topic Need help from people with Discover Secured in Credit Cards

Need help from people with Discover Secured

Anonymous — Sat, 17 Dec 2016 14:43:16 GMT

Have you had your discover card unsecured? If so do you mind sharing your score at the time of when it unsecured? Thank you.

Re: Need help from people with Discover Secured

Anonymous — Sat, 17 Dec 2016 15:01:14 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
Have you had your discover card unsecured? If so do you mind sharing your score at the time of when it unsecured? Thank you.

Yes, mine was unsecured after 7 statements. FiCO 670-720. UTI <5%. INQ - you don't want to know. If you insist, around 60. Requested for CLI after 1 week and got $500. It's a start.

Re: Need help from people with Discover Secured

Anonymous — Sat, 17 Dec 2016 15:29:14 GMT

Unsecured with a TU638

Re: Need help from people with Discover Secured

Anonymous — Sat, 17 Dec 2016 17:12:21 GMT

Mine just unsecured early aftern the 7th ststement, CL auto increase to $500 then to $1,000 after online request. My scores are 665 - 684. Really wish I'd added more $ to it now.

Re: Need help from people with Discover Secured

Anonymous — Sun, 18 Dec 2016 06:20:43 GMT

Mine unsecured after my 9th statement. Fico of 687 on their app. I didnt have a fico when I applied because this was my first card, excluding an authorized user account. They also gave me a $300 bump to $500.

Re: Need help from people with Discover Secured

Anonymous — Sun, 18 Dec 2016 07:35:06 GMT

24 months and counting, not unsecured yet. So take that for what you will.

Re: Need help from people with Discover Secured

Anonymous — Sun, 18 Dec 2016 11:47:26 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
Mine just unsecured early aftern the 7th ststement, CL auto increase to $500 then to $1,000 after online request. My scores are 665 - 684. Really wish I'd added more $ to it now.

Curious what makes you say that? Do those with higher deposits tend to get higher starting CL's when the card unsecures?

Personally, that's still not a gamble I'm willing to take with Discover, seeing so many stay secured for so long. I'm up to $400 now (4 months in), and I use the card heavily and am about to even more. I begrudgingly added the extra $200 simply to make use of the 5% at wholesale coming in January. But there's only so much money I'm going to lend them having no idea when it will come back.

I hope I'm a 7th monther. I feel like I'm doing everything I can (all statements cut with a $2 or $3 balance showing, and all payments in full and on time). But it's completely up to Discover, and folks seem to find them hard to predict. $1000 or $1500 is a lot of money for me to deposit on to a card when there's a chance Discover could still be holding on to it for 18-24 months or more.

Re: Need help from people with Discover Secured

joltdude — Sun, 18 Dec 2016 16:21:51 GMT

Mich.

Whats your TU Fico score?

Know that a lot of the Discover unsecuring is based on that...

-J

@Anonymous wrote:
24 months and counting, not unsecured yet. So take that for what you will.

Re: Need help from people with Discover Secured

joltdude — Sun, 18 Dec 2016 16:39:21 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
Mine just unsecured early aftern the 7th ststement, CL auto increase to $500 then to $1,000 after online request. My scores are 665 - 684. Really wish I'd added more $ to it now.
Curious what makes you say that? Do those with higher deposits tend to get higher starting CL's when the card unsecures?

Personally, that's still not a gamble I'm willing to take with Discover, seeing so many stay secured for so long. I'm up to $400 now (4 months in), and I use the card heavily and am about to even more. I begrudgingly added the extra $200 simply to make use of the 5% at wholesale coming in January. But there's only so much money I'm going to lend them having no idea when it will come back.

I hope I'm a 7th monther. I feel like I'm doing everything I can (all statements cut with a $2 or $3 balance showing, and all payments in full and on time). But it's completely up to Discover, and folks seem to find them hard to predict. $1000 or $1500 is a lot of money for me to deposit on to a card when there's a chance Discover could still be holding on to it for 18-24 months or more.

