I am just starting to rebuild my credit after waiting 7 years. I have a Target card, just got it last month. That's all I have , I was wondering when and which credit card I should apply for first to get started on major credit cards? Thanks
In my opinion I think that Capital One is great (Capitalone.com)! They report to all three bureaus and their APR is on the lower side of most of the sub prime cards (usually 19.8%), they are a little slow on granting credit increases, but I found that if you make large monthly payments (on time), the credit increases come more often and higher. They also have great customer service! good luck chet
A note about Capital One "In my opinion I think that Capital One is great (Capitalone.com)! They report to all three bureaus" I generally agree. I finally managed to get one of their reps to admit that 6 months of secured credit history with them are normally sufficient to get their unsecured card. HOWEVER, they absolutely WON'T unsecure your card after "only" 6 months with them. Hence you have to close the account after that time, wait a few days and apply for their unsecured. Customer service is otherwise excellent, and retention agents WILL lower your APR even after a few months (though reps would initially deny that). "I found that if you make large monthly payments (on time), the credit increases come more often and higher." When it comes to Capital One, "often" and "credit increases" can't appear in the same sentence Saar
RE: A note about Capital One I can't speak for the secured card, I have 2 unsecured cards. it's me should apply for the unsecured card which is not that difficult to acquire. I am speaking strictly of my experience with Capital One - I got my first card 8 months ago and in that time I have recieved 2 credit line increases and was upgraded to a gold card (wheeee! I know, big deal), but it's progress! I then applied for another classic card and was approved with a $1,000 limit. They obviously have different criteria for different people and it's hard to know how it is based. I am just assuming my luck with Capital One was due to my payment pattern - minimum payment due $15 - I would send $100 or $150 two weeks before the payment was due! I think for rebuilding Capital One is fair and shows respect to their customers who are in the process of rebuilding (19.8% APR, good customer service). Cards like Aspire (30.49%, do not report), and there are many more that could be mentioned, are strictly out to *rape* those that are sincerely trying to rebuild their credit! They show no respect. chet
RE: But they dont report credi Capital one doesnot report your credit limit on the credit report. That is a bummer.
RE: But they dont report credi Roni- You;'re right about that. If the cc company does not report the cl, you are disadvantaged on the balance to credit limit ratio which reduces the FICO score. The way to get around this is to charge the card near the limit just before the closing date of the statement. The credit report will then show this balance which will be computed into the total of the credit lines available. Of course, you then want to pay the card way down right after that so that you have a good ratio and avoid a bunch of interest.
and more we need legislation to compel cc companies to report credit limits. The reasons some banks don't don't report is that they are afraid other companies will lure customers away by offering higher limits.
RE: But they dont report credi On my credit report from Experian it says high credit______ and the credit limit is separate and is left blank. So that method do not work. Capital one doesnot report high credit as credit limit on my reports. I aint running up that card to find out either.
RE: But they dont report credi Roni-- It's hard to tell if you are looking at the experian report. But if you go to Q-space and order the report, you will get summary information which shows the total revolving balance and limits. When I added up the reporting and non-reporting credit limits, I found that the amt. shown was correct within a few dollars even though Cap.1 credit was not reporting a $5k limit on one of the cards. I had run the card up to the limit in the past. Hope this helps.
RE: But they dont report credi My report was from experian themselve. The q-space single report I received was from equifax. The triple report I mailed to junum.com so I dont know about that one. thanks for the info.
RE: and more That makes little or no sense. Banks already know that most Capital One cards have low credit limits. They can offer a high limit to anyone with a Capital One card, knowing that it will probably be more attractive than what they've got. The problem is that banks also know that most Capital One cardholders have poor credit. If they don't get offers for high credit limits, it isn't because of their unreported Capital One credit limits.
RE: and more What are you talking about? That is the reason that capital one does that. And capital one is not just for those with poor credit. Whatever, man.
RE: and more Dave has a conspiratorial view of the world which does not fit the facts. Capital One has limited power. They can't keep another bank from offering you a high credit limit. If you're stuck with Capital One, it is definitely because you have poor credit. The only exception would be the Platinum card.
RE: and more YOu are talking about two different things. Not getting a better card than capital one has nothing to do with c1 not reporting credit limits. Sense you know, what is your theory on them not reporting the limits. Huh!
Capital One secured is a good choice. They report it as unsecured to credit bureaus, although the card is in fact secured... I think Orchard has also a good offer
I have to agree w/Capital One. I've only had Aria for a couple months, but they seem to be pretty good. The online access and fast posting of both companies are big pluses.
RE: and more I don't know how you find a conspiratorial world view in my explanation of why Cap1 does not report credit limits. I don't think that what Cap1 is doing is conspiratorial. A conspiracy is an agreement to commit an unlawful act or a lawful act by unlawful means. A corporation cannot conspire with itself. However, what Cap1 is doing is anti-competitive because it prevents other companies from tailoring their offers to match or exceed the credit limit Cap1 offers. It can work against your FICO score which makes it less likely that better offers will be made at all. Also, you are wrong in thinking that Cap1 is not offer prime cards. Its platinum card is a very good value.
RE: and more I agree with you that the two things are not related. That's been my position all along. As for your question, it's actually quite reasonable. I doubt Dave's explanation because I believe it's more complex than other banks needing to know your Cap One limit before they can offer you a higher one. I suspect that Cap One simply wants to create confusion so that you don't get any other credit of any amount. They want other banks to worry that you have too much credit already. They also want them to worry that you may be over your credit limit. They can have it both ways by not reporting your credit limit.
RE: and more Good point about a conspiracy being illegal, which Cap One's actions are not. Bad point about a corporation being unable to conspire with itself. Banks could conspire with other corporations, for example credit reporting agencies. Officers of a bank could conpsire with one another. I'm glad I challenged you, because you made some really good points. Cap One is truly anticompetitive. I just view competition as much broader than a higher credit limit from another bank. It includes alternative credit of any amount, which Cap One's policies make it difficult to obtain.
