Credit Tips: Net 1st MasterCard Review Concerns
Posted On: April 1, 2005
CardRatings.com is the most comprehensive source for comparing credit card offers. Please visit CardRatings.com to view the best rated credit cards!
Post subject: no credit check credit card
bayhouse.com
Date: 1/22/2001 11:57 pm CDT
Hi there Curtis,
I thought I’d wait and see if you would voluntary change your recommendation of the Net 1st MasterCard, but I guess you don’t take a hint.
I’m sure you recall the fake.org mostly private e-mail discussion we had last year. And of course nothing changed. What was I thinking? Miracles or something?
I can see that Alex wants to make a buck, after all, he’s a .com. What’s your excuse? From your review:
\b{This card boasts a 0% interest rate (more info. below) and “no credit checks” (charge offs are even overlooked)! It also boasts guaranteed approval for U.S. citizens residing in the U.S. that have a valid checking account. Another attractive feature is that the card reports to all three major credit bureaus!}
Not for a billion bucks would I want your karma.
Well, my complaint with the FTC is here:
bayhouse.com/discus/messages/649/1080.html?980224487
And later tonight or tomorrow I’ll post my formal complaint with the OCC.
I can’t find any info on the ownership of this board. I thought it was creditcardfreedom.com, but now I got here from cardratings.org.
Are there a whole bunch of credit sites linked to this board? Is this just a shared advertising gig?
Sincerely,
Christine Baker
bayhouse.com
The cardratings.org review in its entirety:
“Net1st Mastercard Updated 01/01! Site sponsor. Note! The Net1st card is now being issued again. This card caters to consumers seeking to establish credit or rebuild their credit. This card boasts a 0% interest rate (more info. below) and “no credit checks” (charge offs are even overlooked)! It also boasts guaranteed approval for U.S. citizens residing in the U.S. that have a valid checking account. Another attractive feature is that the card reports to all three major credit bureaus! The card operates much like a secured card, though there are some subtle differences. A refundable $500 Reservation Fee is required (the “Reservation Fee”) in connection with the opening of your account. The Reservation Fee will be charged to your credit card account and will fully utilize your initial $500 credit limit. Before you may use your card or account to make purchases or to obtain cash advances, you must make payments on your account. The difference between the total unpaid balance and your credit limit will be the amount of credit available to you. The 0% interest rate can be attributed to the reservation fee.”
CardRatings.com is the most comprehensive source for comparing credit card offers. Please visit CardRatings.com to view the best rated credit cards!
Board Monitor - CA
Date: 1/23/2001 2:16 am CDT
Christine,
Thanks for your post! We will definitely take a look at your comments regarding this card in the near future (we typically review cards every six months). If we were “big fans” of this card as you seem to imply, we would give it a a perfect five-star rating. However, this card has never gotten over a three-star rating on our site. But, I do appreciate you bringing these matters to our attention and we will, as mentioned, take them into consideration.
Regarding your inquiries about this board…this board is shared with four sites: CreditCardFreedom.com, CardRevolt.com, CreditCardRates.com, and CardRatings.org. You can read more about the board, including the board monitors by following this link:
http://www.cardratings.com/messagebtm.html
Finally, the fact that we incorporated this month on a for-profit basis is fully disclosed (including the reasons for doing so) on our “About Us” page. I don’t appreciate the tone of your post. You seem to imply that we are intentionally misleading consumers in this regard. The governing body that handles domain name registration does not require that an organization be non-profit in order to obtain a .org domain. However, we reserved the .org domain b/c we had planned on being a non-profit up until late last year.
I’m sure you recall the fake.org mostly private e-mail discussion we had last year. And of course nothing changed. What was I thinking? Miracles or something?
Plase don’t make such brash statements about an organization that you know very little about.
Best Regards,
Curtis Arnold
CFCCT P.R. Director
http://www.cardratings.org
CardRatings.com is the most comprehensive source for comparing credit card offers. Please visit CardRatings.com to view the best rated credit cards!
Linda in VA
Date: 1/23/2001 8:26 am CDT
Hi Curtis,
Well, speaking as a board participant, and a user of the sponsoring websites, I have an opinion on this discussion.
I think most of us know that y’all are in business here. My personal opinion is that all of the affiliated sites show a great deal of integrity in the *way* you consuct your business, and you (and the regular members who post here)really try to help consumers who come here with problems and questions.
Personally, I visited Christine’s site, read her story, etc. and I think that promoting a victim mentality does little to help consumers. Anyone who can read this board enough to participate, can read the disclosures that come with a credit card. If they choose not to do that before they make a decision, they are not acting in their own best interests.
It’s not a perfect world. Some deals are better than others. Some people are smarter than others. If a person chooses to make others responsible for their success or failure, in life or in business, they will end up with what others want them to have.