Yes your starting CL on graduation is higher when the card unsecures if you put more money into the deposit ... its a combination of being able to "save" that money (and not relying on it, shows you can save) AND that you are taking a higher personal risk with higher CL thats dependant on YOUR own money..

Again with the gamble... the more you gamble the more you win... but again. credit isn't built in a day..

Your expecting a 7month unsecuring... It doesn't work that way... most secured cards expect a YEAR ...

And whats your actual TU FICO score? That seems to be the key to unsecuring with discover... If your trying to game it for 7month or a year unsecuring...try to work on making that climb...as well as working on any baddies if you have any... Also if you dont have a installment loan theres the secured share method... But that too needs a deposit, but you get most of it back in days as the loan itself....

Discovers been working on the backlog of older secured cards.. Not everyone, but quite a few if their TU score has gotten high enough (really think its over 650-660 or so, is unsecuring but this is just observation..... (and someone can correct me if im off on this).. and your at least 2 years out from a BK....

You keep calling it a loan.. the purpose of the securing... it to make good if you don't pay it off.. the bank is still taking a risk but by having that reserve.. they can and will use if if you default to pay the card, then issue you a check back or credit it to your account the difference.... minus fees of course...

Do i wish secured cards paid interest like the old days.. Yes.. but there is still risk even with the security deposit to the creditor... the risk is not 0... i actually had a banker explain to me why even a secured card is risk for the banking institution issuing it, albeit minimal...

Your thinking loan, when in reality a security deposit is escrow...

Re: Need help from people with Discover Secured

smoop88 — Mon, 19 Dec 2016 07:25:25 GMT

It's been 17 months and still secured for me. In fact I've gotten a BOA 99/500 and that graduated. They tell me they check every 10th of the month when my statement cuts but nothing.

Re: Need help from people with Discover Secured

Anonymous — Mon, 19 Dec 2016 10:41:26 GMT

@joltdude wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
Mine just unsecured early aftern the 7th ststement, CL auto increase to $500 then to $1,000 after online request. My scores are 665 - 684. Really wish I'd added more $ to it now.
Curious what makes you say that? Do those with higher deposits tend to get higher starting CL's when the card unsecures?

Personally, that's still not a gamble I'm willing to take with Discover, seeing so many stay secured for so long. I'm up to $400 now (4 months in), and I use the card heavily and am about to even more. I begrudgingly added the extra $200 simply to make use of the 5% at wholesale coming in January. But there's only so much money I'm going to lend them having no idea when it will come back.

I hope I'm a 7th monther. I feel like I'm doing everything I can (all statements cut with a $2 or $3 balance showing, and all payments in full and on time). But it's completely up to Discover, and folks seem to find them hard to predict. $1000 or $1500 is a lot of money for me to deposit on to a card when there's a chance Discover could still be holding on to it for 18-24 months or more.

Yes your starting CL on graduation is higher when the card unsecures if you put more money into the deposit ... its a combination of being able to "save" that money (and not relying on it, shows you can save) AND that you are taking a higher personal risk with higher CL thats dependant on YOUR own money..

Again with the gamble... the more you gamble the more you win... but again. credit isn't built in a day..
Your expecting a 7month unsecuring... It doesn't work that way... most secured cards expect a YEAR ...

And whats your actual TU FICO score? That seems to be the key to unsecuring with discover... If your trying to game it for 7month or a year unsecuring...try to work on making that climb...as well as working on any baddies if you have any... Also if you dont have a installment loan theres the secured share method... But that too needs a deposit, but you get most of it back in days as the loan itself....

Discovers been working on the backlog of older secured cards.. Not everyone, but quite a few if their TU score has gotten high enough (really think its over 650-660 or so, is unsecuring but this is just observation..... (and someone can correct me if im off on this).. and your at least 2 years out from a BK....

