Credit card issuers (secured card)

I'm looking to build credit (I've been fortunate enough to not have to borrow for school, but that's left me credit-less) and it looks like a secured credit card is the way to go. My other option would be to take out an unsubsidized direct student loan and pay it back but I'm thinking I might actually get some utility out of the card. I'm willing to pay to build credit (hence the student loan idea) since the world kinda (i.e. does) revolve around credit.

So far, I've found BoA, Wells Fargo, Citi and HSBC all have secured cards. Capital One supposedly has one as well but I don't really trust them not to send me shit long enough to put my information in, it seems they're infamous for sending massive amounts of shit.

So my questions:
Does anyone have experience with the above banks? Good or bad, I'd like to have details if possible.
Does anyone know of additional national banks with secured cards? Chase doesn't and I'd prefer to not use one of the too-big-to-fail institutions out of principle but my local bank while providing excellent checking sucks lots of cocks in the loan and credit department. Oh, and if you do, coming with experiences would be appreciated.

I'll probably end up going with the card with the lowest annual rate since I don't really intend to carry a balance ever. I'd like some kind of flexibility with the deposit as well, as in the ability to choose my own. So far I've seen like $200 to relative infinity, the amount you have in the CD or savings account with them is your credit limit, which is fine with me.

Current terms and conditions I've found:
http://www.bankofamerica.com/creditc...0Card&lc=en_US
https://www.wellsfargo.com/credit_cards/secured/terms
http://www.citicards.com/cards/wv/ca...o?screenID=940
https://www.hsbcapply.com/TermsPopup..._HSC843HS.html

Plan on carrying the balance but still making payments every month. Banks are starting to close out credit cards that aren't being used, and also credit cards that are being completely paid off every month. It's better for you to carry a small balance on your card and make a payment every month than to pay the entire thing off every month.

I understand that banks are lowering credit limits on unsecured cards and perhaps closing unused cards (although I've heard of this happening far before the current credit crunch), but I've got loads of anecdotal evidence of people who pay their (unsecured) cards in full monthly not having their cards cancelled.

The bank wants you to pay, after all. The interest calculation is intended to make you pay quicker, and the bank knows the more interest you accrue the more likely your debt to them will become bad.

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Originally Posted by sponge

The bank wants you to pay, after all. The interest calculation is intended to make you pay quicker, and the bank knows the more interest you accrue the more likely your debt to them will become bad.

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Not at all really. The bank doesn't want you to pay immediately, the bank wants you to build up some interest because you spent more money than you had, so now they take a profit on you. Of course they want you to pay in the long run, but they don't want you to immediately pay your card off every month. And also, I'm not surprised you hadn't heard about this being the case, as it's something that's gone into effect quite recently.

Regardless I'm not paying any interest if I'm already paying an annual fee (as all secured cards charge) so if they cancel my account for being prudent well fuck them. That said I don't particularly believe banks are closing continually paid accounts except perhaps in extreme circumstances, if they are simply trying to decrease liabilities they'd lower credit limits to better suit the spending habits of the customers, which they're doing. All of this is more or less moot anyway because I'm talking about a secured card, where every dollar of my credit limit is backed by an untouchable deposit of my own money.

And a large amount of revenue generated by credit cards is interchange fees, banks would (assuming no bad debt) already profit if it wasn't for assholes who get in over their heads. Banks wouldn't make it so easy to make purchases and pay them off interest free if they didn't want you to do it.

I have a Wells Fargo college student account. I'm pleased with it.

Goddamn it, I was hoping that this was an advertisement bot posting some sweet internet deals :mad:

But Shinysides is correct: as I am aware, they really don't want you to pay off the balance completely right away.

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Originally Posted by sponge

That said I don't particularly believe banks are closing continually paid accounts except perhaps in extreme circumstances, if they are simply trying to decrease liabilities they'd lower credit limits to better suit the spending habits of the customers, which they're doing.

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Well believe whatever the fuck you want, you're still wrong. They are closing out accounts that are being consistently paid off every month, and if you really can't understand why that is, I'm not gonna keep trying to explain it. It has absolutely nothing to do with decreasing liabilities, it has everything to do with the fact that they aren't making enough money off you, and don't want you to have a card with them if you're just going to pay it off every time you get a bill.

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Originally Posted by Shinysides

Well believe whatever the fuck you want, you're still wrong. They are closing out accounts that are being consistently paid off every month, and if you really can't understand why that is, I'm not gonna keep trying to explain it. It has absolutely nothing to do with decreasing liabilities, it has everything to do with the fact that they aren't making enough money off you, and don't want you to have a card with them if you're just going to pay it off every time you get a bill.

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How about you go fuck yourself instead? As you haven't actually answered either of the original 2 questions I asked (the part prefaced with "So my questions:"), and I'm not here for advice as I'm pretty content with how I've run my life thus far and don't foresee needing the help of anonymous people on the internet any time soon.