What happened to personal responsibility? When did a business have to do any more than give you what they said they would give you for the price they state? When did the government become our guardian. If you don’t like the way someone does business, don’t do business with them.
IMHO, Christine is just looking for a fight, has nothing better to do, and you happened to be in her line of sight at the moment.
Reading her posts does put a little spice in my day, though
Linda
CardRatings.com is the most comprehensive source for comparing credit card offers. Please visit CardRatings.com to view the best rated credit cards!
Susan
Date: 1/23/2001 8:49 pm CDT
Me too!!!!!
CardRatings.com is the most comprehensive source for comparing credit card offers. Please visit CardRatings.com to view the best rated credit cards!
Board Monitor - CA
Date: 1/25/2001 11:59 am CDT
To All,
Just a follow up note to the heated discussions that we had recently about the Net 1st Mastercard. I personally decided to take a “further look” at this card after Christine Baker appeared to be so adamant about how unattractive this card is for consumers. While I don’t always appreciate the manner in which Christine expresses herself, I do value her opinion.
In this case, I must say that she is right on target. Christine brought up many unattractive features about this card that we have simply overlooked in the past. I think a lot of this has to do with the unique “Reservation Fee” that is associated with this card. On the surface, the 0% interest rate is very appealing. However, as Christine point outs in her OCC filing, the fine print is much less attractive. So much so, that, as of today, we have downgraded the card to a one-star rating, which is our poorest rating. You can read our updated review by visiting our “Card Reports” section and clicking on “Poor Credit”.
I would like to thank Christine publically for bringing this to our attention. As always, we put the interest of consumers before the interests of our sponsors. By the way, for the record, since we began advertising this particular card earlier this month, we have not earned one red dime in commissions.
Best Regards,
Curtis Arnold
CFCCT P.R. Director
http://www.cardratings.org
CardRatings.com is the most comprehensive source for comparing credit card offers. Please visit CardRatings.com to view the best rated credit cards!
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Credit Tips: Net 1st MasterCard Review Concerns
Posted On:
CardRatings.com is the most comprehensive source for comparing credit card offers. Please visit CardRatings.com to view the best rated credit cards!
Post subject: Your rating of Net 1st influenced by commissions?
bayhouse.com
Date: 1/20/2001 2:53 am CDT
At first I was quite impressed with this site, is SEEMED like there was an honest rating system NOT dependent on the commissions received for the applications.
I was actually already selecting a banner to add you to my credit page as your affiliate. Then I found your rating of 1st Net. What a disappointment! You HIGHLY recommend the most outrageous credit card scam I’ve seen yet.
0% APR? How can THAT be with a $96/year fee and an application fee of $89.95? I don’t know of ANY card charging more than that.
Even if you DON’T know how to calculate an APR, common sense should kick in and tell anyone that this is a ROTTEN deal!
You forgot to mention the other fees:
“Credit Card Fees: Transaction Fee for Cash Advances: the greater of $2 or 3% of the Cash Advance; Late Payment Fee: $25; Over Limit Fee: $25; Check Returned Fee: $20; Reinstatement Fee: $20.”
and
“Minimum Payment: The Minimum Payment Due for each monthly billing cycle will be the greater of $15.00 or the total of (i) 3% of the New Balance shown on your monthly billing statement, plus (ii) any amount past due.”
and
“*Qualifiers: You must be at least 18 years of age, a U.S. citizen or permanent resident of the United States and have a valid checking account.”
I’m not aware of any other card requiring a valid checking account.
What you call “important features about this card which make it quite different” is standard industry practice. According to postings at my site, FCNB.com approved secured cards PRIOR to Ch. 7 discharge. Just about every secured card reports to the bureaus.
I don’t know of ANY card that reports as “SECURED.” Apparently you are trying to make readers think that all the other cards do.
The MOST important criteria for secured cards is the reporting to the bureaus. Why don’t you add WHICH bureaus the issuers report to and whether the credit limit is reported?
This is so disappointing, there are MUCH better cards, with much lower fees AND reporting to the bureaus as “non secured” that pay $25+ commission per opened account, why not rate THOSE higher and get rid of the scams?
Christine Baker,
bayhouse.com/discus
From your Net 1st review:
“Though at first glance this card may seem to appear as simply another common secured card, there are several important features about this card which make it quite different.
First, Net 1st National Bank reports the cardholder’s payment history to all three credit bureaus as an unsecured credit card. Secondly, there is no credit check for those who apply and those who complete an accurate application will be accepted (100% approval rating). And thirdly, there is no interest rate applied on the account.”