You keep calling it a loan.. the purpose of the securing... it to make good if you don't pay it off.. the bank is still taking a risk but by having that reserve.. they can and will use if if you default to pay the card, then issue you a check back or credit it to your account the difference.... minus fees of course...

Do i wish secured cards paid interest like the old days.. Yes.. but there is still risk even with the security deposit to the creditor... the risk is not 0... i actually had a banker explain to me why even a secured card is risk for the banking institution issuing it, albeit minimal...

Your thinking loan, when in reality a security deposit is escrow...

I was kidding about the loan part. And I'm just saying I don't want to deposit any more than I really need to now knowing how long it'll be tied up. By need to, what's the minimal CL I can get away with to use the card for what I need to use it for (for now that's being able to take put $1500 through the card during the 1st quarter of 2017).

My TU FICO that Discover gives me is 710 (same 710 showing through BOA). Down from 719 the month before (AAoA lowered with a new account). CK shows my scores as 672 (TU) and 678 (EQ).

Only baddie at the moment is a $150 medical bill that went to collections (and was then paid) a year and a half ago. I also have really, really young accounts (AAoA is only 4 months). Outside of that, all on-time payments and 1% utilization for 3 straight months now.

I'm hoping for a 7 month graduation, but not expecting it. It'll be nice if it happens, but obviously, it wouldn't be wise to assume.

My history with credit cards is a weird one. Discover denied me (only had a 6 mo. old CapOne Secured card at the time) and gave me the secured card, but within 5 weeks after that denial, a couple of pretty good unsecured offers rolled in while I had pretty much stopped looking (Freedom and DC). So, I don't care as much as I otherwise would've about the timeline of Discover unsecuring the card.

Given what you've said though, I might take the chance and add a little more to the deposit as the 7th statement gets closer to see if that might help the starting limit when it does unsecure.

Re: Need help from people with Discover Secured

Anonymous — Mon, 19 Dec 2016 11:42:03 GMT

$200 limit
Increased with Deposit to $1000 on month 4
Unsecured/Graduated day after 7th Statement -email sent
Score was 643 on EX/702 on TU/598 on EQ (Tons of INQs and about 6 new accounts in last year)
CLI to $1750 automatically - increase was in the same email as graduating.
Went online same day as getting email and hit button-went to $2200

Hope this helps get more data points on this.

Re: Need help from people with Discover Secured

Anonymous — Mon, 09 Jan 2017 20:02:49 GMT

@joltdude wrote:
Mich.
Whats your TU Fico score?

Know that a lot of the Discover unsecuring is based on that...

-J

@Anonymous wrote:
24 months and counting, not unsecured yet. So take that for what you will.

641 as of today. When I got the card, it was 505.

Still secured. 26th statement just cut on Friday.

Re: Need help from people with Discover Secured

Anonymous — Mon, 09 Jan 2017 23:33:06 GMT

Unsecured at 7 mo... TU FICO 8 was 660 at the time, minimal utilization, PIF every month it was open, and had 42, yes 42 INQ's.

Re: Need help from people with Discover Secured

Anonymous — Mon, 09 Jan 2017 23:36:10 GMT

I would think if you are above 650 and never had a lot of Utilization you should graduate. Maybe I am wrong but it seems to me the ones who have not graduated at those Cards opened 2015 and before. Seems lately, or since the 7 mo thing started, you have read a lot more about them graduating. Or maybe it is the cards that were opened back when you needed to get offered a Discover secured are still secured and those who got in once the card opened up to anyone are having better luck. Or maybe it is none of the above and it just seems that way cuz more people have the card now. Idk.

PIF monthly, do your best, and you should be fine. Try to get above 650. That's nothing official just what I seem to see.

