New to credit! Please Help!

[Anonymous]

I'll try and research some local CUs. And be patient. But the Freedom will be mine in 2013. I plan on using the card to build up travel rewards as I plan on doing a lot in the year to come. Hopefully I can get some rewards on it.

[bichonmom]

---

@Anonymous wrote:

Hello,

I'm new to the forum (just joined tonight), but have been reading post for a few months since applying for my first card.

Here's the story: I have 4 HP's that show for Nov. 2012 with one approval from Capital One for a secured 500CL. My first payment is coming up next week with 10% utilization. I have one outstanding debt from some company back in 07 for 200 bucks which I had no idea about until I checked my report for the first time in Nov. I plan on paying in full and asking them to delete it. I had already disputed it, but it didn't work out. My starting score was 610. I have no other forms of credit, ie. loans, etc.

I've been reading that I should have 2 revolvers and a charge to get my foot in the door.  My goals are Chase Freedom and an Amex charge. Long term Chase Sapphire Preffered. How should I go about obtaining these cards? What would be the best way to go? Any advice would help. Thank you.

---

First, it sounds like you don't have a FICO yet. It takes approx 6 mos to generate a FICO. Since you've just gotten your first cc, it will probably be June or July till you have a FICO. The 610 score is what's called a FAKO, meaning its a score sold by CRAs and not a true FICO. I would call CS here and tell them that you signed up, but don't have a FICO score yet because you just got your first credit card. Ask them to cancel so you're not charged and also so you'll be able to do the trial when you have a FICO score to see.

second, you should open a second TL. This can be another secured cc, but doesn't have to be. You could also get a secured loan. That way, your cash flow isn't affected, since you borrow the money back that you deposit into the bank. That is how I rebuilt my credit. I'm so grateful that the loan officer at my bank told me to open a second one at another institution. I also had no FICO score because I hadn't had any credit in a decade. 

third, re the collection. Don't just pay it! A paid CA scores exactly the same as an unpaid one. Try to pfd - pay for delete. You can get some advice about that on the rebuilders thread. Don't call the ca. Try contacting the oc And see if you can negotiate the removal of the ca in exchange for their removing it from your cr. once you pay, you have no leverage to get it off, and you're at their mercy with goodwill letters.

if you do this, you would likely qualify for an Amex charge (as opposed to a revolver) in a year. Generally, Amex wants to see at least 2 trade lines reporting for at least a year. You'd probably also qualify for a chase freedom. Chase sapphire is a harder cc to qualify for. They like to see a solid credit history and high CLs, since their starting CL is $5k.

Once you have a FICO generated, you might want to consider a store card, so that you'll have two revolvers. GEMB is pretty easy on approvals and gives good CLIs. Many here have their Walmart card largely because we like to get the free monthly TransUnion fico. The only other place to get your TransUnion FICO is here, on a quarterly basis.

[Anonymous]

Thank you for all the info! I am currently waiting for reply from my bank for a secured loan that I applied for in Nov. Thats where one of my inquiries came from. And my experian report said that the baddie will be erased in Sep of this year, regardless of whether or not I pay it. MyFico said that because they couldn't get my score, they wont charge me. I am applying to a local credit union tomorrow that offers secured cards tommorow becuase I don't want to waste another hard inquiry only to be denied credit. So, if that goes well, I'll have two secured cards. that I'll pay off every month. How long should I wait for the walmart one? I was thinking maybe target too, because there's one right down the street from my house and I go there a lot. Would that be as easy to get? Would you happen to know the requirements for a Venture from Cap One? Because I would really like to start building some kind of travel rewards with the money I am currently spending. 

[bs6054]

---

@Anonymous wrote:

Thank you for all the info! I am currently waiting for reply from my bank for a secured loan that I applied for in Nov. Thats where one of my inquiries came from. And my experian report said that the baddie will be erased in Sep of this year, regardless of whether or not I pay it. MyFico said that because they couldn't get my score, they wont charge me. I am applying to a local credit union tomorrow that offers secured cards tommorow becuase I don't want to waste another hard inquiry only to be denied credit. So, if that goes well, I'll have two secured cards. that I'll pay off every month. How long should I wait for the walmart one? I was thinking maybe target too, because there's one right down the street from my house and I go there a lot. Would that be as easy to get? Would you happen to know the requirements for a Venture from Cap One? Because I would really like to start building some kind of travel rewards with the money I am currently spending. 

