I was recently approved for a $3,000 CL Capital One Savor One with no annual fee.
The bigger surprised is Capital One charged off my account a little more than a year ago.
Capital One is my second unsecured card.
My first unsecured card after rebuild is $1,000 CL Ally Everyday Cash Back in January 2024.
Background:
In 2022, I was overwhelmed with both my wife and my credit card debt.
I personally had over $30K of credit card debt (we had over over $70K combined).
We went the debt settlement route because I was just overwhelmed.
I stopped making payments around September 2022. My credit score tanked. I was too depresed to check it out at the time.
In July 2023, my Experian FICO 8 was 508. (That's the earliest score I have, it may have been worse prior)
I started settling and setting up payment plans with the different creditors averaging 50% on the settlement.
(I work with a debt settlement company, because I was too overwhelmed to do it myself, but if I could go back, I probably should have reached out to a non-profit debt counselor instead)
I stuck to a cash system for a year and really worked on building up emergency savings, while making monthly payments to a debt settlement company who held my money and negotiated the settlements and payment plans.
After I settled some accounts and set up some payment. I wanted to get a head start in building some credit history.
I applied for Discover (pre-qual). Discover denied me. I didn't even get past the pre-qualification stage.
I applied for Capital One (prequal). To no surprise, they denied me. I did burn them afterall.
I applied for a Bank of America SECURED card with deposit (Bank of America). I learned the hard way that their pre-qualification is fake.
After a hard-pull, I was denied.
I was ashamed. Bank of America wouldn't even accept my money for a secure card.
After doing research, I discovered some of my options.
1. Alt Cards with No Credit Check (Basically work like debit cards, or loans, but report to bureaus) Guarantee approval
- Kickoff
- Ava
- cred.ai
- Self
- chime
2. Subprime (High annual fee, deposit, monthly fees, hidden fees) High approval (cost a lot of money you won't get back)
- Open Sky
- Credit One
- Premier Bank
The following was not an option (for me) at the time
3. Subprime but better than Credit One/Premier Bank (Low to No annual Fee, No deposit)
- Capital One
- Discover
- Mission Lane (not available in all states)
4. Unsecured Alt Cards (Good for building credit, deny if you have recent derogtory accounts)
- Petal
- Upgrade
My Journey
September 2022 (Begin)
- Burned 6 accounts: 1 CapitalOne ($8K), 2 Citi ($8K), 2 Chase ($17K), 1 Synchrony Bank ($4K)
- Between Set up payment plans and settled for around 50% with each creditor.
Payment Plan
- Chase Freedom $1K - Nov 2022 - Feb 2023 PAID/SETTLED
- Synchrony Bank $1.6K - January - March 2023 PAID/SETTLED
- Capital One Quicksilver - $4K - February 2023-January 2026 - ONGOING PAYMENT PLAN
- Citi Double Cash - $3K - April 2023 - March 2025 - ONGOING PAYMENT PLAN ***DOES NOT SHOW ON CREDIT REPORT
- Best Buy (Citi) - $1K - May 2023 - October 2024 -ONGOING PAYMENT PLAN ***DOES NOT SHOW ON CREDIT REPORT
- Chase Business Ink - $7.5K - September 2023 - August 2024 - ONGOING PAYMENT PLAN
Around $38K Balance settled for around $20K
September 2023 ( 1 Year)
I decided to open an alt card: cred.ai (Unicorn Card)
Reason: I wasn't going to tie up money or use money on fees. (I learned to live without credit and I wanted to be prudent with my spending)
- I opened it and deposited the minimum amount (I think $100) and used it for a little while
- It started an open revolving account and reported to Experian, Transunion, and Equifax starting on September 2023
- It reported a $1,500 Credit limit with a few dollars reported (now it's $0 usage)
October 2023
- My FICO 30+ points from 508 to 531
I signed up for free credit reporting sites
- Experian
- Wallet Hub
- Credit Karma
It helped with offers. Intially, the only high approval offers I got were Credit One, Milestone, Open Sky, Premier Bank, Fit, Destiny
November 2023
- My FICO 10+ points from 531 to 547
I then got an offer on the Experian site for Ally Everyday Cash Back.
It is an unsecured card with no annual fee. Interest is high, but it doesn't matter since I pay off my card and treat it like cash.
- Ally Everyday Cash Back (Master Card) - $1,000 CL
I was expecting a denial, but I was approved for $1,000 CL. I think it's because of my good history with them. Years ago, I got a car loan and paid it off on time, never missed a payment. It's one of the few companies I didn't "burn."
Everytime I use this card, I pay it off. Sometimes before the billing date.
I don't mess around with the try to report a small balance. I don't trust myself to manage that well. I just pay as soon as possible.
It's not put in the drawer. I use it when I can (and earn some rewards).
March 2024
My score rose to 606. The websites (Experian, Credit Sesame, Wallet Hub) starting offering Capital One cards. I ignored these advertisement. I burned Capital One, and was expecting a denial. The prequal form went through. I decided to pull the trigger for a Hard Pull.
- CapitalOne Savor One $3,000 CL
To my shock. It wasn't a secured card, Platinum, or QS1, I was approved for Savor One. With a $3,000 CL.
Really just wanted to share my current journey.
I thought it would take a long time to rebuild. I'm not out of the woods yet, but if I keep my manage my spending. Keep my CC Balance at 0, continue my payments. By this time next year, I'll have settled and paid off 5 of my 6 cards/creditors with only one left and have only $1K of payments remaining until I'm debt free.
Just a couple years ago, I felt like I was drowning. I lost hope. Starting over hurt my pride. I was filled with shame.
With interest, it seemed like I could never dig myself out. I buried my head and was lost in escapism.
I'm starting to see the light again.
Credit Card Debt was a wakeup call and a blessing in disguise.
It forced me to address issues with emotional spending and personal finance.
Really practicing gratitude, prayer, contentment, and fulfillment in other avenues than spending has really helped address some of the root issues. Even though I was initially upset and angry at myself, I am glad it happened because it changed me for the better.
All I can say is Praise the Lord.
congrats!
was it the version with a bonus? (if the APR is 30.24/30.74, it's the version without the bonus)
best of luck on getting the rest of your debt paid off and restoring your credit!
Was it the version with a bonus?
No, I wish (but then again I'm grateful especially since my score is 606.)
I believe the version with the bonus has a lower interest rate and is for people with higher credit scores.
(if the APR is 30.24/30.74, it's the version without the bonus)
I confirmed that the APR for my card is 30.74%. I intend to use like cash and just pay it off as I go and not carry a balance, so I don't have to pay interest.
best of luck on getting the rest of your debt paid off and restoring your credit!
Thank you!
Congrats on the approval!
@E36 wrote:Was it the version with a bonus?
No, I wish (but then again I'm grateful especially since my score is 606.)
I believe the version with the bonus has a lower interest rate and is for people with higher credit scores.
you'd be surprised, with capital one it's not as simple as "high credit score = bonus", many "high credit score" people aren't offered the bonus, while lower credit score people are offered the bonus. thanks for the DP though
congrats on the approval again, keep it up!!
Congrats on the approval, and for sharing your journey
Congrats on your approval
Congrats on the approval and great job at getting your finances back on track.
Keep up the good work you have put in.
