topic Re: Union Plus Secured Credit Card Question in Credit Cards

Union Plus Secured Credit Card Question

mauirain — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 19:08:41 GMT

I am in the process of fixing my credit and have been researching secured credit cards. A coworker of mine reminded me that as a union member, there is a secured card I can apply for. So I went to the website and found the Union Plus Secured Credit Card. Many of my credit mistakes is because I was careless and did not take the time to research my options. So here I am ....Has anyone ever used this particular secured card and if they can let me know how it worked for them. Thank you so much.

Re: Union Plus Secured Credit Card Question

Creditaddict — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 19:12:45 GMT

It's an HSBC product, that would be my last option for a credit card. Have you checked Householdbank pre-qual... you might qualify for an unsecured card with them... also Cap1 has a pre-qaul to check but don't apply if it doesn't offer you something.

Have you pulled at least one of your Fico scores to see where you are now?

Re: Union Plus Secured Credit Card Question

haulingthescoreup — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 19:42:25 GMT

FWIW, I had some co-workers that had the Union Plus card, and they said it was actually pretty decent. Certainly better than most HSBC products. I don't know if the secured would be the same, though.

Re: Union Plus Secured Credit Card Question

Anonymous — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 16:38:55 GMT

I'm one of the staff at Union Plus - we were created by the AFL-CIO to develop benefits for union members. We monitor the program to make sure the program gives union members real value and we have a full time Member Advocate who will help if there are any problems. The Union Plus Secured Card is a great option for union members who want to build credit. It has low rates and a low annual fee. And after 18 months, your account will automatically be reviewed and "graduated" to a regular Union Plus Credit Card if you've made payments on time and otherwise handled your account responsibly. More information here: [Edited]

Re: Union Plus Secured Credit Card Question

Anonymous — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 20:12:13 GMT

@Creditaddict wrote:
It's an HSBC product, that would be my last option for a credit card. Have you checked Householdbank pre-qual... you might qualify for an unsecured card with them... also Cap1 has a pre-qaul to check but don't apply if it doesn't offer you something.

Have you pulled at least one of your Fico scores to see where you are now?

Both are HSBC products, what makes Household Bank so much better than Union Plus?

Re: Union Plus Secured Credit Card Question

haulingthescoreup — Sat, 15 Jan 2011 01:27:58 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
@Creditaddict wrote:
It's an HSBC product, that would be my last option for a credit card. Have you checked Householdbank pre-qual... you might qualify for an unsecured card with them... also Cap1 has a pre-qaul to check but don't apply if it doesn't offer you something.

Have you pulled at least one of your Fico scores to see where you are now?
Both are HSBC products, what makes Household Bank so much better than Union Plus?

When it comes to co-branded cards, it appears that sometimes the store/ oil company/ sponsoring organization can exert some influence --at any rate, the card itself can wind up being better than others from the same issuing bank. Maybe it's because there's some power in numbers, which after all, is the whole idea behind a union in the first place.

Another example of good card/ not-so-good bank, also HSBC: the Best Buy store card.

But otherwise, I agree --I don't think that Household Bank is better than HSBC. If anything, those cards might be worse.

OP, you might check with fellow union members to see how happy they are with their card. As I mentioned, my co-workers were delighted with their unsecured ones, and one of them had a great CL. Can't remember the exact amount, but it was definitely 5 figures. Again, though, I haven't heard anything about the secured card.

Re: Union Plus Secured Credit Card Question

mauirain — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 11:43:21 GMT

Thanks for all the replies. I am not going to jump into anything, but I have heard good things from someone else in my union...also that they don't report as a secured card, they report as a regular unsecured card. I have to get all my ducks in a row before I make a move either way. It is nice to hear they have a member advocate....