Curently, I'm trying to rebuild my credit and my equifax score is a 609 and my TU is 620. No Bankruptcy. Way back when, I applied for about 4 credit cards in college and never paid them off. This was about 7 years ago. So, now I'm mature and know the importance of credit and responsibility. I'm only in debt about 2K. Maybe I just scared about applying for credit, which I havent in the past years. I've just been paying for things with cash. Which cards ( credit, store, or gas ) do you recommend I should apply for that I would have a good chance of approval? then the next day happened... I just lost my job of six years last week. I was not expecting this. Acutually, if you would have talked to me about a week ago, I was trying to build a strategy to rebuild my credit. I had a good work history, good bank balance. Reason for me posting here was to attempt to re-build my credit score back up to a good score. (by applying for some cards now, because I only have one card now which is secured $500 from B of A; opened JULY 2002 with no late payments) Since I'm out a job now, if I apply now for new credit and still put down my last employers information, do you think I can still get approved for credit? Because this could be as if I was still employed last week, when I would have probably applied for new credit anyway. ( fyi - my salary was $54,000 a year ) Do you think it would be wise to utilities my salary/employer information while it's still fresh for credit application? My goal is to maintain some basic credit limits and to be a worthy credit customer. FYI - I did apply for Unemployed Insurance on Friday, so I don't know if this will hurt my chances. Thank you very muchâ?¦
Sorry about your misfortune.....but.........do you really want to open new credit now with the likely possibility of using credit to live on and getting in too deep?? The thought of ever going back to the dark place where being in debt sends you makes me so nervous for you. Just my 2 cents, I know it doesn't really answer any of your questions. I would hate to see your progress destroyed.
If you're only applying for cards, your employment status has very little to do with whether you'll be approved or not. A card issuer will look at your CR and scores first and foremost. This is another one of those funny things about the credit scoring system - the fact that your income is not factored into any scoring models. I've been denied many times with scores in the mid to high 600s, even though I pull in well over $100k a year. With that said, just be careful about applying for new credit, until your economic situation improves.
It was unfortunate I lost my job, as I was in the transition in building a stronger credit history. I pay for everything in cash, as I have built a good savings account for my spending habits. Applying for cards now, would only be to have them in my credit report for a stronger file. Currently, I only have one B of A secured card with only a $500.00 limit with no balance and no missed payments. (born 10 months ago and it's up for review to go unsecured in 2 months) So, I'm currenlty seeking to apply for some other simple CL cards to build a more presentable credit file, but not wasting any inquiries. Thank you all for taking time to respond to my questions. I do appreciate your time.
I'm no expert, but have you tried cleaning up your report with the methods talked about here on the board? If your transgressions were 7 years ago, I would imagine that it might be a simple matter of disputing the trade-lines to get them to go away and thus improving you score. If you are saying that you your negative trade-lines have already fallen off and you are just looking to add good trade-lines, please disregard this post. Good Luck!
