How to keep building from here

[CreditOCDinCali]

Hello All!! I am in the process of rebuidling my credit after some set-backs. I started out with 526 in March 2015 and now I'm at 583 May 2015, according to Experian- I am a registered member. I improved my score by paying off a collection account and also opening up 2 credit cards with Capital One and 1 Fingerhut account. I've used 1 of the Capital One cards and I paid it off the next month. I used the Fingerhut account for one minor purchase and paid half of it off. I would like to know how can I keep building from here... My credit cards are only 1 month old and so is my Fingerhut account. I am still paying off 2 more collection accounts. Thank you for any help you can provide.

[Anonymous]

So, you want to have 3 bank cards for revolving credit.  If you don't qulify for a secured card then you want to get another card - like Merrick? Credit One? These are subprime cards but they will help you rebuild and get your score up and get you some credit history.  Once you're in a higher  score braket then you can apply for more prime accounts.

How old are the collection accounts?  Can you PFD? That way they are paid and gone forever? 

Do you have any installment loads? Car, student loan, house? Fico like to see 1 installment loan.  If you dont have a loan I know that there are some suggestions on the rebuilding board of a bank that will loan you $500 and you pay it back $14/month...this is all just to get some history and reestabilished credit.

Do you have any store cards? 1 or 2 store cards wouldnt hurt you - you can try the Shopping Cart Trick.

There is a lot of great information on these boards....keep reading and map out your credit steps...you can do it!

[Anonymous]

Ugh...Stay away from Merrick and Credit One. You have two cap one cards and a FH account. Since the Cap One cards are only one month old, I am assuming they have not reported yet? If they have, then I would suggest opening an account with SDFCU and get a secured card from them. You might also try Barclays, but they may not approve you with out some depth to your history. Once you've got the three cards, site back and use them wisely, and garden for 6-12 months, then see where you stand.

[Anonymous]

Hey Norman - So do you think its wiser to just garden with secured cards instead of garden with unsecured sub-prime cards?

I mean, i totally understand why people hate Merrick and Credit One (fees, APR, etc.) - but I guess I'm wondering what is the lesser of the 2 evils?

I got a Merrick and Credit One before I found these boards...I'm slowing building using them and a Cap1 card. 

Should I get secured cards instead?

I tried Barclay card and they denied me because I didnt have enough of  a credit history.

Thanks!

[Anonymous]

Makes no difference from a scoring perspective. The predator cards just cost you a lot more money - so theres really no reason to use them, IMO, unless you just can't get any secured cards (it happens).

Since you've already got them, I would look at adding another Cap One card, and dropping Credit One, as its usually the costliest one out there.

Yeah, Barclays likes to see at least a year of history, but they will approve you with ~600 scores, and they are no AF.

[CreditOCDinCali]

I opened up another credit cards. Here are my open revolving accounts:
- Capital One Platinum CL $300 (automatically enrolled in steps program)
- Capital One Quicksilver CL $500
-Finger Hut CL $300

I have 2 paid off collections, 1 collection I'm currently working on and an old Macys credit card removal from 2005. I disputed the Macys credit card and Experian said they would remove it.

[Anonymous]

What the others are suggesting is to research some PFD "pay for delete" letters before paying off anymore collection accounts. Just by paying the collection off it doesn't help your score. It may look better paid in creditor's eyes but it does little to help you. You should always try and get the collection agency to agree to delete the account upon payment. Most CA's will agree to this especially if yiu are paying in full. This is the only way to help your score when paying off a collection. "paid in full" hurts just as bad as "non paid collection". Sometimes paying it hurts worse if the account hasn't been updated for a while because it renews the date on the account.

[CreditOCDinCali]

I'm going to do a PFD on 2 medical collections, and the amounts are- $102 and $56. I regret not doing a PFD for the 2 other collections, but I'm gonna write the CA a GW letter and see if they'll delete, since I did pay in full.