I received free credit card offers in my campus mailbox every week, like millions of other college students in recent years. I began using the offered cards, figuring I’d have plenty of time and money later to pay them off. However, since I didn’t have a job and underestimated the monthly payments, I was quickly proven wrong.
By the time I graduated from college, my credit score was in sorry shape. I matured after that and got steady employment, and then found myself wanting to rebuild my credit history and use credit responsibly again. Bad credit will not hunt you forever. It takes time, but getting a bad credit credit card is a good first step. My credit is now flawless and gets me the best rate possible for my mortgage.
Be honest with yourself and make a sincere assessment of your situation. You’ll need to get a copy of your credit score and find out what your numerical value is. It may seem hopeless now, but there are concrete steps you can take to get back on your feet and have a new credit beginning.
The next thing you should do is decide between a credit card guaranteed through a bank or financial institution or an unsecured card with a very high interest rate. After you have started the process to obtain your credit report, check with your bank and analyze you usage of the account. Is bouncing checks in your history? Do you keep an up to date log? If the answer is yes to either, you should consider the “bad credit credit card” options.
So you’ve decided on the “bad credit credit cards” route. You do have choices so check out the options available. Will this be secured with a deposit of your own money? Will it be unsecured but with a huge interest rate? What is the annual fee? After a period of good repayments, will they drop the interest rate? Can you pick you’re the day each month to pay so you can match it up with your paycheck? Do they have any bonus programs? What are the minimum income requirements?
Don’t just be grateful to get the card, you have rights and choices. Be most careful with the interest rates. Some can go as high at 22% – run, don’t walk from that card. Anything under 20% is a decent find for an unsecured credit card for someone with bad credit history.
Make sure that your credit report comes frequently so that you could see if your credit card company gives you good reports of your payments. If this is not case, call and ask them. They listen. And next time when you ask again what is my credit score, it’ll increase.
Most people who have bad credit got it from signing up for credit cards when they were in college then had trouble repaying them. One of the ways to rebuild your credit is to get bad credit credit cards. You also want to ask “what is my credit score?” Make sure you obtain credit report scores on yourself and look into the cards your bank offers. Once you have decided on what cards you are interested in, you need to be aware of their requirements. Don’t choose any card. Investigate each offer carefully to make sure you are getting a good interest rate.
- Daniel Lesser
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