Applied Bank Secured Card

[anca21bi]

I have low FICO scores and was thinking about applying for a the Applied bank secured card.  I tried Wells Fargo and was turned down, and lost hope applying to BOA or others.  I need to rebuild my credit and WF said they only help in starting credit, plus my CR has to be good for at least a year.  Any thoughts?

[Anonymous]

they helped me when i was rebuilding.  It was not secured but had a/f.  If you can afford the fees (they charged me 100 for 250 increase) try them out.  It's better than nothing and they report to all CRAs.  I think I started out with 3 or 400 and ended with 1575.  They charge you so much a month when you get over 1000 which I found outrageous,  so I closed.

What kind of fees are they going to charge you.

Merrick is another rebuilder with exorbitant fees.

Let us know how you make out. 

[anca21bi]

I"m going to get charged a $50 fee right off the bat, but I checked out Merrick and it looks more solid than Applied Bank.  Does Merrick offer an unsecured later on?

[islandchild82]

I believe Citi offers a secured card, as do some credit unions. Have you tried looking into those options? Good luck with whichever you choose!

[llecs]

IMO, you can do much better. IMO, Applied is one step below First Premier.

I'd focus on repair, then rebuild. And while having an open CC is great for your score, you should thibk repair.

If you had to get a secured card, then BofA, Citibank, someone suggested Merrick, WF, Us Bank, and many many others offer secured products. Try also your local bank or CU.

[llecs]

To add...National City and WAMU.

[Anonymous]

As mentioned above, check with your local CU. Some of them will give you a secured loan starting at $500. If you get a secured loan with one and keep it in good standing, they might even approve you for an unsecured CC.

[Anonymous]

I have to disagree.  First Premier is the absolute worst.

[anca21bi]

Does any of these report as secured to Credit Bureaus.  I applied to Merrick Bank, and I'm going to send in the $300 for the deposit.  I had a citi and orchard bank unsecured card that I had to let go when I was pregnant and not working, so if they blacklist I probably can't apply to them.  I have been paying off my collections and getting letters out, I just want a card to work with so I can rebuild my paying history and utilization.

[anca21bi]

Also does anybody know if Merrick, and applied bank graduate to unsecured cards as well??