Will applying for a BOA secured credit card raise my score?

[Anonymous]

I need to raise my score asap, I have a 560 mid. I've been paying down balances but need something to jump start my score asap. Will this help or hurt it? Thanks.

[llecs]

Do you have any CCs now? If so, how many and what is your utilization like?

[Anonymous]

I have 3 credit cards open with balances and they are all under 43% that is required for my mortgage loan.

[Junejer]

You can raise your score by getting that 43% util down to 1-9% overall and individual util. Further, you should only allow one card report that small balance and the other cards to report $0. I would be willing to bet that you will gain 30-40 points or more by doing this.

Based off of what you have shared, I see no reason to open a secured card.

[Anonymous]

Because we have to use most of our savings for our down payment, we can't pay down my cards for a while, but it is a goal of ours....I'm just having a hard time getting my credit card companies to report on to the credit bureaus. I paid down GEMB walmart to 50% util and they still havent reported for 30 days now, is there any way to call them and ask them to update my credit reports?

[Junejer]

CCCs usually report the balance as of the statement date. Figure that out in comparison to when you paid. It can take anywhere from 30-45 days for them to update.

Yes, you can call and ask when they update.