Comments on: How Secured Credit Cards Work

By: Michael Tillett

Michael Tillett — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 11:04:34 +0000

After speaking with a my financial consultant, a mortgage lender, and an online representative from Bank of America, I applied for a Secured VISA. For thirteen months, since purchasing a new 2008 Honda Accord, I have been current on my auto payment, and have been diligent in attempting to rebuild my credit history. There are a few derogatory items on my credit report that I am presently working with a credit advisor on clearing up, mostly medical bills. There is only one line of credit on my credit report. In applying for a Secured VISA card, using money that I clearly have and that Bank of America is free to check into, I attempted to open up another trade-line, at NO RISK to Bank of America. Rather than try and build a good new customer relation, Bank of America thought it would be of more interest to them if they would just decline my application. As a certified high school teacher here in South Carolina, I will be letting many of my friends and colleagues, some of whom may already be Bank of America customers, know of this experience.

By: Shock

Shock — Fri, 29 May 2009 17:00:02 +0000

My wife had poor credit before I met her. In order for us to improve her credit score, she got a secure card. I didn’t know you could convert a secured card into an unsecured card. She’ll have to try that out. Thanks for the post.

By: Splendor

Splendor — Wed, 20 May 2009 18:20:27 +0000

Thanks for the write up.

By: Yana

Yana — Tue, 19 May 2009 01:04:42 +0000

One thing that peeves me about Bank of America is their marketing of Mexican immigrants. I feel like they are exploiting these people in pushing their cards at them. I don’t know if they are still up to this, given the current economy, but they were very aggressive in doing this in the not-so-distant past. I’d say if some foreigners suddenly think they need credit, it is because they’ve been strongly encouraged to play that game by those who would exploit them.

By: Yana

Yana — Tue, 19 May 2009 01:00:14 +0000

My husband didn’t exist in the credit world until he got a secured credit card with Capital One. I hated the $18 annual fee, which is why he didn’t keep the card after credit offers started rolling in from other issuers for fee-free credit cards. It didn’t take very long.

By: barry

barry — Mon, 18 May 2009 22:22:38 +0000

“financial”

By: EmBee

EmBee — Mon, 18 May 2009 21:38:14 +0000

yeah, it does sound funny.:) I guess it’s because the different finatial system.. In the developing country, like in China, people were used to pay or play with cash only. Even now things are different, but the finatial system is still under construction.:)

By: barry

barry — Mon, 18 May 2009 21:25:18 +0000

funny how they never needed credit before they came here! now, they simply cannot survive without it!

By: EmBee

EmBee — Mon, 18 May 2009 17:55:28 +0000

I guess it’s the way how most the immigrants get started with building credit.:)

By: barry

barry — Mon, 18 May 2009 16:21:11 +0000

Many of my friends are not from the U.S. and when they came here as adults, had no credit. Most of them used Secured Credit Cards to establish credit. That enabled a couple of them to get car loans. Then they were able to get mortgages and unsecured credit cards.

There’s a “cost of credit” -> fees and not the best interest rates – but overall painless.