just got approved for capital one should i keep it?

Question

I just got approved for a capital one card they will send it to me with in 7 -10 days. I was wondering if this a good card to have? I am trying to rebuild my credit history and have a credit card from hsbc/orchardbank. It is secured with a line of 200 dollars. I pay it off every month never been late etc. my score is now 615 from 550 in a few months. If i dont use the card or activate it will it affect my credit score also will it help me in the long run with my credit score?

Answer 1

If the Cap One card comes with fees, even if you don't activate it they will still place the fees on the card. If you don't pay the fees it will show as a negative on your reports.

I don't have much respect for Cap One and their cards. They do not report the credit limits, they only report the high balances. That hurts people by making it look like they are over utilizing the account.

With a 615 score, you could probably get unsecured cards. Of course that would also depend on what baddies you have on your reports and how old they are.
As long as there isn't to many baddies and they are are fairly old, and you don't have a ton of inquiries, you might try for other cards.

At 615 you won't get prime cards yet, but you can get better starter cards than Cap One.
If you have the Orchard card, you might try for the regular HSBC card.
You might also try for a Hooters card (Merrick Bank) Just go to the Hooters website and apply there.

It may be possible that you would have to pay a yearly fee, but the fees are generally low - nothing like the outrageous high fees with super sub prime cards like Aspire, etc.

You might also try for a store card, like Walmart or Target.

Answer 2

If you are on your way to rebuild your credit, do not take the pre-approved $200.00 credit card. By opening a new account, you will knock about 50 points off your credit score. You do not want to subtract from you score at this point.

Answer 3

I have two from capital one. It is what I started with to rebuild my credit...Never had a problem with them..