"Only For The Desperate"
Applied Bank® Secured Visa® Gold Credit Card Review
Written by: tiredrn on 2009-01-31
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tiredrn's review: 
If you are desperate to rebuild your credit, Applied will help. I was able to obtain an Applied credit card with very poor credit. At that time, I did have one other card to help rebuild.
To this day, I still have both... However, since I have been able to obtain credit from other more reptuble companies, I will be closing my applied.
I prefer to make payments on line, however applied always adds on a processing charge as well as check by phone in addition to the monthly maintenance fees. I only imagine that paying check by mail also incurs a fee for opening the envelope!
My other poor credit card (Embrace) has treated me much more fairly and I do plan on retaining this card.
If you are desperate to rebuild your credit, Applied will help. I was able to obtain an Applied credit card with very poor credit. At that time, I did have one other card to help rebuild. To this day, I still have both... However, since I have been able to obtain credit from other more reptuble companies, I will be closing my applied.
I prefer to make payments on line, however applied always adds on a processing charge as well as check by phone in addition to the monthly maintenance fees. I only imagine that paying check by mail also incurs a fee for opening the envelope!
My other poor credit card (Embrace) has treated me much more fairly and I do plan on retaining this card.
4 Comments
Comment 1 by colonative
Amen 
on 2009-02-01
If there is one thing I hope to accomplish by being here is to steer as many people to a secured credit card from a reputable bank. Applied/Emerge/First Premier are horrible and should only be applied for if you are declined for a secured card.
on 2009-02-01 If there is one thing I hope to accomplish by being here is to steer as many people to a secured credit card from a reputable bank. Applied/Emerge/First Premier are horrible and should only be applied for if you are declined for a secured card.
Comment 2 by ding
Poor Credit on 2009-02-01
I agree with above, try going to a secured BOA card, they will treat you much better from what I heard, and a short amount of time to get unsecured. Try one of those, please. HSBC has a few good cards also, and don't charge all those fees, (they are also payable online-no charges). PLEASE try other ones, ASAP. Can I ask what your credit scores are?
on 2009-02-01 I agree with above, try going to a secured BOA card, they will treat you much better from what I heard, and a short amount of time to get unsecured. Try one of those, please. HSBC has a few good cards also, and don't charge all those fees, (they are also payable online-no charges). PLEASE try other ones, ASAP. Can I ask what your credit scores are?
Comment 3 by hjm331
RE: on 2009-02-02
I wouldn't close them just yet. I would apply for cards from Capital One and HSBC because you will need those cards to get approved for unsecured cards with prime terms from BOA, Chase, Citi, etc. You will also need the credit history you built with these cards to get approved for cards from Capital One and HSBC. So my advice to you is to apply for cards from Capital One and HSBC first, if approved, then that's when you close your Applied accounts.
on 2009-02-02 I wouldn't close them just yet. I would apply for cards from Capital One and HSBC because you will need those cards to get approved for unsecured cards with prime terms from BOA, Chase, Citi, etc. You will also need the credit history you built with these cards to get approved for cards from Capital One and HSBC. So my advice to you is to apply for cards from Capital One and HSBC first, if approved, then that's when you close your Applied accounts.
Comment 4 by marie7
Secured Cards on 2009-02-26
One problem with the Applied Secured card is no grace period on purchases, which is a real bummer, although the interest rate isn't too bad 9.9%... I decided against this one even though I was approved.
I was denied for a secured card by Wells Fargo and BofA with a credit score of 620 (go figure). I was approved for an Orchard secured card and they have been very good to me and reasonable... Online system is awesome... Track and pay as much as I want for free. So I would try Orchard/HSBC or possibly U. S. Bank Secured as I have seen higher approval rates.
Also, take advantage of Crown Jewelers CC. I did and it has helped my credit score just buying a cheap ring.
on 2009-02-26 One problem with the Applied Secured card is no grace period on purchases, which is a real bummer, although the interest rate isn't too bad 9.9%... I decided against this one even though I was approved.I was denied for a secured card by Wells Fargo and BofA with a credit score of 620 (go figure). I was approved for an Orchard secured card and they have been very good to me and reasonable... Online system is awesome... Track and pay as much as I want for free. So I would try Orchard/HSBC or possibly U. S. Bank Secured as I have seen higher approval rates.
Also, take advantage of Crown Jewelers CC. I did and it has helped my credit score just buying a cheap ring.
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Disclaimer: This content is not provided by Applied Bank. Any opinions, analyses, reviews or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the author's alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by Applied Bank. Review content is powered by Finance Globe.