Re: Need help from people with Discover Secured

Anonymous — Tue, 10 Jan 2017 12:07:40 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
@joltdude wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
Mine just unsecured early aftern the 7th ststement, CL auto increase to $500 then to $1,000 after online request. My scores are 665 - 684. Really wish I'd added more $ to it now.
Curious what makes you say that? Do those with higher deposits tend to get higher starting CL's when the card unsecures?

Personally, that's still not a gamble I'm willing to take with Discover, seeing so many stay secured for so long. I'm up to $400 now (4 months in), and I use the card heavily and am about to even more. I begrudgingly added the extra $200 simply to make use of the 5% at wholesale coming in January. But there's only so much money I'm going to lend them having no idea when it will come back.

I hope I'm a 7th monther. I feel like I'm doing everything I can (all statements cut with a $2 or $3 balance showing, and all payments in full and on time). But it's completely up to Discover, and folks seem to find them hard to predict. $1000 or $1500 is a lot of money for me to deposit on to a card when there's a chance Discover could still be holding on to it for 18-24 months or more.

Yes your starting CL on graduation is higher when the card unsecures if you put more money into the deposit ... its a combination of being able to "save" that money (and not relying on it, shows you can save) AND that you are taking a higher personal risk with higher CL thats dependant on YOUR own money..

(Sorry, people THINK that is the case but NO, NO & NO
The genral public's 'conventional wisdom' may 'feel' that way but we know how "right" conventional wisdom is
Look, if you have a weak, ish of a credit profile and think that slamming 5k into a secured account for a few months....all of a sudden warrants a lender deeming your profile worthy of an UNSECURED CL higher than 5k ...you've got another thing coming.
*Granted, if the profile had prior history with high limit cards, as in a person with a BK making a 'come-back'...yes sometimes that will tickle an underwriting cord but otherwise...there had better be some EVIDENCE, some credit factor other than some schmuck dumped their tax refund into a secured account prior to a responsible lender handing a former 502 credit profile a 8k CL BECAUSE of a few month old secured account.

**What is the 'higer personal RISK' to the depositor of a secured account with $500 vs $5000? What BoA is gonna run off with the 'larger' deposit? I'm just ribbing but we say some funny emtionally based things from time to time that have little logic attached

There is NO 'higher PERSONAL risk' to the amount of one's security deposit...I think most would agree that DISCOVER isn't gonna be tempted to STEAL the 'big' deposits and leave the litle ones...the 'risk' is the emtional attachment of the person sending the deposit but that called 'personal FEAR' not an actual 'risk'....with all due respect.)

Again with the gamble... the more you gamble the more you win (again , sorry this is just leading ppl to the wrong conclusions...there is no gamble and the 'wining' based upon gambling...there is building, your credit profile based upon the risk scoring model, period....let's please not confuse ppl and add, EXTRA stuff that does NOT exist, to how credit scoring works.
Even, if you are jk there are ppl that will take what's said has a TRUTH and get themselves freaked up...not cool)
... but again. credit isn't built in a day..
Your expecting a 7month unsecuring... It doesn't work that way... most secured cards expect a YEAR ...

And whats your actual TU FICO score? That seems to be the key to unsecuring with discover... If your trying to game it for 7month or a year unsecuring...try to work on making that climb...as well as working on any baddies if you have any... Also if you dont have a installment loan theres the secured share method... But that too needs a deposit, but you get most of it back in days as the loan itself....

Discovers been working on the backlog of older secured cards.. Not everyone, but quite a few if their TU score has gotten high enough (really think its over 650-660 or so, is unsecuring but this is just observation..... (and someone can correct me if im off on this).. and your at least 2 years out from a BK....

You keep calling it a loan.. the purpose of the securing... it to make good if you don't pay it off.. the bank is still taking a risk but by having that reserve.. they can and will use if if you default to pay the card, then issue you a check back or credit it to your account the difference.... minus fees of course...

Do i wish secured cards paid interest like the old days.. Yes.. but there is still risk even with the security deposit to the creditor... the risk is not 0... i actually had a banker explain to me why even a secured card is risk for the banking institution issuing it, albeit minimal...

