can a secured card only improve your score till a certain point?

[Anonymous]

I am in the process of rebuilding my credit.  I have been using a secured card responsibly for the last 4 months and I noticed that my score jumped 28 points since I last checked.  I wanted to know if a secured card can only get you to a certain threshhold and then you cannot increase your score anymore or if I keep using it responsibly will the score keep going up in light of the other negatives?

Thanks

[mrmagic9799]

It can to an extent, but you'll want to have a "good mix" of credit from revolving (credit cards), installments ( car, certain loans), & mortage.  My best advice is whatever baddies you have try and get them removed if possible.  Lates-send GW letters, CO- Offer PFD.  

Be sure to troll these boards there are TONS of good information!!!

Best of Luck

[Guava]

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@mrmagic9799 wrote:

It can to an extent, but you'll want to have a "good mix" of credit from revolving (credit cards), installments ( car, certain loans), & mortage.  My best advice is whatever baddies you have try and get them removed if possible.  Lates-send GW letters, CO- Offer PFD.  

Be sure to troll these boards there are TONS of good information!!!

Best of Luck

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+1 there! 35% of FICO scores is payment history, but establishing payment history takes time. Secure card works the same way as any other credit card for FICO scoring purposes. IMO it's when your file is manually reviewed and the card reports as secure card then it looks unfavorable.

[Crashem]

The right secured cards shouldn't show as secured on credit reports.

[RW771]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I am in the process of rebuilding my credit.  I have been using a secured card responsibly for the last 4 months and I noticed that my score jumped 28 points since I last checked.  I wanted to know if a secured card can only get you to a certain threshhold and then you cannot increase your score anymore or if I keep using it responsibly will the score keep going up in light of the other negatives?

Thanks

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I think secured cards are the greatest thing to have when rebuilding credit. I was trying to buy a house last year and needed help getting to a minimum of 620 and had VERY limited credit. The LO I first spoke to advised me to open up at least 1, but preferrably 2 secured cards through some local CU's here in my area. As the months went on, my score gradually increased and in December I bought my first home! I look at secured cards like training wheels...they help hold you up until you're ready to take them off and do it alone.

The important thing when getting a secured card is making sure they report to all 3 CB's. Sure it also teaches you how to handle a CC, but why get one if it's not going to help your credit? The other main thing to look for are cards that eventually will "graduate" to unsecured cards. Alot of banks will do this after a year or so of seeing you can responsibly handle it. Just this week I went to my bank and asked if I could qualify for an unsecured card now since having a secured card with them for about a year. They ran my credit again, but I was approved for a platinum MC with a 6K limit and they refunded the money I had put down on opening the secured card and put it back in my savings acct.

Edited to correct typos.

[Anonymous]

The right secured card can definitely help.  I started with Cap1's and it didn't show as secured on any of credit reports.

Looking back I wish I started with BoA's secured card.  I hear most times they will graduate to a unsecured card after a year to the CL that the secured card was at.  Not bad.....

Also secured cards can help you get your foot in the door whether its a CU or major bank.

It will take some time, but it should pay off.