---

The Venture is one of Cap One's "Excellent Credit" cards, so is probably not going to be available to you.  They also have a Venture One, which has lower credit requirements (although probably still too high for you at present), it has lower rewards but no annual fee.

Also, for later, certainly get your credit reports from the free annual site, and getting the EQ score from here is fine.  The TU score available here is almost a FAKO, as it uses an old version that almost no lender now sees.

[bichonmom]

---

@Anonymous wrote:

Thank you for all the info! I am currently waiting for reply from my bank for a secured loan that I applied for in Nov. Thats where one of my inquiries came from. And my experian report said that the baddie will be erased in Sep of this year, regardless of whether or not I pay it. MyFico said that because they couldn't get my score, they wont charge me. I am applying to a local credit union tomorrow that offers secured cards tommorow becuase I don't want to waste another hard inquiry only to be denied credit. So, if that goes well, I'll have two secured cards. that I'll pay off every month. How long should I wait for the walmart one? I was thinking maybe target too, because there's one right down the street from my house and I go there a lot. Would that be as easy to get? Would you happen to know the requirements for a Venture from Cap One? Because I would really like to start building some kind of travel rewards with the money I am currently spending. 

---

You won't be able to get a store card until you have generated a FICO score, which will take about 6 mos. I'd check in June and see if you have one. you might want to wait until your baddie comes off. I had one 7-yr CA fall off and my FICO went up nearly 100 pts. I went from the high 600s to mid- high 700s, depending in the CRA. Sometimes they will fall off early, but sometimes they can stay on for up to 7.5 yrs. I think TU left it on the longest and I went against the advice I got here and disputed it as being over the 7yrs, and it was removed. The CA could have verified it and it would have stayed on another 6 mos, so it was a gamble. 

I would probably wait for it to fall off before getting a store card because you'll likely get a higher starting CL. GEMB gives good CLIs, though, so in the long run it might not make much difference if you do it in June or sept. 

Target is a more difficult store card to get. If you start a thread about Target, you'll get feedback from people who have gotten the card. As other poster said, Venture One is cap one's top CC and it requires excellent credit. Plus, they pull all 3 CRAs. It's a toughie to get, even with very good credit.

[Anonymous]

I Just ran a check of all 3 CRs and found somewhat acceptable news. My EQ is completely clean, My EX has one baddie that will fall off in Sept. and My TU has one baddie that was paid 10 months ago but stil shows up as unpaid. I will give them a call tomorrow and ask them to delete it. My TU only has one inquiriy on it from Cap One, while my EX has four and my EQ, two. I would be completely content to wait if only I could at least get those baddies off. I wont be applying for the Cap One Venture for a while, but starting to build my foundation with their secured card may have been a step in the right direction.

[bichonmom]

---

@Anonymous wrote:

I Just ran a check of all 3 CRs and found somewhat acceptable news. My EQ is completely clean, My EX has one baddie that will fall off in Sept. and My TU has one baddie that was paid 10 months ago but stil shows up as unpaid. I will give them a call tomorrow and ask them to delete it. My TU only has one inquiriy on it from Cap One, while my EX has four and my EQ, two. I would be completely content to wait if only I could at least get those baddies off. I wont be applying for the Cap One Venture for a while, but starting to build my foundation with their secured card may have been a step in the right direction.

---

Paid and unpaid collections stay on your credit report for 7-7.5 yrs from DOFD (date of first delinquency). No diff if paid or not. Fico is the same whether it's paid or not as well.

If you dispute it as paid, they may update your cr to reflect that, but it won't improve your credit picture at all.

It can only be removed by aging off. If that's going to be more than a yr, you can try to goodwill it off. 

[Anonymous]

It says that it will remain on my credit til 2018. And I paid it about a month after it showed up. I will call tomorrow and ask them out of goodwill.

[bichonmom]

You might want to post for some advice on GW in the rebuilders thread. Sometimes it's best to contact oc. Others you have to deal with CA. Usually you need to write a letter, as opposed to call. And have a good explanation as to why it had not been paid. You usually need to appeal to their sympathy because they're under no legal obligation to remove it.

Good luck! I hope you can get it off. that's a long time to wait for a paid ca to come off. 

[Anonymous]

Thank you for your help! I will give it a shot. I hope they can sympathize.