Need Help In Selecting Credit Card

I thought about posting this in the DIY section, but I thought the post would get more exposure in the Off-Topic section. I need to do 1 credit card offer for the Bigwin Vespa to complete my requirements. Please let me know the advantages as well as the disadvantages to the cards.

Thanks in advance for the help.


[bc944122349]My Background [/bc944122349]

18, going to enter college this fall, never had a credit card, not employed presently


[bc944122349]These are my choices[/bc944122349]

[bc944122349]Discover® Platinum Clear Card [/bc944122349]

• 0% Intro APR for 12 Months on Purchases & Balance Transfers!li
• No Annual Fee
• Full 5% Cashback Bonus® on Get More purchases in popular categories all yearli
• Up to 1% Cashback Bonus® on all your other purchasesli
• Unlimited cash rewards that never expire

[bc944122349]Discover® Platinum Card [/bc944122349]

• 0% Intro APRli
• No Annual Fee
• 5%Cashback Bonus® on Get More Program purchases throughout the yearli
• Up to 1% Cashback Bonus ® on all your other purchasesli
• You must activate your card by making a purchase, transferring a balance, or making a cash advance in order to receive your free gift.

[bc944122349]AT&T Universal Rewards Card[/bc944122349]

0% APR on balance transfers for 12 months
Earn 5 reward points for every dollar you spend at supermarkets, drugstores and gas stations
Earn 1 reward point for every dollar you spend on all other purchases
No annual fee
Save on phone services you use everyday
You MUST activate and use your Citi Card upon receipt in order to qualify for this offer

[bc944122349]Orchard Bank Platinum MasterCard [/bc944122349]

• Enjoy the prestige of Platinum with no up front fees
• Premium Platinum benefits including Purchase Protection
• Great credit card to strengthen your credit
• Reports to all 3 credit bureaus monthly, which can help improve your credit score
• Free Online 24-hour Account Access and Bill Pay
• Periodic credit limit increases

[bc944122349]Citi® Diamond Preferred® Rewards Card [/bc944122349]

• $50 gift card- Redeem 5,000 bonus points after first purchase
• Earn 5 Bonus Thank You points for every dollar you spend at supermarkets, drugstores and gas stations
• Earn 1 Bonus Thank You point for every dollar you spend on all other purchases
• 0% APR on balance transfers for 12 months
• No annual fee
• You MUST activate and use your Citi Card upon receipt in order to qualify for this offer

[bc944122349]Discover® Platinum Gas Card [/bc944122349]

• 0% Intro APRli
• No Annual Fee
• Full 5% Cashback Bonus® on your Gas purchasesli
• Up to 1% Cashback Bonus® on all your other purchasesli
• Cash rewards never expire as long as you use your Card

Ehh. Those are all mainstream credit cards, I'd look for something more student oriented... higher rates and lower credit, but they're much better for building up unestablished credit.

Since you've never had a credit card, I am wondering if you have any credit. Most of those credit cards (Discover and CitiCards) will reject you if you don't have credit.

If you really have no credit, I would take the advice above and get a student credit card to start building it.

Also, it takes around 2 weeks to get approved for the card.. sometimes more!

If you have great credit, I would definitely go with the citicard diamond preferred (out of those credit card). This is hands down NOT a hard choice at all. They are giving you 5% on gas, grocery, drugs, and 1% on everything else. To top it off, you get $50 free. Citicard is about the only card that does this.

Discover only gives you around 1%.

I have used pretty much all of those cards except Orchad.. have no idea what the heck that is.

Which card would I have the best chance at getting accepted?

I'd try to find something with a local bank, you've got a better chance if you don't have any established credit.

That or Citi )

http//citi.bridgetrack.com/usc/College/ProductFamily/chooser/default.htm?BTData=C02117B726861745C5D494AB7A3A0ADA79B9D9D85F9FBF8F3F4C25B395A9&BT_TRF=272052&app=COLLEGE&sc=4C1CW284&m=N0G200000AW&langId=EN&siteId=CB&B=M&BT_VEN=1306&BT_PUB=59&BT_CAT=35&SOURCE=GOOG&KEYWORD=student%2Bmastercard&ProspectID=C46194BD17F040F7B4C671FB0B4B4118

(thats not a referral link or anything, its just a list of their student cards)


+karma if it helps ;)

i posted in a thread 10 below yours the other day )
here is my post

some links
http//www.fatwallet.com/c/52/
http//www.fatwallet.com/forums/messageview.php?start=0&catid=52&threadid=564358

those should help for starters

[quote306b54531f="stackmjwiz"]Which card would I have the best chance at getting accepted?[/quote306b54531f]

maybe citi?

my brother who has a managerial position and has no dept got "denied" by discover because he didn't have credit history. he's never had a credit card!

my boyfriend has "average credit" and he got denied by citibank.

