Phone call with denial of GW letter...anything else I can do?

[Wyoming1]

I know I do, that's why I applied for one earlier this week. I had no idea my score was so bad since I've never gotten my score, I've always just pulled my report to make sure nothing fishy was on it.  I don't have any clue how long it takes to get denied or approved since I've never done it. Do you think just one CC will make that much of a difference? I will obviously keep the usage at a very low % and pay it off monthly. 

[pr0blumz]

It's very possible to have your score raised in 8 months if you get a credit card now. I also heard that you should not apply for anything within 6 months prior to applying for a mortgage. Did you get approved?

[KBreininger05]

I think one will help. And you're scores aren't TERRIBLE, just not the best.  They make take a hit the first month since your age of accts will be shorter, BUT probably in 6 months, maybe less you'll see an increase, in my opinion anyway.

[Wyoming1]

I don't know if I've gotten approved yet! I just got off the phone with Capitol One and they needed my physical address rather than mailing so my application was put on hold. Now that they have the address she said it can take up to 3 weeks to find out if I'm approved or not?!?! What the? Don't most people find out immediately if they're approved or not? 

FYI I have put myself on the 'opt out' list for life, so I don't get any pre-approval offers in the mail anymore. 

[KBreininger05]

Maybe you could try and get a card with a local credit union?  They seem to be pretty forgiving.  When I started rebuilding my credit Capital One and my local CU both approved me when no one else would.  Maybe worth a shot? And maybe a different one than the one you sent the GW letter to

[Wyoming1]

Haha! Good point, fortunately the CU that I sent the GW letter to is located in the south and don't have branches up here. I will give them a shot and see what they can do. Thanks! 

Is there anything else I can do to shoot my score up quickly, other than a credit card? Should I look into small personal loans or anything, or is it mostly the revolving credit? 

[KBreininger05]

From what I've been hearing in my own situation the revolving credit is what hurts or helps you.  In my case, it's suffocating me - too high balance/limits ratio.  And honestly paying that down gets instant results.  That is the best and most frequently updated source Creditors can use to see if you are a risk or not so it makes sense that that would affect your score the most.

[Wyoming1]

Ok sounds good. One more question, that's it I promise!

My husband has good credit, not excellent but better than mine since he has an extensive credit history. But he also doens't have any current credit cards. If he got a card and we added me as an authorized user, would that make much difference? 

[pr0blumz]

It depends on the history of that card. If the history is good then the yes it would help. It would not help you attain a mortgage though because you would probably be required to be removed as an AU to see your real score.

[navistar]

i put my wife on a couple of my cards as an authorized user and they never appeared on her credit. i dont think its the same as having your own.