“Though this card does have a high annual fee and high application fee as compared to other cards designed to help establish credit, the main attractive feature about this card is the fact that Net 1st National Bank reports the cardholder’s payment history to all three credit bureaus as an unsecured credit card. This means that when the individual’s credit report is reviewed by other creditors, it reduces the chances that the cardholder’s credit history will be questioned as opposed to having a secured credit card account, in which may otherwise create a red flag for creditors. So those who are unable to obtain a standard unsecured credit card will definitely want to consider the Net 1st MasterCard as an alternative choice to help build a positive credit history.”
CardRatings.com is the most comprehensive source for comparing credit card offers. Please visit CardRatings.com to view the best rated credit cards!
Board Monitor - AD
Date: 1/20/2001 12:30 am CDT
Dear Christine,
Thank you for thoroughly evaluating the review on the Net 1st MasterCard.
For your information, I have spoken directly with the marketing department of the Net 1st MasterCard in the past, as I also felt that the card’s terms and conditions was misleading to consumers. But after a thorough evaluation of the card, I did find it to offer a valuable alternative to establishing credit. Of course, it depends on how one looks at it.
The card does have various fees, such as an annual fee of $96 and an application fee of $89.95 for a total cost of $185.95, you are correct about this. And it does have various penalty and cash advance fees, though this is common with most standard issued cards.
However, the reason that the card proves as an attractive alternative is the 0% APR offer. It’s important to note that various secured cards have APR’s greater than 19% (on top of an annual fee and sometimes an application fee), and because of this, cardholders can pay considerably in finance charges.
Also, the card reports as an unsecured card, another valuable benefit. I need to point out that your sources are incorrect about secured cards reporting to credit bureaus as unsecured cards, though I do not know what percentage does report as unsecured, a variety do not. Read this article from BankRate.com to learn more:
bankrate.com/brm/news/cc/19990823.asp?keyword=CREDITCARDS#bureaus
The reason the card requires a valid checking account is to process the application fee, which I find to be a reasonable request.
In reference to you stating that “I forgot to mention other fees”, they are mostly standard, and refer to penalty fees and minimum payment configurations, which are usually omitted from reviews posted on CreditCardFreedom.com.
Of course, if the cardholder pays in full each month and can avoid paying finance charges, then he or she may find better and less costly options with other secured cards. But this is rarely the case.
Now, in addition to reviews posted on the CreditCardFreedom.com site, there are cardholders who have posted reviews on the Net 1st MasterCard. So for anyone who feels that reviews are biased, they can simply see what other cardholders have to say, and to this date, the Net 1st MasterCard has received 18 reviews, with an average rating of 2.94.
Sincerely,
Alex Daskaloff
creditcardfreedom.com
CardRatings.com is the most comprehensive source for comparing credit card offers. Please visit CardRatings.com to view the best rated credit cards!
bayhouse.com
Date: 1/20/2001 6:02 pm CDT
Appreciate your detailed response and have several comments and questions.
1)”The reason the card requires a valid checking account is to process the application fee, which I find to be a reasonable request.”
I disagree. The reason is most likely to make up for the credit inquiry. People with severe credit problems often cannot open a checking account, either due to ChexSystem reports, tax debts, child support and numerous other causes that will reduce the checking account balance to ZERO frequently. Most other secured cards accept money orders or checks via snail mail.
2) From your link to Bankrate.com bankrate.com/brm/news/cc/19990823.asp?keyword=CREDITCARDS#bureaus provided as evidence of you claim that the other secured cards report with a “secured” notation:
“Do you report to all three major credit bureaus?
The reason for having a secured card goes far beyond being able to buy CDs online. It’s a vehicle for building a good credit history. If the issuer doesn’t report, you’ve lost a major benefit. (Tip: If you start getting mailers offering you unsecured cards after you’ve made several months of payments on time, you’ll know that the bank is reporting.) Ask if the issuer will flag the report to the credit bureaus as a secured card. Consumer Action points out that such a flag could be a deterrent to rebuilding credit.”
I don’t see ANYWHERE a reference to ANY secured card reporting as such. I know for a fact that many don’t. I have never seen a report with a secured card notation, and I can’t recall any reports of a secured card notation in the 5,000+ postings at the BayHouse Credit Forum in the last year.
Since you are the “credit card expert” and you base your high rating of 1st Net on this “feature”, and you also review many other cards, why not give my some NAMES. Sterling? Capital One? Future Card? Umbrella?
This is an EXTREMELY important issue, so I’d like to know. All your readers SHOULD know. All of MY readers at BayHouse should know. As I mentioned in my previous posting, this info should be part of every review.
WHO reports as secured?
3) From 1st-netcard.com/dollars/2162/19/125/terms.html:
“Net 1st National Bank KFS MasterCard® Program. A refundable $500 Reservation Fee is payable to KFS (the “Reservation Fee”) in connection with the opening of your account. The Reservation Fee will be charged to your credit card account and will fully utilize your initial $500 credit limit. Before you may use your card or account to make purchases or to obtain cash advances, you must make payments on your account. The difference between the total unpaid balance and your credit limit will be the amount of credit available to you.”
