Wells Fargo Not "Graduating" Secured Cards

[92235]

So I talked with a friend I have that works at one of the local Wells Fargo branches here about my secured card. She looked into it and found that because of the new laws signed by Obama they will not review any cards until September 1st. The criteria is that you have to have perfect payment history with them and no over the limit. You also can not have any missed payments with any other creditors. I don't remember seeing anything in the new law about unsecuring credit cards, but maybe I overlooked it. Also I know I will get denied because I have a $173 collection on my credit for another 1.5 years

[Anonymous]

---

@92235 wrote:

So I talked with a friend I have that works at one of the local Wells Fargo branches here about my secured card. She looked into it and found that because of the new laws signed by Obama they will not review any cards until September 1st. The criteria is that you have to have perfect payment history with them and no over the limit. You also can not have any missed payments with any other creditors. I don't remember seeing anything in the new law about unsecuring credit cards, but maybe I overlooked it. Also I know I will get denied because I have a $173 collection on my credit for another 1.5 years

---

Interesting. I suspect this freeze was more about seeing what the new laws will really be when all is said and done. But September isn't far away at all. Hopefully they will be opening up some secured cards soon.

I wonder if an old collections account will really rule out secured card graduation? Strangely enough, there is a difference between late payments and collections accounts on credit reports.

[92235]

The reason they denied me the first time was because I had 2 collections on my CR. So I am willing to bet that will be the reason again this time, even for one.

[haulingthescoreup]

---

@92235 wrote:

So I talked with a friend I have that works at one of the local Wells Fargo branches here about my secured card. She looked into it and found that because of the new laws signed by Obama they will not review any cards until September 1st...

---

Wow, I am so sick and tired of lenders blaming their actions on the new Credit Card ACT, aka "the new laws signed by Obama."

There isn't anything at all in the new law preventing them from doing this now. They have simply decided to postpone until September.

Yes, they are required to make sure that borrowers have enough income, etc. to be able to afford their credit. That's it, that's all that's required. There are plenty of lenders who are extending new credit, reducing credit limits, changing APR's, etc. etc. If Wells Fargo isn't ready to take on the review of secured cards until September, they should say so, without pretending that the decision is out of their hands.

As I posted on another thread, similar topic, this sort of response reminds me of a kid telling his/her friends "My parents won't let me go to the big party," when in reality, they don't want to go themselves.

Anyway, I hope this works out for you when WF lurches into action!

eta: 92235, this might have looked like an attack on you. I certainly didn't mean it to be! I'm just cranky about all the smoke and mirrors used by lenders to explain away why they don't want to do something.

[Anonymous]

---

@92235 wrote:

So I talked with a friend I have that works at one of the local Wells Fargo branches here about my secured card. She looked into it and found that because of the new laws signed by Obama they will not review any cards until September 1st. The criteria is that you have to have perfect payment history with them and no over the limit. You also can not have any missed payments with any other creditors. I don't remember seeing anything in the new law about unsecuring credit cards, but maybe I overlooked it. Also I know I will get denied because I have a $173 collection on my credit for another 1.5 years

---

This could be good news for me as my card reaches 12 months in Sept. I will stick around with them for a bit longer to see if they graduate my card. I will report back on feedback.

[trugem]

What should I do? My WF secured cc ($3000 cl) was hopefully going to become unsecured next week. I paid in full every month and it was never late.   My BoA just became unsecured in June & I have a $5000 cl. I also just purchased a car (7.5% financing thru Honda) payments start this month. I have my checking and saving with Wachovia. Im debating if I should cancel the wells card close my wachovia accounts & take my money and go to my local credit union. Or hang in there...

btw- nothing bad on credit just in the process of building. Advice would be helpful. My goal is to be 700 within a year!!!

Eq650 Es662 Trans 645

[ds4365]

It took me five years to go from secured to unsecured with wells fargo. I have two checking accounts with them...automatic deposit,... 4 savings accounts....credit score now in the 720 range, have a 18 percent utilization, perfect payment history, 7 year AoAA, 32 year history with AMEX....4 CARDS WITH THEM. I have never been late...never over the limit....always low utilization on all my cards (16 total). I have three car payments...two are due to be paid off in 3 months....never late. I just asked wells fargo for a credit line increase on my card with them and was turned down. When I went unsecured a year ago...they gave me a credit line increas of 200.00...making it 500.00 total. A credit union just gave me a 5000.00 dollar card with the same eporting....chase had me pre-approved for a Chase Freedom Card of 3500.00. I accepted it . Thye get the other portion of Automatice deposit....much lower than Wells Fargo deposit. My point is this......I am moving my money to other banking institutions....wells wants to sell you everything in the world....charge you fees of every kind......and give you every reason in the world to not increase your credit. Their reasons will change each time you correct something that they turn you down for. I have been turned down 4 times in the last four years....and the reason keeps shifting. I will keep their low limit almost worthless card and let it build my AoAA......but I will never ask them for anything again. All my accounts wil be terminated except for one....and the automatice deposit will go to someone else. My depost record for 5 years with has been based on a 110,000.00 salary......and they get alot. Have never had an over draft.

 Conservative is not a good word for these guys...........The best use I can now get out of them is the continued perfect record on my card. Good luck with trying to get a better response on going secured.........but after that, don't look forward to any great attention either.

[tobey]

5 years?? That's absurd. I'm giving them until the end of this year. If it's not unsecured by then, I'm calling them up and closing it. Not gonna keep giving them money for such a useless card...

[Anonymous]

I just called - 15 Jul - and they WF read me a disclaimer that states their still not graduating cards because they need time to process new graduation procedures due to the CARD Act.  Really?  It has been almost 1 year and five months since the law became effective and they don't have new procedures.

I had a secured card with BoA and at month 24 it magically became unsecured.  I've had my WF card over 7 years and the last time I asked to be graduated my Credit Scores were 807 / 799 / 814 and I was still denied.  I had nothing on my credit report, never missed a payment or had been over the credit limit.  Magically, WF just gave me a $1,000 CL increase but they are not giving me my money back because they need a year to come up with new procedures.

WF really is a joke of a bank when it comes to doing right by their customers.  If I close the account, I lose 7 years of credit history, my available credit amount decreases, the average age of my open accounts decreases, etc., etc., etc.

WF's solution, while we wait for their new procedures, is to "close the account" and apply for a new one.  What a freaking joke.

I hate WF!!!

[trugem]

Im secured and its going on 2.5 yrs now. I applied for a reg caed but was denied bc of limited history... (started rebuilding 3yrs ago) I have a BoA unsecured 6k cl. thinking of applyintg for a citi or cap 1 & then closing wf. Any suggestions? Whats an easy card to get? I have BoA cc 2.5 yrs, car loan with AHF 1yr & a WF secured 4k cl

Eq 662 Ex689 TU 713

I could close WF acct & use the money to pay off my BoA