Your thinking loan, when in reality a security deposit is escrow...

I was kidding about the loan part. And I'm just saying I don't want to deposit any more than I really need to now knowing how long it'll be tied up.

By need to, what's the minimal CL I can get away with to use the card for what I need to use it for (for now that's being able to take put $1500 through the card during the 1st quarter of 2017).

(Here is where ppl (not your fault) have been lead astray
If the GOAL is to build credit...then USE credit reporting as your tool forget about BLASTING actual 'use' on a CC ....there isn't a NEED to actually USE your cards for your actual spend per month (that's advanced ish for a point/reward chaser who is a more matured CC user, who has a mature profile and is relatively happy and satisfied with where they stand) a BUILDER on the other hand IMO should only use their cards to strategically build their profile, PERIOD!

Point being...why in the WORLD should a builder tie up X amount of dollars to secure a builder CC, to the point where there is CONCERN and STRESS over how LONG the funds maybe tied up ...when we're speaking in terms of a few months this way or that way.
That OBVIOUSLY means the financial burden is TOO GREAT...thus putting the person at higher RISK of screwing themselves....again, just not cool.

@Anonymous bottom line is the scoring model values a) on-time payments @ 35% and b) low debt-to-CL ratios @ 30% PERIOD....So again if the GOAL is manipluating the scoring model to one's benefit a 10% debt/ratio equals the exact same thing to the model no matter if the CL is $300 or $3000

The same way it will punish a 30 day late just the same on a $100 car note vs a $1000 car note...a late is a late and debt ratios are ratios PERIOD....

*Now, later with history built CL size can come into to play but a builder NEEDS on-time payments and low debt ratios as the most important element to their goal at hand...you are NOT going to SKIP from ish credit to 10-20k CLs just because.....and the funny things is it doesn't take LONG to build a profile tht would garner decent lines anyway.
But too many ppl KILL themselves 'trying' to over-impress the system and wind up screwing themselves....where 4-8 months of patience would have opened the flood gates....sometimes it's just a little patience and some EVIDENCE on the scoreboard over a relatively short amount of time, is ALL that was needed but ppl get SOLD a bill of goods that they NEED to do all this HEROIC stuff that 'kills' them...when it isn't necessary.)

My TU FICO that Discover gives me is 710 (same 710 showing through BOA). Down from 719 the month before (AAoA lowered with a new account). CK shows my scores as 672 (TU) and 678 (EQ).

Only baddie at the moment is a $150 medical bill that went to collections (and was then paid) a year and a half ago. I also have really, really young accounts (AAoA is only 4 months). Outside of that, all on-time payments and 1% utilization for 3 straight months now.

I'm hoping for a 7 month graduation, but not expecting it. It'll be nice if it happens, but obviously, it wouldn't be wise to assume.

My history with credit cards is a weird one. Discover denied me (only had a 6 mo. old CapOne Secured card at the time) and gave me the secured card, but within 5 weeks after that denial, a couple of pretty good unsecured offers rolled in while I had pretty much stopped looking (Freedom and DC). So, I don't care as much as I otherwise would've about the timeline of Discover unsecuring the card.

Given what you've said though, I might take the chance and add a little more to the deposit as the 7th statement gets closer to see if that might help the starting limit when it does unsecure.

Just my 2 cents STOP 'using' your CCs for monthly spend...keep the debt loads LOW and your profile will grow

That way you don't get STUCK with a BUNCH of low limit cards WONDERING 'why' your score hasn't grown........