OK, so I send 1st Net $500. RESULT: I have ZERO credit available. Compare THAT to the other cards.
So, to actually get a $500 credit line, I have to send ANOTHER $500. That in itself is absolutely ridiculous. There is NO other card requiring DOUBLE deposits!
Add to this outrageous policy that apparently the 1st Net card never converts to UNSECURED and card holders are NEVER eligible for credit line increases!
4) This 1st Net card does NOT have a 0% APR.
I’d like you to look at some very simple arithmetic:
20% interest on $500 = $100
Can you agree, that if someone uses the entire $500 (after paying the $1000 deposit), the APR would be just below 20%. (I disregard the fact that it’s impossible to always be at your limit, so the real APR would be higher.)
Now, if somebody owes an average of about $250, we are up to a whopping 40% APR.
What about someone who doesn’t use the card at all, just wants to re-establish credit. With 0 usage, the APR would be infinite. So lets use $10. Aren’t we now looking at an astronomical 1,000% APR?
AND, I haven’t even added in the $$89.95 application fee which nearly DOUBLES all APRs for the first year!
I think scams like 1st Net should be prohibited and I’m going to send a complaint to the FTC. They should shut 1st Net down and fine them for misleading or incorrect APR advertisements.
What YOU are doing here is not right. It’s not illegal, but definitely not right. Give it any name you want, APR or fee, it’s money out of your readers’ pockets.
You are highly recommending the very worst card.
This is especially disappointing because an HONEST and ACCURATE rating of secured cards is badly needed.
Here is an example of one of your cardholder reviews RECOMMENDING 1st Net (YOU use “this” to substantiate your recommendation?”:
“any one with there toll free number
does some one has there toll free number please e mail me at asimjarar@hotmail other wise 9its a good card i guess to help you establish your crdit the only thing is i cant find there phone number to contact them
Most Attractive Benefit: good in establishing credit
Least Attractive Benefit: no phone nu,mber on websiet”
These people need a LOT of help. They don’t know any better.
Until now you could claim that you didn’t know any better either.
Now you DO know better.
PLEASE adjust your rating of 1st Net accordingly.
CardRatings.com is the most comprehensive source for comparing credit card offers. Please visit CardRatings.com to view the best rated credit cards!
bobby
Date: 1/20/2001 11:29 pm CDT
Bank of America reports as secured!
CardRatings.com is the most comprehensive source for comparing credit card offers. Please visit CardRatings.com to view the best rated credit cards!
bayhouse.com
Date: 1/20/2001 11:34 pm CDT
THANKS! I didn’t even know BofA offers secured cards, never saw an ad. Appreciate that info very much.
Who else?
bobby wrote:
——————————-
Bank of America reports as secured!
CardRatings.com is the most comprehensive source for comparing credit card offers. Please visit CardRatings.com to view the best rated credit cards!
bobby
Date: 1/20/2001 11:49 pm CDT
Providian reports its fully secured cards as secured.
CardRatings.com is the most comprehensive source for comparing credit card offers. Please visit CardRatings.com to view the best rated credit cards!
bayhouse.com
Date: 1/21/2001 3:00 pm CDT
Great, who else? I’m especially interested in the cards advertised on the web.
Thank again,
Christine
bobby wrote:
——————————-
Providian reports its fully secured cards as secured.
CardRatings.com is the most comprehensive source for comparing credit card offers. Please visit CardRatings.com to view the best rated credit cards!
Board Monitor - AD
Date: 1/21/2001 4:07 pm CDT
Dear Christine,
I will take your comments into consideration when re-reviewing the Net 1st MasterCard product in the near future. Thank you for your insights and opinions.
Sincerely,
Alex Daskaloff
creditcardfreedom.com
CardRatings.com is the most comprehensive source for comparing credit card offers. Please visit CardRatings.com to view the best rated credit cards!
bayhouse.com
Date: 1/22/2001 6:50 pm CDT
Dear Alex,
I’m looking forward to your updated review.
“My FTC complaint about Net 1st M/C - THE most exploitive yet highly recommend secured card available”
bayhouse.com/discus/messages/649/1080.html?980057458
I realize that the FTC probably couldn’t care less, but what else can one do?
Sincerely,
Christine Baker
www.bayhouse.com/discus
Board Monitor - AD wrote:
——————————-
Dear Christine,
I will take your comments into consideration when re-reviewing the Net 1st MasterCard product in the near future. Thank you for your insights and opinions.
Sincerely,
Alex Daskaloff
creditcardfreedom.com
CardRatings.com is the most comprehensive source for comparing credit card offers. Please visit CardRatings.com to view the best rated credit cards!
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