Current Events > I'm not very credit card savvy and I need advice.

(+) Yeah! (+)

I've had a credit card for a little under a year and a half or so that I use to pay for monthly supscriptions and I pay it off every month. Basic stuff. With that said, the credit card company that I'm with is offering me an unsecured gold card and I'm not sure if I should take that or not.
They say having a second card builds your credit faster. Or maybe I should take the unsecured card and cancel the one I have now? Like I said, I'm not super-duper knowledgeable credit cards. I just pay my stuff off every month and go on with my day.

My credit score is currently 730 if that matters at all here.

Is there an annual fee?

Credit cards are a trap

Is your goal just to build credit?

taking a card with a higher credit limit is generally a good idea assuming you can trust yourself with that extra credit.

as for having two vs one, i'm not sure if having two cards with low usage on both is 'better' than having a single card with high value.

personally, i have two cards. one for 'in person' purchases and another for online purchases. the online card stays at home.

Not to brag but fico score and cc score is at 800

Don't cancel the first card.

I would just check for an annual fee, no need to get a card with that if you are only putting monthly subscriptions on your card.

What are you using for your daily/weekly purchases? I have my original credit card that just has like gym membership, netflix on it, and then another credit card that I spend a lot more money on for my normal every day purchases.

R1masher posted...

Credit cards are a trap

if you are using credit to pay your bills. Otherwise its extra money in the bank

dj1200 posted...

Is there an annual fee?

I had a hard time finding something about this, even on the company's website/emails (which is odd...) But I came across a Reddit post talking about it and people are saying $59.

MC_BatCommander posted...

Is your goal just to build credit?

Well, that and I'd like to get a house and a better car one day or something. Am I doing it right?

Giant_Aspirin posted...

taking a card with a higher credit limit is generally a good idea assuming you can trust yourself with that extra credit.

as for having two vs one, i'm not sure if having two cards with low usage on both is 'better' than having a single card with high value.

personally, i have two cards. one for 'in person' purchases and another for online purchases. the online card stays at home.

The limit on my current card is $200, so the things I have it paying off adds up to roughly $40-$50 something a month. There some other stuff that I pay off that I could possibly have a second credit card handle.

Okay. I finally found the page for the card. By the way, I forgot to mention that the company is OpenSky.

This is what their Unsecured OpenSky Visa Gold card comes with according to their website:

• $500 unsecured credit line
• No credit check
• No application
• Competitive 23.90% APR
• $59 Annual Fee

Apparently, I don't need to sign up because it is available by invitation only and I'm already approved, I just need to "click accept".

Kitt posted...

I had a hard time finding something about this, even on the company's website/emails (which is odd...) But I came across a Reddit post talking about it and people are saying $59.

Oh... Yeah if there's a $59 annual fee, then that's not worth it.

Well, that and I'd like to get a house and a better car one day or something. Am I doing it right?

The limit on my current card is $200, so the things I have it paying off adds up to roughly $40-$50 something a month. There some other stuff that I pay off that I could possibly have a second credit card handle.

I'm assuming your current credit card is the first time you've ever built credit. Your credit score is good, but if you don't have much history, the credit card offers you'll get won't be the best. Just keep doing what you've been doing with your current card and you'll start getting better offers

Kitt posted...

Okay. I finally found the page for the card. By the way, I forgot to mention that the company is OpenSky.

This is what their Unsecured OpenSky Visa Gold card comes with according to their website:

* $500 unsecured credit line
* No credit check
* No application
* Competitive 23.90% APR
* $59 Annual Fee
Apparently, I don't need to sign up because it is available by invitation only and I'm already approved, I just need to "click accept".

that's gonna be a no.

Does it have any rewards that might give you more value than the annual fee? If not, I wouldn't do it.

Kitt posted...

Okay. I finally found the page for the card. By the way, I forgot to mention that the company is OpenSky.

This is what their Unsecured OpenSky Visa Gold card comes with according to their website:

* $500 unsecured credit line
* No credit check
* No application
* Competitive 23.90% APR
* $59 Annual Fee
Apparently, I don't need to sign up because it is available by invitation only and I'm already approved, I just need to "click accept".

Wtf that's an awful card, an annual fee and no rewards system?

MC_BatCommander posted...

Wtf that's an awful card, an annual fee and no rewards system?

Yeah. Get a CC with an established credit company and if eligible apply for one with a reward system so you can reap in more than a credit score.

NoxObscuras posted...

Oh... Yeah if there's a $59 annual fee, then that's not worth it.

Old NoiseTank posted...

that's gonna be a no.

That's a load off. Thanks for letting me know, guys.

I'm assuming your current credit card is the first time you've ever built credit.

It is.

Your credit score is good, but if you don't have much history, the credit card offers you'll get won't be the best. Just keep doing what you've been doing with your current card and you'll start getting better offers

That's great to here. I guess I'll just stay at it then.

CableZL posted...

Does it have any rewards that might give you more value than the annual fee? If not, I wouldn't do it.

From what I can read, no. There doesn't seem to be any incentive aside from it being an additional $500 card card that report to the three major credit companies.

