I am thinking about getting a secured credit card. This seems like a good way to rebuild credit. I am thinking that the credit reporting agencies might reflect poorly because it is secured. What is your opinion on a secured card?
Sometimes it's necessary to start out with a secured card. Many charge outrageous fees so choose careful. Some of the secured cards report as a regular card. If possible try to get a secured card from a credit union.
Parker has some good advice; it's sometimes needed and can be understood depending on the card you get.
A lot of secured credit cards don't show up any differently on your credit report than any other type of credit card. Just make sure that you look for a card that reports to all three bureaus on a monthly basis. Also, make sure that you always pay your credit card bill on time, keep your balances low so that you won't incur too many interest fees and so that you aren't using up too much of your available credit, and try to get an unsecured card later on after you have established your credit. Responsible credit card use can help you build up a very good credit score.
There is nothing on the credit report that indicated whether a card is secured or not. There are some companies though, where most of their business is through secured credit cards. If you are concerned find a company who has their main business with regular cards and a small portion of their business with standard cards. Companies like Orchard bank are mostly for people with bad credit. Your score and payment history is more important than who your card is with.
A financial counselor told me that a secured credit card is an excellent option for people trying to build or re-build their credit. My problem was that I had no credit history whatsoever because I always paid cash for everything. When I was looking into buying a house, I thought it would look great that I had no debt at all, and my husband and I both had decent paying jobs. HA! Not so! It is easier to get a loan with bad credit than with no credit. Anyway, the counselor told me that you can build an excellent credit score in about a year, using a secured credit card. You use it every month to purchase something (even a single tank of gas) and you pay it off completely every month. What the credit bureaus see, is that you pay off your debts every month, they don't care how much you've spent.
Really beneficial information Parker. I am desperately in need of credit repair. I will have to research, and seek out a card that will seem as though it is not secured when it is.
Digital Credit Union offers a secured car that will not show up as secured on your credit report. Now, I think it takes two years for the card to become "unsecured". DCU.org
Strange the way credit works, isn't it? I learned this years ago. I paid off all my credit cards and cut them up. After a few years, I had no credit to speak of. I thought I was being smart by paying cash for everything. I had to start over.
