Denied for a Capital One Secured and a Citibank unsecured card - now what?

[IBroke]

I started a month after BK getting new credit and I never had any problems.

Same here. My credit was a desaster when I filed: about 20 derogatory accounts (including foreclosure, a judgment and two car repos) and I got a Cap One secured card without any trouble right after discharge - although I BKed a credit card with them. One repo was with them as well. I might have been lucky because my derogatory accounts are all quite old. They will drop off in two years.

[Rozi]

I tried Capital One, Barclays and Orchard Bank and got turned down by all of them. I was able to purchase a car by myself but I can't get a credit card so I am a little depressed. Almost depserate enough to apply at First Premier or Credit One bank. I just want to get on the road to rebuilding my credit and having a credit card there for emgerancy purposes. My discharge was granted on 12/30/11 so I guess it's too early to apply but I don't know. I just feel like a piece of crap now...

[SemiSpook]

I tried Capital One, Barclays and Orchard Bank and got turned down by all of them. I was able to purchase a car by myself but I can't get a credit card so I am a little depressed. Almost depserate enough to apply at First Premier or Credit One bank. I just want to get on the road to rebuilding my credit and having a credit card there for emgerancy purposes. My discharge was granted on 12/30/11 so I guess it's too early to apply but I don't know. I just feel like a piece of crap now...

Sort of in the same boat, but I'm just going to give it time. Definitely puts the onus on me to be smart about spending and how and where I do it. Having the new car note helps, but could definitely be paying much less on it (guess that will come with time, as well). Hang in there, and don't get down on yourself. Stuff happens.

[jacko]

Its easy to have a emergency fund. Just set aside as much as you can afford in a savings account each week/month. Seems you are going through credit withdrawal. Most of these rip off credit cards have only low credit amounts and hardly worth it. Your credit will improve over time all by itself.

I tried Capital One, Barclays and Orchard Bank and got turned down by all of them. I was able to purchase a car by myself but I can't get a credit card so I am a little depressed. Almost depserate enough to apply at First Premier or Credit One bank. I just want to get on the road to rebuilding my credit and having a credit card there for emgerancy purposes. My discharge was granted on 12/30/11 so I guess it's too early to apply but I don't know. I just feel like a piece of crap now...

[mountanddo]

I tried Capital One, Barclays and Orchard Bank and got turned down by all of them. I was able to purchase a car by myself but I can't get a credit card so I am a little depressed. Almost depserate enough to apply at First Premier or Credit One bank. I just want to get on the road to rebuilding my credit and having a credit card there for emgerancy purposes. My discharge was granted on 12/30/11 so I guess it's too early to apply but I don't know. I just feel like a piece of crap now...

I guess I don't understand why you are so desparate to get credit. I understand wanting to rebuild your credit but it's been less than 1 month since your discharge and you applied for 3 credit cards already? I know some people have applied for credit right after discharge but perhaps their credit was better before discharge. You said you were able to buy a car so I'm not sure exactly what it is that you are needing credit for that you are in such a hurry. What else would you need credit for? Why are people wanting to get credit cards the second they are discharged from their debt? You now have 3 inquiries on your credit so I would wait before applying for anything else.

It isn't as easy as jacko posts to save for an emergency fund so I can understand wanting that cushion. I took the advice of one member and have a hundred dollar bill stashed away but will feel a lot better when it's more like $500, lol. Something alway's seems to come up though. Now that I'm using all cash and have no choice somehow most of those things aren't life or death circumstances and can wait until I get paid again. I keep a running list on my fridge of things I need...and want and cross them off as I go. I put everything on it from shampoo to the new laptop I want. The laptop entry is getting a bit smudged because it has been up there a long time but one day I'll be able to cross that off too and it will all be paid in cash. It's a nice feeling not having that hanging over my head. I live with a very tight budget with only about $300 left over after my bills for food, gas, entertainment etc . Unless I work overtime, there isn't anything left for an emergency fund. For the next 2-3 months I have the opportunity to get about 15 hours of overtime a month and plan on putting that in the emergency fund. We'll see if I can not touch it

You can be happy knowing that you are now debt free or you can feel like crap because you don't have credit cards. Personally I prefer the former and I sleep a lot better at night.

[Amy26]

I'm curious if the OP bothered to do any credit report cleanup before trying for cards? Do you know what's on your credit report? A lot of times car lenders will overlook things on your credit just to get you in a car and then jack up your interest rate... what was the interest rate you received?

It is possible to start rebuilding right away but it really depends on what your credit looked like before, what it looks like now and if you have a good income to back up the credit lines. A lot of lenders these days are paying more attention to income. Also, what are the denial reasons you're getting?

[Rozi]

Yes, I am signed up for the Equifax program so I can check my credit. Last time I checked my credit score was 615. My interest rate on my car is at 16.99% though. The dealer told me that interest rate was high because it was a used car. If I got a new car my interest rate would have been 11% but I didn't want a brand new car. When I applied for the three credit cards I didn't get responses on two of them. One told me that I had a bad payment history. Well duh that is why I filed bankruptcy!! I guess I will have to wait 10 years until my bankruptcy falls off to get a credit card....

[mountanddo]

One told me that I had a bad payment history. Well duh that is why I filed bankruptcy!! I guess I will have to wait 10 years until my bankruptcy falls off to get a credit card....

I think having to wait 10 years is a bit of an exageration but if you had bad credit before you filed then applying less than a month after you are discharge probably wasn't a good idea. I'd let it sit for 6 months, enjoy peace of mind, and then reapply. It's all about perspective. I'd be tickled pink if I could even get a new used car but with my income and my chapter 13 that's not going to happen for years.

[TBA]

Good new always outweighs old bad. I get why you are applying for cards. Rebuilding is important. As long as you dont fall back into the same habits. REMEMBER how you ended up where you are, and make good decisions.

I am actually working on rebuilding now. We filed personal BK because of business debt we personally guaranteed. Prior to this experience, my hubby and i never had an issue with credit or late pays. And we dont intend to do so moving forward. Of course, there is always the "what if" that hangs out, but... My philosophy is this:

One tank of gas a month, and pay it off. I will NEVER use a CC for an emergency and i will never buy anything that i cannot afford to pay off immediately. I guess that is why i dont care what the interest rate is, because i wont ever carry a balance. and CONTRARY to popular belief, you DO NOT need to carry a balance on a credit card for it to positively impact your score. the only thing you need is good payment history. That means one tank of gas a month and pay if off every month.

Once you build up some good history, then its time to move out of the subprime credit cards