Unsecured Credit Card After Bankruptcy
Author: Renewed
Joined: 18
Nov 2003
Posts: 2
Posted: Tue Nov 18, 2003 6:49 pm
Post subject: new credit card?
Hello. I hope someone has some advice for my dilemma. I received chapter 7 bankruptcy dismissal in January 2003. I lost my job in April of 2003. Up til now, this has not been an issue as I have been using cash and my debit card to pay for things. I did not plan to apply for another credit card until I found another job. However, Thanksgiving and Christmas are approaching, and I need to rent a car to travel to see my parents in rural Virgina. A car is the only way to get there. I have been reserving and paying for rentals with my debit (Visa check) card. But now the rental company (Budget) no longer will accept debit. I called all of the other rental companies in my area and none will accept even the reservation without a credit card. I have received offers for unsecured credit cards from Capital One, Orchard Bank (Household Finance) and Providian. I know from one of my credit reports that Capital One and Providian have made inquires so they are aware of my bankruptcy. Should I go ahead and apply for one of these now? Or should I apply for a secured card ( I am thinking that my current unemployment status would be a non-issue since the card would be backed by my own money). I have more that enough money to pay for the rentals, I just need a card. If you think I should try for the unsecured card, which would be the best? If you think the secured card would be the easiest route, where should I look to find the best card? I would need a secured card that can be later be turned into an unsecured card. In addition to myself, I also need to drive my two younger brothers to see my parents as well. Neither of them drives. I really appreciate any advice. Thanks alot.
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Joined: 18
Nov 2003
Posts: 2
Posted: Tue Nov 18, 2003 6:49 pm
Post subject: new credit card?
Hello. I hope someone has some advice for my dilemma. I received chapter 7 bankruptcy dismissal in January 2003. I lost my job in April of 2003. Up til now, this has not been an issue as I have been using cash and my debit card to pay for things. I did not plan to apply for another credit card until I found another job. However, Thanksgiving and Christmas are approaching, and I need to rent a car to travel to see my parents in rural Virgina. A car is the only way to get there. I have been reserving and paying for rentals with my debit (Visa check) card. But now the rental company (Budget) no longer will accept debit. I called all of the other rental companies in my area and none will accept even the reservation without a credit card. I have received offers for unsecured credit cards from Capital One, Orchard Bank (Household Finance) and Providian. I know from one of my credit reports that Capital One and Providian have made inquires so they are aware of my bankruptcy. Should I go ahead and apply for one of these now? Or should I apply for a secured card ( I am thinking that my current unemployment status would be a non-issue since the card would be backed by my own money). I have more that enough money to pay for the rentals, I just need a card. If you think I should try for the unsecured card, which would be the best? If you think the secured card would be the easiest route, where should I look to find the best card? I would need a secured card that can be later be turned into an unsecured card. In addition to myself, I also need to drive my two younger brothers to see my parents as well. Neither of them drives. I really appreciate any advice. Thanks alot.
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posted by CardRatings.com at 12:57 PM
10 Comments:
Author: SVT Cobra
Joined: 09 Nov 2003
Posts: 102
Posted: Tue Nov 18, 2003 8:37 pm
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Last edited by SVT Cobra on Thu Nov 27, 2003 12:50 am; edited 1 time in total
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Author: sisflomi
Credit Expert (100+ Posts)
Joined: 07 Nov 2003
Posts: 134
Posted: Tue Nov 18, 2003 9:49 pm
Renewed wrote:
Hello. I hope someone has some adviced for my dilemma.
I received chapter 7 bankruptcy dismissal in January 2003. I lost my job in April of 2003. Up til now, this has not been an issue as I have been using cash and my debit card to pay for things. I did not plan to apply for another credit card until I found another job. However, Thanksgiving and Christmas are approaching, and I need to rent a car to travel to see my parents in rural Virgina. A car is the only way to get there. I have been reserving and paying for rentals with my debit (Visa check) card. But now the rental company (Budget) no longer will accept debit. I called all of the other rental companies in my area and none will accept even the reservation without a credit card.
I have received offers for unsecured credit cards from Capital One, Orchard Bank (Household Finance) and Providian. I know from one of my credit reports that Capital One and Providian have made inquires so they are aware of my bankruptcy. Should I go ahead and apply for one of these now? Or should I apply for a secured card ( I am thinking that my current unemployment status would be a non-issue since the card would be backed by my own money). I have more that enough money to pay for the rentals, I just need a card.