Kitt posted...

From what I can read, no. There doesn't seem to be any incentive aside from it being an additional $500 card card that report to the three major credit companies.

Yeah, I wouldn't do that. Having a second card would help your credit, but an extra $500 in total credit available and 1 more account won't make a big enough difference to be worth paying an annual fee for.

I would continue to use your current card until your score improves enough to qualify for a card that has no annual fee and gives rewards.

not worth a $59 annual fee. you can easily find another card with better benefits and zero fee with a score of 730

Oh, I missed the part where you said your score was already at 730. Yeah, you can get much better cards than that.

also, since you seem to be generally financially responsible, consider using your credit cards more than just $200 / month. i put every single purchase i make on a CC both for the rewards and the added consumer protections.

How is your score 730 if you just started building credit a year and a half ago?

AceAttorneyist posted...

How is your score 730 if you just started building credit a year and a half ago?

I could see him having a score of 730 if he has 18 months of his credit card company only reporting that he paid on time. Especially if he doesn't have any prior delinquencies in the past 7 years.

Don't do it. In fact, don't even screw around with another card until after you finish your degree.

AceAttorneyist posted...

How is your score 730 if you just started building credit a year and a half ago?

I don't know. Ever since I got it, I put most of the stuff I'm subscribed to on it and have been paying it off every month ever since.

Kitt posted...

Okay. I finally found the page for the card. By the way, I forgot to mention that the company is OpenSky.

This is what their Unsecured OpenSky Visa Gold card comes with according to their website:

* $500 unsecured credit line
* No credit check
* No application
* Competitive 23.90% APR
* $59 Annual Fee
Apparently, I don't need to sign up because it is available by invitation only and I'm already approved, I just need to "click accept".

That is absolutely shit. Definite no.

You should probably be looking for a beginner-level card that has rewards, and no annual fee. The Chase Freedom Flex/Unlimited is a good one to start with, and they're usually running some kind of sign-up promo as well.

Get a credit card with rewards and no annual fee when you can (unless you know the fee is worth it)

Discover it card is good, it has 1% cashback on everything, and also 5% cashback on different catergories that rotate every 3 months. For example, from Jan-March you currently get 5% cashback from groceries and gym memberships. Then from Apr-Jun it will have something different, such as 5% cashback from Amazon. I believe with your credit score you should be eligible for this.

Paypal and Wells Fargo each have a card that give a flat 2% cashback on everything.

Giant_Aspirin posted...

also, since you seem to be generally financially responsible, consider using your credit cards more than just $200 / month. i put every single purchase i make on a CC both for the rewards and the added consumer protections.

yeah I do this too since I have a card that gets 2% cash back on everything now. I think last month I paid my CC bill 4 times because I was using it online a lot and my credit score went up 9 points

sutree posted...

Paypal and Wells Fargo each have a card that give a flat 2% cashback on everything.

Shoutout to Citi DoubleCash as well, in that regard.

Mearcstapa posted...

Shoutout to Citi DoubleCash as well, in that regard.

Best card out of all the basic ones that give a flat reward percentage. Their customer service is much better than the average

From what I gather, never cancel your first card. I think it's the one used to establish your longest length of credit which count towards your credit score. The longer the better, if canceled, it would go to the next card or loan, which would shorten your credit history.

Annual Fees? Get another card instead. I have 50 grand available credit without annual fees. I kept them to just boost my credit score.

sutree posted...

Paypal and Wells Fargo each have a card that give a flat 2% cashback on everything.

Don't keep your money near anything to do with Wells Fargo. Perhaps the most scandalous bank in America.

bknight posted...

From what I gather, never cancel your first card. I think it's the one used to establish your longest length of credit which count towards your credit score. The longer the better, if canceled, it would go to the next card or loan, which would shorten your credit history.

To add to this, note that many banks will automatically close your card if not used for a certain period of time (usually ~1 year). So you should make a small purchase on the card account(s) you don't use but want to keep open perhaps once every several months or so to keep it active (So, a candy bar, or a 50c Amazon balance reload, or something like that)

As others have said, that's a trash credit card. Your over 700 credit score can get you some good stuff.

With such a low credit limit, you can easily boost your score by changing that. You're routinely at like 25% of your your available credit being used, which isn't terrible and is a low dollar amount, but it could be better for your credit report.

Others mentioned some good cards, but you may also want to look at cards from stores that you routinely buy from anyway. Like I do all if my grocery shopping at Target, so getting 5% off of my groceries makes sense. I also have an Amazon card because I constantly buy shit off of these. So 5% off there is great too. A lot of time your actual bank will get you good rates or a high limit too.

I mainly use Chase Freedom Unlimited and here are the benefits:

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/5/6/6/AAdGD8AAC1Sm.jpg
https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/5/6/7/AAdGD8AAC1Sn.png

This is one of the easiest card to get on the market as well.

R1masher posted...

Credit cards are a trap

Only if youre an idiot with them.

The more credit cards the better.

The most profitable industry in all of history has decided to do you a solid?



They put more money into psychology and marketing research than any other department