I applied for two citicards and one discover through the freebie site and they approved all of mine. My discover went green within two weeks. My citicards didn't go green until I got the card, activated it, and made a purchase. So, it took a while.

They applied for the cards you listed above through a freebie site. You can get your credit history free, by the way, if you want to see where you actually stand.


Like someone suggested, even if not for the freebie, I definitely would start by applying for a student credit card somewhere... to build history. Also, getting a card from the bank may help too.

get a Chase PerfectCard

You can also get a CC from your local bank, assuming you have a somewhat small-town bank (not Bank of America for example). .

Another option
When I applied for my first CC my folks were added as co-signers. Once I had built up some credit, I had them removed. Vice-versa, if you get one of their cards with your name on it, you get the benefit (assuming they have good credit) of their credit history.

the citi's are badass you can create virtual CC #s

plus you are getting 1% cash back on everything and 5% on gas and food

Damn i was just thinking bout this the other day also... i need to get me a CC but dont know where.

actually check out the fatwallet link, much better organized

Currently, I have a check (debit) card from Chevy Chase Bank (local bank). I'll look into getting a student card, but for now I'm looking to get one of the cards on the list.

[quotea534bc3543]When I applied for my first CC my folks were added as co-signers.[/quotea534bc3543]

How do you do this? Is this "Adding an authorized user"?

For the Citi application, it asks for "Gross Yearly Household Income"...is this how much my parents make?

Citi Terms and Conditions
http//tinyurl.com/z6z2g

for your income, they told me to put every single thing I can think of on there... money you get from people, money you make, money you have, etc. etc. In fact, one rep told me to put my "tuition cost" in it when I applied for my first card and said I had no money. I got approved! They said the income question is for 1. make sure you meet the minimum , 2. determines your limit.


BTW, I have a picture on my citicard and my signature is printed on the front too (like driver license). It's cool, so no one can pretend to be me and steal my card. )

i don't like credit card offers. every card you apply for lowers your credit score, btw, so I wouldn't apply for a lot.

I have an American Express Blue for Students and it is my first card. My financial advisor said it was one of the best cards to get when establishing credit and for all around credit use.

[quote99ab9a959a="cwncool"]i don't like credit card offers. every card you apply for lowers your credit score, btw, so I wouldn't apply for a lot.[/quote99ab9a959a]

it depends on your current credit. generally, that is true though.

if you apply for too many cards in a short time (defined as "2 years"), then it will count against you. this happened to me.

if you have average to low credit b/c you owe alot (in other words, how much you owe is close to your limit) then having more credit cards actually helps you. This is because it would increase your credit line making the gap between how much you owe and your limit bigger.

here's a very basic example (using silly numbers to make it easier)
lets say you have 5 credit cards and each one has a limit of 100. lets say you owe $400. "owe" doesn't always mean you didn't pay.. it just means you have this much spent on your CC at any one time.

So, you owe 400/500 = 80%!!

Let's say you apply and get approved for one more CC that has a limit of 100. Now, you owe 400/600 = 67%! your credit is better here b/c you owe less.

Of course, here's the issue. If you owe that much, they won't let you be approved! BUT if you already owe alot, do not cancel the credit cards that you do not owe on.. this actually just makes your credit worse!

[quote8ea17d30ef="stackmjwiz"]Currently, I have a check (debit) card from Chevy Chase Bank (local bank). I'll look into getting a student card, but for now I'm looking to get one of the cards on the list.

[quote8ea17d30ef]When I applied for my first CC my folks were added as co-signers.[/quote8ea17d30ef]

How do you do this? Is this "Adding an authorized user"?

For the Citi application, it asks for "Gross Yearly Household Income"...is this how much my parents make?

Citi Terms and Conditions
http//tinyurl.com/z6z2g[/quote8ea17d30ef]

It was actually proposed by the bank. If you have an account at a local (more hometown kind of) bank, call them and ask.