If you think I should try for the unsecured card, which would be the best? If you think the secured card would be the easiest route, where should I look to find the best card? I would need a secured card that can be later be turned into an unsecured card.
In addition to myself, I also need to drive my two younger brothers to see my parents as well. Neither of them drives. I really appreciate any advice. Thanks alot.
Do you know what your current fico scores are with each cra? That is pretty much what will decide if you can get a card or not.
I would really say stay away from Cap1 and Providan. HHBK is okay with their fees and if you stick with the payments, its a good card to rebuild with.
If you are in a major hurry for the car and can't get a mc or visa really quick, might try a secured card wtih your own bank or credit union. I will tell you it took me a good 6 weeks to get my secured cards that I sent for. And I mean 6 weeks to get the cards in the mail. You might not have enough time to do secured any other way than your own bank.
If you can state what your fico scores are and which state your in I will look up the info and let you know which card you might get at this point.
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Sis
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Author: Guest
Posted: Wed Nov 19, 2003 3:53 am
I recommend a HouseHold unsecured cards for so-so credit people. You should start to rebuild a solid credit history as soon as possible. The wrong opinion among bankrupt people is using cash everywhere. If you use cash everywhere, how could you rebuild your credit history? Don't be scared of credit cards. Use it responsibly and pay off the balance every month.
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Author: Verne
SENIOR MEMBER (Member for 2 yrs.+)
Joined: 14 May 2003
Posts: 475
Location: Midwest
Posted: Wed Nov 19, 2003 9:43 am
I agree. It's very important to rebuild while the BK is on your report. Many report 700+ scores the day after the BK drops off because they were using credit responsibly during the time it was on their report.
Verne
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Author: Renewed
Joined: 18 Nov 2003
Posts: 2
Posted: Wed Nov 19, 2003 12:21 pm
Thanks everyone for your advice. I do live in the state of Pennsylvania. I do not know my fico score for each of the three major credit agencies. Does anyone know the fastest way for me to find out what they are?
Thanks again for your help.
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Author: Verne
SENIOR MEMBER (Member for 2 yrs.+)
Joined: 14 May 2003
Posts: 475
Location: Midwest
Posted: Wed Nov 19, 2003 12:35 pm
Experian has a 30-day free trial to your report and score at:
www.creditexpert.com/creditexpert/creditmanager-s/012_1_cm_subscribep3.jsp
just make sure you cancel before the month is out or you will be billed $79.95 for the entire year.
Equifax wants $39.95 for their 3-in-1 report with score. But that may be with just their score. By itself the Equifax score is about $12.95. That's at equifax.com Equifax also has a 30 day free trial to your credit report without the score called Credit Watch. Again, make sure you cancel during the trial period or be billed for the year.
TransUnion gives you your score with the report. Not sure whether you can buy it alone. I think it's transunion.com
Anyone have experience with the Equifax 3-in-1 report with score? Do you get a score with each CRA?
Verne
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Author: sisflomi
Credit Expert (100+ Posts)
Joined: 07 Nov 2003
Posts: 134
Posted: Wed Nov 19, 2003 1:08 pm
That score through experian is not a TRUE FICO score. The best way to get that would be to go to myfico.com and pay for each one. If you use this code PVN814 it will give them to you for a discount of 9.99 each. They are normally 12.95. There is also a link to get one free if you take a survey from householdbank. Its an equifax fico score. Will look for that and link back for you.
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Author: sisflomi
Credit Expert (100+ Posts)
Joined: 07 Nov 2003
Posts: 134
Posted: Wed Nov 19, 2003 1:11 pm
Here is it, if you ever used equifax before to get a report, use a differant email to get the free one.
www.yourcreditcounts.com/cred/yccc_index.jsp
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Sis
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Author: Guest
Posted: Thu Nov 20, 2003 11:25 pm
What bank do you deal with? Some banks offer visa/debit cards where you can use it as a credit card or debit purchase. Debiting your purchases would cost you a fee per transaction while the credit feature will act as a visa and deduct the purchase from your card without a fee. It justs takes a few days to be withdrawn from the account. You would have to really monitor and keep an accurate account in your check book. Otherwise, you will through your checking account out of whack really quickly. Just forgetting to jot down one transaction will have you scratching your head about the balance in your account. Then you will have to obtain a record of all your transactions from your bank to figure it out.
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Author: Guest
Posted: Fri Nov 21, 2003 2:34 am
If you have Washington Mutual debit card with Visa logo, no fees and no minimum balance required. Absolutely free including online bill pays. Washington Mutual debit card is the best of the best. Everyone should get one.
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