Didnt go so well with BOA credit analyst

[navigatethis12]

I do not like Bank of America but I would not call them dumb because they will not approve someone who has a bankruptcy of only a year old. There are many banks that cater specifically to people who have had trouble in the past. If I was the analyst I would say the same thing. Having a bankruptcy on file at all is very major.

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@tboy1977 wrote:

I admit I messed up my first bank account with them in 98-99.  I was young and dumb.  The account charged off for ($153) and all that.  When I went to open another account in 2006, it came back to bite me in the rear and that's fine.  But they tried to hold my money (I opened the account with a BofA-drawn paycheck for 5500) for four weeks; a branch manager finally allowed me to withdraw my money to pay my bills (which was then late thank you) but at the end of the four weeks, they actually charged me an account closure fee for an account I never even used.  The worst part of the whole experience is they refused any deposits, so the fee would post and reverse because the account was at zero before.  Finally, another month later, I found a brach manager that accepted a deposit and ten days later, the check was cleared.  BofA reported my "negative" account handling to ChexSystems and Early Warning.  I wanted their secured card because of the 1,2,3 rewards and the fact that you can build a very high limit (I want a $10k card), but honestly, the more I think about it, the more I realize they did me the favor!!!    I am mulling the idea of closing Cap1 and PNC because they have annual fees and yet I'm willing to get into bed with BofA and their $39 annual fee which is higher than the other two.  Because of the name BofA.  If a community bank or a credit union did us like BofA does, we would picket, revolt, and drop them out of business.  Hallejuah!  I'm so grateful!  This thread has helped me to open my eyes.  BofA needed the bailout to survive and their stock was so bad it seemed a bankruptcy filing was all but guaranteed.

Unrelated but needs to be said:  I mean, the federal government is chasing after a Georgia bank executive that embezzled $17 million and if they catch him he is facing 40 years in prison, but JP Morgan/Chase can lose $2 billion and Chase just says "Oops!  My bad!  Mea culpa!  Perdone!"  Really?

I think outside Walmart (which I really NEED) I'm just going to garden what I have and be DONE!   I'm not hurting for credit and really I'm just being vain looking for a $10k limit. 

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You could try paying the charged off account. Even if it was a long time ago, they can obviously still see it and maybe paying it will make them happy. Expecting a 10,000 limit so soon after bankruptcy is in my opinion, incredibly silly.

Embezzling money and losing your own money through investments are two different things.

[Ron1]

I'm sorry what happened to you.  I have had BofA credit cards for over ten years. They were my favorite cards many years ago.  They were good when they were Nations Bank or Bank Of America. They cld all my accounts to $1K when I applied for business cc may years ago.  I owed them a lot of money a few years ago. I finally paid off.  They closed most of my cards and it's only 3 left.They kept sending me BT checks and cash back bonus offer. They even gave me CLI. Recently, they upgraded Cash Rewards Visa Signature into 3-2-1 Cash Rewards Visa Signature Card. They only gave me 3-2-1 Rewards Platinum Plus Visa. They told me my credit wasn't good enough to qualify for the card.  By the way, they can close or CLD your account any time.  I still have the card. I use it once a month to keep the history. Don't waste your time to recon. It is not worth it. Move on. Join CU.  

Ron.

[tboy1977]

If you read my posts about this, you would understand that the $153 WAS PAID in 2006.  I'm fine with all of that.   What I am not fine with is them having held my funds for weeks, making my bills late and then charging fee an account closure fee.  Not only did I not ever fully open the account truthfully, but to then DENY ME a way to add money to the account to satisfy the fee and report the delinquency of the debt in my opinion is wrong.  You cannot hold me accountable for a debt I cannot correct.  I DID IN THE END PAY THE ACCOUNT OF (thanks to another bank manager) and since owe BofA no money.

[tboy1977]

I call BofA dumb because they do not follow their own policies.  Most organizations have established policies and while exceptions are made, they are EXCEPTIONS, not the norm.  Bank of America has policies, but you will find one employee that tells you nothing can be done, another that may even denigrate you for asking in the first place, but another employee that will honor your request.

Clearly, if the OP qualified and as approved by Discover card, he obviously was qualified for some type of BofA product.  To be told he was denied because his limits were too small is well, silly.  When we are on the path to rebuilding, we have to start somewhere.  He obviously kept his nose clean and worked hard to keep his history with those cards pristine.  If the OP would have had NO CREDIT, I could see the issue.  But he started with rebuilder cards and built him self up to qualify for the Discover card.  Nice job.

I just asked the BofA chat specialist what the basic qualification were for the secured card.  One year post bankruptcy, at least one positive tradeline since and no new negative entries.  I believe I meet those qualifications.  Ce la vie!  I do not be crazy enough to go to a bank and ask for $10k.  But I wanted a SECURED card I could build to $10k.  WhileI was unemployed during the time of my bankruptcy, I have the benefit of good employment and want to use my money to maximize my credit portfolio with cards I can be happy to maintain.

Before concluding, I will say I do understand the definition of embezzlement.  My point, which seems to have not been written eloquently enough for you, is that relatively small (to the banking world) amounts are ponced on and investigated, but a HUGE loss is swept under the rug.  I was illustrating the discrepancy in policy on a grander scale.  One person can qualify with no active credit and a few old collections.  Another can be denied even with a rosier financial report.

