Life happens. Sometimes, it happens at the expense of your good credit. Unfortunately, we live in a society where credit affects practically anything. Your credit score impacts where you can live. If you can purchase a home, or not. The interest rates you’ll pay on loans if you qualify for them. It can even affect your employment opportunities as well as your opportunities for career advancement.
No matter how you found yourself in a situation where it is necessary to rebuild your credit, taking the right steps now can save you a world of grief, not to mention a lot of money, down the road. The cards listed here are among the best cards available for rebuilding credit. Each one offers specific strengths and weaknesses you should explore well before making your decision.
Green Dot primor Visa Gold Secured Credit Card
What’s so great about the Green Dot Visa Gold Secured credit card? This specific credit card offers an interest rate of 9.99 percent. That’s almost unheard of for credit cards offers with premium credit ratings. When used wisely, this card can mean great things for your credit.
But the incredibly low interest rate is only part of the story with this secured credit card that offers credit lines between $200 and $5,000. They also invite all credits to apply. In fact, Green Dot advertises approval for people who have damaged or no credit histories.
That doesn’t mean you’re a lock for approval. It does mean that they are willing to consider credit situations other card companies will dismiss out of hand.
Some people consider the $49 annual fee a tad on the high side, while some are quite happy to pay a higher annual fee for a lower interest rate. Compared to many credit card companies that have interest rates that more than double Green Dot primor Visa Gold Secured, the $49 might be a worthwhile and highly beneficial sacrifice.
If you need one more benefit to consider, Green Dot primor reports to all three national credit bureaus helping you rebuild your credit quickly.
Secured Mastercard from Capital One
Capital One is somewhat of a household name. That carries a lot of weight when it comes to establishing consumer trust. There’s a lot to love about this particular credit card, especially when it comes to rebuilding tarnished credit. One of the most important things you’re sure to love is that your credit limit may exceed your security deposit.
Capital One uses a complex algorithm to determine whether you will be asked to pay $49, $99, or $200 to secure your $200 credit card. Here’s where things get even better for people committed to rebuilding credit. After making five consecutive on-time monthly payments, you may be rewarded with access to higher credit limits. That’s not all there is to love about the Secured Mastercard from Capital One. These are some of the other reasons to consider this card for rebuilding your credit:
- Pick your monthly due date. This allows you to schedule your due dates to coincide with your pay dates.
- No annual fee.
- Instant purchase notifications to help you track your spending.
- 24/7 customer service to answer your questions at your convenience.
- Account alerts or text reminders to help you make payments on time.
The other benefit is that the application process is easy as is setting up your account.
Discover it Secured Credit Card
Discover is another household name and the Discover it Secured Credit Card has a lot to offer anyone who is currently rebuilding credit. While it is a secured credit card, designed to help people with bad credit reestablish themselves, it offers benefits many people with good credit are able to receive with unsecured credit cards.
In order to fund your Discover it Secured Credit Card you must have a traditional bank account. If you do not have one and are unwilling or unable to secure one, this is not the card for you. If you do have a bank account or are able to obtain one, the benefits of this card may make it worth your while to do so. They include:
- 10.99 percent interest rate on balance transfers for six months.
- No annual fee.
- Robust rewards program.
- Account upgrades to unsecured card possible with responsible management of your card.
- Outstanding customer service reputation.
- Automatically matches all cash back earned in your first year as a cardholder.
Discover also reports to the three major credit reporting agencies to help you build your credit, so you can qualify for auto loans, mortgage payments, and more.
DCU Visa Platinum Secured Credit Card
With this card, the low interest rates take center stage. While not as low as the Green Dot secured credit card, the rates for the DCU Visa Platinum Secured Credit Card are respectable at 13.75 percent. If you make a late payment, interest rates increase to 18 percent (still lower than the average normal rate) until you make six consecutive on-time payments.
If that isn’t enough to make you fall in love, there is no annual fee with the DCU Visa Platinum Secured Credit Card. This is what sets it apart from the Green Dot card. But only a small part of what makes it unique.
You can also fund your account without a checking account of your own. Plus, there is no maximum limit for your security deposit. This means that you can make your security deposit as high as you’d like your credit limit to be.
You will, however, need to become a member of the Digital Federal Credit Union before you can obtain this card. But that is also a small price to pay for the uncharacteristically low interest rate with no annual fee this credit card offers.
OpenSky Secured Visa Credit Card
If your credit is beyond repair or you’ve been turned down for other secured credit cards, there is still one option you may wish to consider. The OpenSky Secured Visa Credit Card does not require you to go through a credit check.
For some people, that alone is reason enough to consider the OpenSky Secured Visa for rebuilding credit. There are more reasons to love this card, though, including:
- Modest annual fee of $35.
- Reasonable interest rate below 20 percent APR.
- No bank account required.
- No credit check, though you must meet minimum income requirements.
- Regular reporting to all three credit agencies to help with building credit and rebuilding credit alike.
The one overwhelming downside for this card, however, is that it does not offer a pathway to an unsecured credit card the way many other secured cards do. But, if you’ve tried others with no joy, this is a good consideration until you can get another transitional secured credit card or perhaps an unsecured credit card of your own.
It is extremely difficult to get an unsecured credit card while rebuilding your credit. These cards, though, and responsible spending habits moving forward, can open the door to unsecured credit, and more, in the future.
Dana George-Berberich is a freelance reporter and novelist. She has written finance articles for newspapers across the country and for companies like Dun & Bradstreet and Bankrate.