So in case anyone else can't read, here's what I'm asking:
1. Do you have any experiences, good or bad, with HSBC, Citi, Bank of America or Wells Fargo (thanks TOGS)?
2. Do you have any experiences, good or bad, with another national bank offering secured credit cards?

Here are the things I'm not asking (sizing for effect, and so any further morons don't get confused):
1. Is she pregnant?
2. How should I run my life or use whatever card I get?
3. How many milligrams of rick scarf brand does it take to get my girlfriend to sleep with me? (Answer so far is an astounding zero although maybe if I increase that she'll let me stick it in her pooper.)

You sure are a whiny little bitch, aren't you sponge.

Negged for being a stupid little girl.

both of you are overly internet aggressive but you should probably just answer his question instead of being a dumb faggot

Get your card before February of next year (I am sure you will) because they are going to require you to have a cosigner for college cards.

A friend of mine got a Wells Fargo secured credit card. About 6 months later he got all kinds of offers from other banks and got his money back.

I got a BOA Student Credit Card (not a student). I THINK I had to open a checking account and put $500 in it or something to get this card. I honestly can't remember, but it's not secured. I started out with a $500 limit or something...maybe $1000. I only got this because the floor person suggested it and I had no credit, so it was a solution.

Because of prompt payments, my limit was increased to $2000. I opened up another credit line too, after establishing credit with BOA (banks want 3 lines of credit for a home loan. This can be in the form of credit cards, car payments, cell phone bills, utility bills, etc. and we're looking to buy another house). I get capital one shit in the mail all the time. I don't know if it was from BOA or when I financed my Temperpedic through Wells Fargo, but the junk mail will start pouring in.

The APR fucking blows (it's like 22% or something). I didn't care much about any of that as I never planned on using it without paying the full balance off every month. I'm kinda broke recently so I actually have used it and the finance charge is fuckin $15 each month. THERE IS NO GRACE PERIOD. I went to pay my bill online the day it was due, about 8 p.m., and I got a fucking late charge of $35 because it wasn't during business hours. When I pay off this card, I'm closing the account because the terms are shit. And no grace period is really gay...def don't want to ding my credit.

But, it is a start. Also, if you open up another credit line and don't use it, it actually lowers your credit score, so be careful with that.

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Originally Posted by Shinysides

Not at all really. The bank doesn't want you to pay immediately, the bank wants you to build up some interest because you spent more money than you had, so now they take a profit on you. Of course they want you to pay in the long run, but they don't want you to immediately pay your card off every month. And also, I'm not surprised you hadn't heard about this being the case, as it's something that's gone into effect quite recently.

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Actually, they don't. Anyone who has ever argued with a bank over service fees knows good and well that money talks. If you use your card and never pay a dime of interest, they still make money off of transaction fees.

Sponge: can you really not get an unsecured student card? I don't quite understand why you would WANT a secured card. Is it because you don't trust your own personal discipline?

Another loophole that I've enjoyed (and may now be closed by FIC) is piggybacking off of your parents' credit. I am added as an authorized user on all of my parents' credit cards, though I don't have physical access to any card (well, I do, but that's not the point.) Though I don't have any responsibility for paying off these cards, as long as my parents continue to do so faithfully, my credit score increases. If your parents are reasonably responsible, I would recommend doing this immediately.

I found this thread while searching for my name

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Originally Posted by DickStivers

I got a BOA Student Credit Card (not a student). I THINK I had to open a checking account and put $500 in it or something to get this card. I honestly can't remember, but it's not secured. I started out with a $500 limit or something...maybe $1000. I only got this because the floor person suggested it and I had no credit, so it was a solution.

Because of prompt payments, my limit was increased to $2000. I opened up another credit line too, after establishing credit with BOA (banks want 3 lines of credit for a home loan. This can be in the form of credit cards, car payments, cell phone bills, utility bills, etc. and we're looking to buy another house). I get capital one shit in the mail all the time. I don't know if it was from BOA or when I financed my Temperpedic through Wells Fargo, but the junk mail will start pouring in.

The APR fucking blows (it's like 22% or something). I didn't care much about any of that as I never planned on using it without paying the full balance off every month. I'm kinda broke recently so I actually have used it and the finance charge is fuckin $15 each month. THERE IS NO GRACE PERIOD. I went to pay my bill online the day it was due, about 8 p.m., and I got a fucking late charge of $35 because it wasn't during business hours. When I pay off this card, I'm closing the account because the terms are shit. And no grace period is really gay...def don't want to ding my credit.

But, it is a start. Also, if you open up another credit line and don't use it, it actually lowers your credit score, so be careful with that.

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1. New credit laws prevent that from affecting your credit.

2. Call B of A and they will remove that charge.