Denied from all the major secured cards.

[Anonymous]

Hidee-ho people!

I've been denied from every major secured card out there.  Believe it or not, I was denied for the OpenSky card.  DiscoverIt, Cap1, BOA, AMex, Chase - you name it, in the last 2 years I've tried to get it and with no avail.

My credit was down in the toilet.  Life happened, things defaulted, had to drop out of school, etc. ten years ago.  We're talking jobless and homeless a lot a years.  10 years - 12 years later a lot of the delinquincies have CO off the CR with nothing on there.  My credit score went from 380 to 605 with all 3 Bureaus when they charged off.  It's been over 2 years since that happened.  Didn't pay on anything - it was already charged off and gone by the time I got into a position to pay.  So, its like I went through a BK without paying for it.  I have a gig now, making 40K a year.  Not understanding why I can't even get a secured card if nothing is showing up on the credit report. 

Things I can't do - get co-signers, get put under other people's credit (my spouse just got 250K of loans charged off CR this year and is enjoying it and cares less about a credit card).  Tried getting an auto loan on a little used car but with the car being 3K and then a eight year car loan at 541 a month I left it right there on the lot. 

Any thoughts?  Fingerhut maybe?

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Hidee-ho people!

I've been denied from every major secured card out there.  Believe it or not, I was denied for the OpenSky card.  DiscoverIt, Cap1, BOA, AMex, Chase - you name it, in the last 2 years I've tried to get it and with no avail.

My credit was down in the toilet.  Life happened, things defaulted, had to drop out of school, etc. ten years ago.  We're talking jobless and homeless.  10 years later a lot of the delinquincies have CO off the CR with nothing on there.  My credit score went from 380 to 605 with all 3 Bureaus when they charged off.  It's been over 2 years since that happened.  I have a gig now, making 40K a year.  Not understanding why I can't even get a secured card if nothing is showing up on the credit report. 

Things I can't do - get co-signers, get put under other people's credit (my spouse just got 250K of loans charged off CR this year and is enjoying it and cares less about a credit card).  Tried getting an auto loan on a little used car but with the car being 3K and then a eight year car loan at 541 a month I left it right there on the lot. 

Any thoughts?  Fingerhut maybe?

---

Thanks so much for taking time to share.

If the "major" card issuers aren't giving you any love, then try going local

with a credit union. At the very least, they should be willling to start you

with a credit builder loan, if not a secured credit card. Fingerhut has a

"steps" program for people with your profile, so they're definitely an option.

Please keep us posted on your progress, and keep your chin up. It's all about

being persistent, so don't give up!

[Anonymous]

Unfortunately, as much as I would like a credit union, I don't fit the criteria for joining, nor have any family or associates that could give me the recommendation in.  My employer is not with a credit union either, and my local credit union requires you be brought in by an existing member who can vouch.  But if I could pick one it would be Navy or Army Federal.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Unfortunately, as much as I would like a credit union, I don't fit the criteria for joining, nor have any family or associates that could give me the recommendation in.  My employer is not with a credit union either, and my local credit union requires you be brought in by an existing member who can vouch.  But if I could pick one it would be Navy or Army Federal.

---

There are cedit unions out there that don't require any sort of sponsorship and have pretty open enrollment requirements. They may not be local to you but you can join on-line. For instance, you can join Alliant by making a $10 donation to Foster Care to Success. This is just an example mind you but with some research it's very possible.

[Anonymous]

Was that a typo? 

car loan $541 a month for 8 years, for a $3000 car?  huh/ well at least you walked away, good decision.

A local credit union would be good. or another bank.

For the cc thing, could try the shopping cart trick with 

victorias secret and possibly fingerhut

Wont hurt at this point.

Good Luck!

[Anonymous]

i can remember when finger hut helped me when no one else would.  Soon after, like maybe 6 months, Cap 1 sent me an offer in the mail, wasnt special, just an unsecured mastercard platinum ended up with a 300 limit.  i think once i got that one, it really helped.  Good luck, hope you can get something to get you where u want to be.

[Anonymous]

Are your charge offs stilm showing on your reports?

If so, work at having them removed.
Then hurry up and wait.

Thats what worked for me. I was in "similar" situations as some you mentioned.

Good luck.

[beutiful5678]

If OpenSky didn’t approve you it may have been a verification issue. Is you address current on all of your credit reports? You should pull your free reports at www.annualcreditreport.com and go over them with a fine-toothed comb.

Good luck! ☺️

[Cookiegrabber]

Wow, weird. I had blank credit reports and had no trouble getting a Discover secured card. According to past reading, they supposedly approve anyone that doesn't have a pending BK. How about starting off with a share secured loan? Those are easier to get, and the Fingerhut route seems to have higher cost because you have to buy products which IMO are often overpriced.

I have an SSL at DCU, but I just got one at PenFed a few minutes ago, too, and it was really really fast (except for the requirement where your funds have to have been with PenFed for 30 days). PenFed also guarantees approval of all SSLs without checking your credit reports which isn't always the case elsewhere. You'll get a hard pull when you apply for membership, though.

My fresh post here:

https://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Rebuilding-Your-Credit/Just-took-out-a-share-secured-loan-from-PenF...

[silver_idle]

If you got denied a secured credit card, it sounds like there may be a mixup with something on your report that they cant validate. What were the exact reasons for denial that the CC gave you in their letter to you? What consumer report did they use in their decision? You can try a credit building program like self-lender, which does report to major the CRA. That should get you started but before trying to apply to them or to anyone else, it may be best to figure out what is going on with your report and why you are denied secured cards.