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I have a 515 FICO on Discover Scorecard. My CR has several unpaid COs showing as "Closed" but with a balance. The accounts were COed off more than 2 years ago but have been reported monthly since then. Discover Scorecard shows a 135% Revolving Utilization.
I was approved for a Credit One CC with a $300 CL last month. This is my only CC that is open right now.
Besides trying to get the COs off my CR, what else can I do to improve my FICO? I already paid the $75 annual fee and I will get a $99 fee in the second year for Credit One. The $99 fee next year will be charged monthly at $8.25. How much can my FICO improve by only having 1 open CC and paying it monthly (assuming that the COs remain on my CR)? Should I try to get a second CC right now or should I wait until my FICO improves with proper usage of my Credit One CC?
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Welcome to the board
You actually need 3 open revolvers to drive Fico in a rebuild so I would open 2 more. OpenSky offers secured without a credit pull. Also check the Capital One prequal to see if you can get an unsecured rebuilder there. For each of the first 3 revolvers that open there is a bump to Fico.
Thanks for all the replies.
@gdale6 wrote:Welcome to the board
You actually need 3 open revolvers to drive Fico in a rebuild so I would open 2 more. OpenSky offers secured without a credit pull. Also check the Capital One prequal to see if you can get an unsecured rebuilder there. For each of the first 3 revolvers that open there is a bump to Fico.
I actually did the prequal for Capital One and nothing showed. Decided to app anyway the other day and was denied. If I were to have 3 open CCs, how does the Fico bump happen? Is it a one time bump or is it a progressive bump as you make on time payments on all 3 CCs?
Unfortunately Discover secured is out of the question as the prequal said previous CO with Discover so I was denied for that. I'm afraid to app for any other big bank secured card. Would it be worthwhile to get for example the Sky Card and 1 additional pred card like Credit One? I understand these predators are not cheap with the fees and all that, but I'd be willing to pay the fees if the tradeoff by having 3 CCs is worth it. Hopefully after a year of on time payments my score can improve so I can close the predators and get new cards. I say this because the Credit One fee for the first year is paid upon activating, which is about the same setup for all predators, so you might as well keep it open at least 1 year. Also, I have a long average age of accounts so I don't think I'll see a dip once I close the predators.
@Anonymous wrote:
Credit One if you must, but look into Green Dot and Citi’s secured card - either of those would be preferable if they’ll let you in. I would exhaust all possible avenues before dealing with that bunch.
I had the Indigo card when I started, and honestly it’s not a bad card for its intended purpose. It has a permanent $300 limit, no CLI system exists, but other than the AF there are no fees associated. Website is basic but easy, payments are credited quickly (one day usually, can be 2-3 if paid on a weekend), and in general a stress-free rebuilder card. I read a lot of negative press on it last year and found essentially none of it to be true - it was mostly complaints from people who have the mentality that it’s ok to pay 29 days after the due date because it won’t be reported as a 30-late lol. I’d recommend that one as one to get and keep for a year, and then close and replace with better cards.
I did the prequal for Citi and got no offers. Someone correct me if I'm wrong but I feel big banks have higher criteria for secured cards compared to secured cards from smaller banks. Is it worth wasting a HP on Citi secured card compared to apping for the Indigo card? I read Citi likes customers who already bank with them and I do not bank with Citi.
Also what was your AF for the first year when you opened Indigo? It be nice to get a $0 annual fee for the first year.