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Secured Credit Cards Are a Great Way to Rebuild Credit

See our complete list of recommended Secured Credit Cards available!

For whatever reason, the economy, youthful negligence, divorce, health problems or general ignorance, you may now find yourself with a bad credit score and no means of getting small business loans, home loan, or favorable car loan terms. What you need is a way to increase your credit score in a hurry. Credit cards are a great way to establish credit. But people who have never had credit or need to repair a poor credit history may not qualify for a regular credit card. For them, a secured credit card may be the only way to establish, or re-establish, credit.

There are a lot of "bad" secured credit cards, so you want to make sure you do your homework first before getting one of these cards. Getting the right one and using it the right way, will go miles in the journey of rebuilding your credit and increasing your credit score.

What is a Secured Credit Card?
A secured credit card requires a cash collateral deposit that becomes the credit line for that account. For example, if you put $500 in the account; you can charge up to $500. You may be able to add to the deposit to add more credit, or sometimes a bank will reward you for good payment and add to your credit line without requesting additional deposits.

A secured credit card should have the following:
    No application fee and a low annual fee.
    The ability to convert to a regular, unsecured credit card after 12-18 months of on-time payments.
    Be reporting to ALL THREE credit bureaus.

Rebuilding Your Credit With a Secured Credit Card
Your best bet is to make arrangements with all of your current creditors to pay off your current debt and then make your payments on time. But this alone will not build a good credit score, it'll simply undo some damage to your credit score. You need to have a credit card you can use at least once per month and pay off in full each month to make your credit score go up quickly.

Even in the present economy, a person with a bad credit score can get a credit card. And, you don't even have to stoop down to cards with annual fees. A secured credit card issued by your bank allows you to rebuild your credit score quickly, if you use it responsibly. You only need to make a small purchase each month and then pay the card in full each month. After several months of doing so, and if you are faithful with your other debt payments, your credit score will quickly rise.

After about six to nine months of responsibly using your secured credit card, you will find your credit score rising sharply. At this point you should also know how to use your secured credit card responsibly. This is an important part of rebuilding credit scores. You need to continue using your secured credit card responsibly or your credit score will soon be damaged again.

Rebuilding a Good Credit Rating
First, get a couple of secured cards. Next, spend small amounts wisely, pay more than the minimum payment (or pay it all) every month and pay it right when you get the bill, don't wait for the due date and don't be late.  For people with poor credit or no credit, a secured credit card is the fastest, most effective way to reestablish themselves as good credit risks in the eyes of lenders. Secured cards are easy to get and the card issuer reports your payment history to major credit bureaus every month.

Using Credit Cards Responsibly
Using credit wisely is important since your credit reputation influences the rates that will be paid on a loan for a house or car, or for a credit card. The better your credit reputation, the lower the interest you will have to pay. Although secured cards tend to have higher interest rates and annual fees, they provide a valuable steppingstone to unsecured credit.  If you cannot use your secured credit card responsibly, it is time to consider that loans and credit cards are not for you. Some personalities
simply don't work with credit. There is no shame in being someone who must live on a cash basis, but there is shame in taking on lines of credit when you are someone who must live on a cash basis.

Establish a Sound Payment History
Establishing a payment history will help you qualify down the road for the major credit cards. Using this secured card appropriately and within the set parameters will help rebuild your credit. Only make small purchases and pay the bill in full when it arrives and well before the due date. Doing this regularly over time helps build your credit history as a prompt payer.  Don't fall into the trap of credit cards-overspending and/or making minimum payments. Once you have built a solid credit history over 12 months or more, you can apply for an unsecured card. Or, you can talk to the card issuer about converting from your present card to a regular card.

Secured Credit Cards We Highly Recommend:

Applied Bank® Secured Visa® Gold Credit Card
Guaranteed Approval Regardless of Your Past Credit History
9.99% Low Fixed APR - Your Rate Won't Change Even if You Are Late.  Choose Your Credit Limit - From $200 to $5,000 
Highest Ratings for Financial Strength and Security in the Country


Click Here To APPLY

Platinum Zero® Secured Visa® Card from Applied Bank®
ZERO - 0% FIXED APR on purchases - No Intro Rates!
ZERO - 0% Rate Won't Change - Even If You're Late!
ZERO Application Fees
ZERO Worries - FREE Personal ID Theft Protection
Click Here To APPLY


As with all hurdles in life, you must take the initiative to accept change, remain diligent & focused looking into the future working towards your goal of a better financial health.  These two recommendations are just the start you need on your road to credit recovery.

Identity Theft – How to Protect Yourself

Recent surveys show there are currently 7-10 million victims per year and it’s on the rise.

And yes, identity theft can happen to you or anyone else in your family.  Consider the consequences for a moment.

You may not lose money, but you may very well end up with a damaged credit history. And a bad credit history impacts many aspects of your life.

Bad credit may prevent you from getting bank loans, credit cards, car loans, mortgages and more. In other words, through no fault of your own, lenders can start saying no to you. And it doesn’t help if you tell them about identity theft. What they’ll base their decisions on is your credit report.

And here’s the worst part. Victims of identity theft typically spend hundreds of hours getting things sorted out and repairing their financial status. This is a process that can go on for months; even a year or more.

Can you afford to take that kind of risk?

Criminals use a wide variety of methods to steal your information.

One way they do this is by calling you directly, pretending to be one of your creditors or from the Social Security Administration, and asking you to verify your credintials. Criminals obtain your name and phone number by reviewing the classified ads.

Identity thieves obtain credit it your name, get mortgages to buy houses--only to later forge documents and resell the house leaving you with a mortgage company coming after you for payment and it will cost you your good credit rating while you're trying to prove you didn't apply or obtain the mortgage in the first place.

How to prevent or minimize the impact of identity theft.

While you cannot always prevent identity theft, you can take an important step to ensure that you don’t become a long time victim.

You need to be aware when it starts happening, not months later when your credit history is in ruins.

The most effective way of doing this is to check your credit report at several times a year. If you are a victim of identity theft you will catch it early by checking your credit report regularly.

And the sooner you find out, the faster you can stop the criminals and repair the damage.

It's time you safe guard your good credit and help us put a stop to Identity Theft.

Here’s an excellent site where you can find out what’s on your credit report, and begin protecting yourself from the ravages of identity theft and prevent it from happening to you:

A Fabulous Secured Credit Card To Get To Boost Your Credit Rating