[jsickz32]

@tboy1977 My father kind of had same problem with bofa (small amount CO). He got sick and because of not working for 6 months and hospital bills and other things he filed for bkch7. Bofa wants nothin to do with him credit wise even after 4 years after bk. It seems like they blacklist and dont forgive or forget!

[navigatethis12]

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@tboy1977 wrote:

If you read my posts about this, you would understand that the $153 WAS PAID in 2006.  I'm fine with all of that.   What I am not fine with is them having held my funds for weeks, making my bills late and then charging fee an account closure fee.  Not only did I not ever fully open the account truthfully, but to then DENY ME a way to add money to the account to satisfy the fee and report the delinquency of the debt in my opinion is wrong.  You cannot hold me accountable for a debt I cannot correct.  I DID IN THE END PAY THE ACCOUNT OF (thanks to another bank manager) and since owe BofA no money.

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I see where you said they held your money but do not see where you said the accont was paid. If I were you, I would not have even attempted to open an account with someone after a previous one had been charged off. Reporting the account was wrong and could possibly be fixed by contacting the Better Business Bureau or the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

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@tboy1977 wrote:

I call BofA dumb because they do not follow their own policies.  Most organizations have established policies and while exceptions are made, they are EXCEPTIONS, not the norm.  Bank of America has policies, but you will find one employee that tells you nothing can be done, another that may even denigrate you for asking in the first place, but another employee that will honor your request.

Clearly, if the OP qualified and as approved by Discover card, he obviously was qualified for some type of BofA product.  To be told he was denied because his limits were too small is well, silly.  When we are on the path to rebuilding, we have to start somewhere.  He obviously kept his nose clean and worked hard to keep his history with those cards pristine.  If the OP would have had NO CREDIT, I could see the issue.  But he started with rebuilder cards and built him self up to qualify for the Discover card.  Nice job.

I just asked the BofA chat specialist what the basic qualification were for the secured card.  One year post bankruptcy, at least one positive tradeline since and no new negative entries.  I believe I meet those qualifications.  Ce la vie!  I do not be crazy enough to go to a bank and ask for $10k.  But I wanted a SECURED card I could build to $10k.  WhileI was unemployed during the time of my bankruptcy, I have the benefit of good employment and want to use my money to maximize my credit portfolio with cards I can be happy to maintain.

Before concluding, I will say I do understand the definition of embezzlement.  My point, which seems to have not been written eloquently enough for you, is that relatively small (to the banking world) amounts are ponced on and investigated, but a HUGE loss is swept under the rug.  I was illustrating the discrepancy in policy on a grander scale.  One person can qualify with no active credit and a few old collections.  Another can be denied even with a rosier financial report.

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 Multiple business have that problem with policies. It just depends on how well the person on the telephone follows the rules. Being approved by one issuer does not mean you are qualified for another. Every issuer is different and obviously Bank of America did not like what they saw. I have been denied credit before. I had no history and was denied for not having credit, but no one would give it to remedy that problem. I did not call the banks dumb, I just moved on. I started with Macys with a $300 limit. And now, two years laterr have an American Express with a 10800 limit. This person has been approved for two cards and that will build a good history. It takes time to get what you want; I know no one likes waiting but sometimes you have no choice.

I did not know you wanted a secured card with that limit, but even so, a bank would still be weary of approving a card with such a short time since a bankruptcy.

There are multiple investigations by the government going on about the trading loss. It was not just "swept under the rug".

[Open123]

Interesting thread, and I'm no fan of B of A.

In my estimation, any private enterprise can make any decision for whatever reason, so long as the decision isn't based on ethnicity, gender, and any sort of physical discrimination.

Being irrational and inconsistent is certainly not discrimination.  It may not lend to the overall credibility nor enhance the reputatiuon of the organization, but I would hope it is well within any private enterprise to make any decision as it deems fitting.

I should have the right to refuse the business of any client, even if I just think the month he was born in is bad luck for my prosperity.  Likewise, any customer should have the choice to fire me for the same "irrational" reason.

[tboy1977]

I wouldn't have but my boss wanted me to open the account since he used them.  I expected the $153 to be drafted from my account and then we move on since it had been six years.  I was younger and just starting to make real money.  If I had to do it over again, I would have paid the old account of two to three months BEFORE I opened the BofA account.  I should have paid it ANYWAY, but I didn't care.  Me now would have that debt settled years before the new account.  Then again, I would have never bounced checks and bought gas on $5.  But at 20 you don't see the big picture :-).  The worst part was ten days into it they tried to blame his check for bouncing (it wasa BofA check), so he had to get involved and learn more than I wanted him to, proving that his check was good.  It's been over six years and I STILL cringe when I think about it.

[tboy1977]

No arguments here......BofA sure is irrational.  But we smarten up and move our business elsewhere.

[tboy1977]

UPDATE: I called BofA just to hear what they had to say and the analyst was nice (it helps), but she said my application was declined due to the bankruptcy.  When I asked what was the declining (hoping to learn some tidbit to help me improve my score she said the bankruptcy.  I pointed her to a webpage that says a year after bankruptcy and no new items.  She said yes she sees the report but I need to do more to reestablish credit.  I told her about my CC cards and repaying the loan and GET THIS:  she advised me to come here for tips (she said myFico.com) on improving my credit. She also suggested getting a signature loan somewhere (whatever).......

Waste of an inquiry, but she also said my EX FICO will be with the letter.  I'm ALMOST happy BofA declined me.