the route to go. Anyway we can apply for one online? I dont think our bank has one. Also, what would they secure it by? Just a downpayment?

They secure it with collateral (your deposit). The minimum is usually $300 but that's a rather low limit. I would recommend $500 or $1000 if you can swing it. These funds will be FROZEN in a savings account or CD, so you cannot spend it. After 1-2 years of using it and making on time payments, close it and get a regular unsecured cc and you get a refund + interest earned.

I still think paying someone else for the privelege of spending your own money is moronic. You can get a regular credit card without having a secured card first.

How, thats what we're trying to figure out. The closest thing she has to a CC card is the one that's under my name. In addition, she has a debit card from our local bank that has the VISA logo.

 

[Goosemaster]

An asshole.

 

[Insane3D]

Originally posted by: Goosemaster
An asshole.

 

[LongAce]

I got my first card when I was in college. Paid all my bills on time. That was how I got credit.

 

[thirtythree]

I got one from my credit union when I first moved out and started college. I had no credit, didn't have a job, and only had about $1500 in savings, so they told me I couldn't get one, but then I got one in the mail a week later... The only thing I use it for is buying stuff online (and in real life on a couple occasions), and I pay it off as soon as the charge shows up. Just transfer money right from my savings...

Yay for me. Don't know what the point of all that was.

 

[RossMAN]

Originally posted by: Insane3D

Originally posted by: notfred

I still think paying someone else for the privelege of spending your own money is moronic. You can get a regular credit card without having a secured card first.

Sometimes that is the only way you can fix/establish your credit...

Not everyone can get a credit card easy as pie...

Agreed. When my wife immigrated to the USA from Australia she was declined for a few regular unsecured cc's.

After receiving her SSN, she opened a bank account at a local small Credit Union. She applied for a secured cc with $500 deposit. 1 year later she was approved for $1,000 unsecured cc

Now it's 3 years later and she routinely gets approved for $7k - $10k credit cards. She closed the secured cc after 1 year and got her deposit back + interest earned.

 

[cubby1223]

Originally posted by: notfred
You have to be 18, have an address, and not be dead. If you meet those conditions, remember to check your mail and you should get a minimum of one pre-approved credit card offer each week.

Well, almost correct. At work once we started receiving magazines addressed to a name that no one knew (nobody's admitted to it yet, but we're pretty sure that one of the guys signed up to receive half a dozen magazines under a false name). Anyways, like every other day a new pre-approved credit card app kept showing up in the mail for someone who never existed in the first place!