I'm considering adding a credit card to help with having a variety of credit. I have loan credit in my history, and I have 2 Cap 1 cards that are 1 and 2 yrs old. I have looked at the credit tab at the top of this site. It has some cards listed but of course there are so many cards out there. After cleaning up my credit a bit, though I still have a little work to do, my scores are in the "good" range, I think. The only "real" score I know is EQ = 672. TrueCredit has my TU score at 647 (real score is probably higher), and EX is giving me grief with a TrueCredit score of 531 (real score probably higher, and I'm still working on FTC complaint) I know to check to see which CRA a card will pull, but I'm looking for advise here on which cards are better to deal with. I've done a search with the search box, and of course as I've read through threads over some time, some names have stuck with me. I have a couple offers in my mail, but I know I can go to a web site to apply for so many more. And of course I know to look closely at the terms and fine print of the offers, but I'm looking for general info on the companies, if they are good to work with or difficult to work with. For ex., BofA. I have heard of people looking for help with them because they have fallen behind, but maybe I've heard that name a lot because it's a widely used card and generally good to work with and I've only heard of the problems from here. If someone could give opinion on them, it could help. Aslo, Washington Mutual. I've only recently started hearing about them quite a bit, but nothing bad so far - just advertising. I have an offer for for a "Visa Platinum" Again, after I explore the terms, what does anyone know about working with them as a company? Thanks
Here's one: http://www.hsus.org/humane_living/member_offers/humane_society_credit_card.html Your rewards go to a good cause (.25 for each $100.) instead cash back. Never had a account with MBNA but the rate looks okay.
There are many cards to go with, but many of the 'good' ones will come to you as soon as you get other cards. The offers you get in the mail/you have now - what you can do is sit down with a pen and paper and put the pros and cons of each card (read the terms and conditions closely, and you WILL find them), and go from there. BOA is very good. Especially for those who start off with no credit (secured card), and they are flexible with interest rates, etc. The only 'problem' I have with them is they will tighten up your credit limit VERY quickly as soon as they see your other balances move up. I know why it's done, but I think it's a dirty practice if you've been a long time customer. The Amex product lines are improving. Make sure you understand 'charge' and 'credit' cards, as many people still don't know the difference Citi is good also, and they have a wide variety of cards. In fact, City will cross products for you, and in some instances, they will let you cancel your existing card and exchange it for a better card. I don't recommend the Quicken card to anyone anymore, and I canceled mines last year. If you do go with them - you CAN find a better card, as they didn't want to keep up with the times. Last, but not least, is Chase. I love Chase, and I would recommend them to everyone that's interested. Gas is a killer, and their Perfect Card is a good card to have, BUT, make sure you get a good interest rate on it! When the gas crunch is over (HAHA), you might be able to switch over to another card...but why - you'll be getting free gas. The platinum card is good, as are some of the interest rates on some of their theme cards. I don't personally care for any of their themed cards...but some people love them. They also have excellent business cards, their customer service has improved greatly, and they are willing to work with you with interest rates, late payments, and credit limit increases. No matter what card you choose - make sure you are happy with it, you understand the terms, and you know the 'game' of keeping your account in good standing, so you can get nice extras when you call in. Good luck, and I hope you find the card that suits your needs.
Don't forget to look at your local banks for their credit cards. Some of them have good deals. Where I'm originally from, we have a credit union, and the interest rates and credit limits on those types of cards are amazing. Make sure they report, because before I got married, I had a card from a CU for 5 years (perfect payments), and found out by accident they didn't report.
from Jackueline Can you clarify that? Are you saying there is a difference between a charge card and a credit card? If so, I don't know the difference. Please claify? In looking closer at the offers, the BofA is not a card, it's a line of credit offer. If approved, they can deposit into my bank account (but I don't think I like the idea of anyone having access to my bank account, though I do have direct deposit and automatic payment deductions), they send me checks to use. Offer valid for 7 days. Additional info on th Wa Mu offer. It has the web address that I've seen many times before: getmyvisa.com I don't know if that's an ok thing or not, but seems like a pretty common address, and not sure that's a good indicator. Are these offers for bad or improving-but-not-too-good credit people? I have gotten many offers before and I never consider them. I think I'm considering now not because of these specific offers, but because I think it something I should do to help my credit file. I asked about these because they are the most recent offers, but I think I would prefer to seek the card I want by going to a direct web site, for example, Visa, AmEx, etc. I wanted to apply for a Continental Airlines cc, so that I could airline miles with them specifically, but I called to see which CRA they used, and they use EX, which is the one that is giving me grief with low scores. Maybe later I could add that, but most likely not now. I wish I could get them to pull another CRA. I appreciate all thoughts on this. And thank you, Jackueline.
Ms. Suzie, Charge card means ya use it, ya got no limit (they supposedly got an internal limit), and ya pay back what ya use...usually at one time. Some cards let ya break the balance up into 2 or 3 months. Amex Gold was example. I had one, and hated it. Credit cards got a limit, ya know da limit, and ya still pay back what ya use, but in this case, what you pay (minus interest, etc), is put back as yer available credit limit. Blue card from Amex is example. Boa is a good bank. As much as I wanna prove Jackie wrong (hehe), I like em too. I was late a couple times, and they got rid of em. They grow with ya, and once you're in with em, they treat you good. The line of credit ya got offered - if you accept it, ya can always have it deposited into a savings, or a 'dummy' account, so you don't gotta worry that your real one'll get touched. No matter what ya do/offer ya accept, make sure ya know what ya want, what you're acceptin, and always read the fine print (not doin that got me in trouble once...hehe). Good lucks 2 u on yer credit journey.
Thanks for the advise so far. I noticed that no one mentioned the Washington Mutual thing, either way. So I'm still wondering about that company. Is it common that people are offered a line of credit, like BofA is for me now? I don't own a home (I'd like to buy soon, but haven't begun the process yet - it may be months) I guess I don't hear of people being offered lines of credit unless it's attached to a house, and it makes me a bit skeptical. But if you all say it's common in my case, I'll accept that.