The GOAL must be credit score GROWTH 1st ....then the LIMITS will grow but they can not and will not .....with reported USAGE ratios that aren't 'PRETTY'

And it's hard to keep a 'pretty' ratio with $400 limits IF you are actually trying to USE those cards for ANYTHING other than profile manipulation....

think of those cards as the 'good' China that your mother only allows 'company' to eat on but NEVER really USES

Think plastic on the living room furniture....it's for LOOKS not to be sat on

C'mon folks....we have to understand you can't ACTUALLY 'use' a $500 or $400 CL for ANYTHING other than building on-time payments and SHOWING low debt/ratio history, such that it builds your score so you the scoring model cam warrant BIGGER usable CLs for you.....

Stop playing CHECKRS in the CHESS TOURNAMENT folks

These marketers want you stuc, in neutral don't fall for the banana in the tailpipe.....it's like homework and studying....work on it 1st reap the benefits later or work those who did!

Re: Need help from people with Discover Secured

Revelate — Tue, 10 Jan 2017 16:19:21 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
Just my 2 cents STOP 'using' your CCs for monthly spend...keep the debt loads LOW and your profile will grow

That way you don't get STUCK with a BUNCH of low limit cards WONDERING 'why' your score hasn't grown........

The GOAL must be credit score GROWTH 1st ....then the LIMITS will grow but they can not and will not .....with reported USAGE ratios that aren't 'PRETTY'

And it's hard to keep a 'pretty' ratio with $400 limits IF you are actually trying to USE those cards for ANYTHING other than profile manipulation....
think of those cards as the 'good' China that your mother only allows 'company' to eat on but NEVER really USES

Think plastic on the living room furniture....it's for LOOKS not to be sat on

C'mon folks....we have to understand you can't ACTUALLY 'use' a $500 or $400 CL for ANYTHING other than building on-time payments and SHOWING low debt/ratio history, such that it builds your score so you the scoring model cam warrant BIGGER usable CLs for you.....

Stop playing CHECKRS in the CHESS TOURNAMENT folks

These marketers want you stuc, in neutral don't fall for the banana in the tailpipe.....it's like homework and studying....work on it 1st reap the benefits later or work those who did!

Why would you not use your credit cards for monthly spend? Pick up rewards, show usage, lenders like making their side of the profit and do reward that behavior. Trended data isn't 100% but when building a credit file leverage it for all it's worth, in addition to the lender who has full transaction history: you really only need one card to break out of Toy Limit Hell, and once you do that, the rest is easy anecdotally. So why not chase that?

FICO scoring on revolving utilization is instant in time, there's been no credible report that it's anything but (and only one report that I've seen that was suggested and that was eventually debunked) and a $500 limit is perfectly servicable for a ton of things. In terms of monthly usage over the past 5 years only my restaurant and slush fund spending exceeded that regularly, and even then on the restaurant side I could just cut two payments.

As long as you're being a transactor which is hugely promoted here (not going to debate strategic deficit spending for now), there's no downside, and there is benefit; why not run your life through your cards? It works. So don't worry about reported balances just get pretty when it's time to apply for something to maximize FICO and most other credit scores.

Did I misunderstand your point?

Re: Need help from people with Discover Secured

Anonymous — Tue, 10 Jan 2017 16:39:03 GMT

I agree-as long as you can afford it, you PIF before the Statement cuts if you have a low limit, and you actually have a rewards card..... why not use it? I have made lots of money on cash back just by using my cc instead of debit. I PIF monthly on all cards.
The problem is if your income can't handle it and you overspend. Don't allow yourself to get into trouble and have debt you can't pay off. IF YOU CANT PAY IT OFF BY THE NEXT PAYCHECK DONT BUY IT!!!
Plus this shows the creditors you use credit, use it wisely, can manage it, and need more, hence getting Limit Increases.

Re: Need help from people with Discover Secured

Anonymous — Tue, 10 Jan 2017 19:30:04 GMT

CH7 BK Discharged 6/15

Applied Discover Secured 11/15 approved $200

Added $1800 to security deposit on 6/16

Graduated 3 days after 12th statement on 11/30/16. Approved for $500 increase to $2500. FICO 660

I hit the LUV button every few days. No luck so far