Credit Card/Bad Credit

[Enigmatical]

I have an emergency that came up and I need a credit card. I have never had one before. I have already applied for 2, but I was denied because I have unpaid hospital and cell phone bills which reflects negatively on my credit. One of them was a write off and the other I guess it still sitting as a delinquent account.

 

Is there any way I can get a decent credit card anyway? Or maybe a personal loan? It seems like I come accross all these people with horrible credit and who have filed bankruptcy and they keep getting credit cards thrown at them in the mail.

 

Help! I have until Jan 15th. Which one can I get?

[CatsMeeoow]

If you've been denied twice for a card already its highly unlikely you will get one - there are of course secured credit cards but those seem silly to me since you have to deposit the money in an account to the card holder equal to your line of credit. You might get a personal finance loan through an agency like Springleaf, Personal Finance, etc but I will caution you that those companies often charge 28%+ interest and there can be extra fees tacked onto the loan such as life insurance, job insurance, etc which will really rack up your bill.

 

You've got more than 30 days.

 

Do you have any personal items you can sell or even pawn to help cover the financial crisis or what about family?

 

I would stop looking at a credit card to solve your financial issue and look at other less costly means. Its not as if you have to have it TODAY. You've got some time to plan here but without knowing the details its harder to give more specific advice.

 

Good Luck

[OptomisticGirl]

I agree with CatsMeeoow. The credit card company is going to look at the past unpaid hospital bills and go 'if you can't pay that, how are you going to pay us back?' and deny you. And personal loan and title loans against your car are going to cost you a fortune in interest fees. It's a quick fix but in the long run, you pay more back.

[RedDress]

I agree with the above. I just wanted to add...

 

Your credit score has a lot less to do with the amount of money you have or the amount of debt you are in and a lot more to do with your track record in paying off debt. The regularity with which you pay your debts and bills is the most important element (that's not to say the other stuff doesn't matter too). Someone who takes out $100 loan and pays it off immediately will have a lower credit score at the end of a year than an identical person who takes out $100 loan and pays $10/month (minimum payment + interest) while never skipping, missing or being late on a payment. Why? Because the first person has proven once that they can repay a loan. The second person has shown 10 times that they can repay a loan. It sounds ridiculous (the 1st person is actually wiser about money - paying interest is not smart) BUT that doesn't matter. The company lending you money wants to know you will pay them back. Someone who has a record of paying them back - regardless of what they owe - is a better bet than someone who doesn't.

 

For this reason, simply walking away from your bills is the worst thing you could have done. Also for this reason, a credit score takes a long time to fix. Because you have to prove - over and over - that you are going to pay them back. And that proof has to speak louder than the two bills you already walked away from.

 

So... this is where I see things a bit differently. I agree that you are not going to fix your credit in 30 days. I agree that you have to start looking at alternatives. But what I DO think you should do is go and get yourself one of those very high interest store credit cards. Get it, buy something of VERY small value - say, $100 (because this will cost you a lot of money in interest) and purposely make small (higher than the minimum payment), regular payments to the card. Do not miss a beat. Do not be late on any bills. Do not skip a payment. This will start to help you build GOOD credit and GOOD habits so that in a few years from now, when you need credit again, you'll have credit.

 

... and go pay that cell phone bill (or the one that is just delinquent!). Set up a payment plan. You can't just decide to not pay.

[Enigmatical]

Thanks for the advice guys. Yeah the credit card thing isn't looking like it's going to work. I don't know what my exact score is, but I know it's not good. I can't even get a credit card through my job or bank!

 

The hospital bills are only a couple hundred that I still owe. I did pay off some of it, for like 6 months, and what was left is what is on there now.

 

The cell phone thing was a big dispute I had with verizon like 3 years ago. Actually 2 different things. I was charged $300 one month because my phone was apparently connected to the internet for 7 hours while I was at work. I didn't know it because my phone was in my purse the whole time and it wouldn't lock. I tried to argue the charge but they wouldn't do anything for me. So then, I called them to ask them if they could temporarily suspend my service until I could pay the $300 that I set up to make payments on, which they offer that with no charge expect a small fee to get it turned back on whenever I chose. They said yes, blah blah, I thought it was all good. Well the idiot on the phone thought I wanted to cancel my entire account, because a month later, my bill was over $700 total and a termination fee had been applied. I tried to call them to tell them that it was not what I wanted them to do, but they basically told me that I authorized it on the phone so there was nothing they could do. I said, "No what I authorized was to get it suspended for a short period of time, not cancelled entirely." I talked to one of the head haunchos with verizon and asked if they had a recording of the convo, and conveniently they said no.

 

I even talked to a lawyer but they said not many people win cases again major cell phone companies like verizon, and since everything is based on contracts that I had already signed, I was screwed. So I have been reluctant to pay them off because they ripped me off. Now the total is nearly $1000 after all these late fee had been applied.

[OptomisticGirl]

It def sucks but if you don't pay it, it's going to hurt your credit score for a very long while. I lived with my ex and stupidly put all the bills in my name alone. When we split do you think he gave me money for his part of the last few month's power, tv, and internet bills? Nadda. It sucked that I was having to pay something in full that someone else should have paid half of but it's in my name- I didn't want it to hurt my credit anymore than it was already hurt.

[Enigmatical]

It def sucks but if you don't pay it, it's going to hurt your credit score for a very long while. I lived with my ex and stupidly put all the bills in my name alone. When we split do you think he gave me money for his part of the last few month's power, tv, and internet bills? Nadda. It sucked that I was having to pay something in full that someone else should have paid half of but it's in my name- I didn't want it to hurt my credit anymore than it was already hurt.

 

That is the exact problem I just started having with my roommates. The cable bill is in my name, but the electric is in one of my roommates name. We agreed to split everything evenly. I gave him my portion for the electric since we moved here on Oct 1, but for the past 2 months, when it came time for him and his gf to pay me their portions for the cable so I can pay it online, I got "Well we are behind on the electric and that is our priority since its in my name." So we just got a disconnect notice and I basically have to try to catch up before it gets shut off. I confronted him and I got little remorse. He makes twice what I do, and so does his girlfriend who is a stripper! There's no reason why they should be as tight on money as they say they are. Normally, it wouldn't be my business but since it is affecting me, of course I am going to care. Meanwhile, our cable company does reflect on credit when it goes unpaid, so thats prob another negative point.

 

Well guess what, Friday I am due to give them more money for electric, but I'm going to give him the same line he gave me, that the bill that is in my name is my main priority.

[OptomisticGirl]

If I were in that situation I would get cable but only have it in MY room - they want cable, they can get it in their name or you all get in your names together.

[mahipahl]

People who file bankruptcy can't file again in I believe it's 7 years. Credit card companies will offer those folks a card because they no you can't deadbeat them for 7 years and they will aggressively pursue the debt if it's large enough because you can't escape with bk again.