What banks are you with. - Page 6

The banks have what are called "secure" credit cards for which instead of them granting you a credit limit, you put down your own money as the credit limit. That way if you default on your payments, they just take it out of the money you have deposited. So if you want a credit card with a $1000 credit limit, you deposit $1000; $500 limit? Deposit $500, and so on.

The bank keeps record of the credit you build using those cards; they can transfer the credit onto a social security number once you get one.

I you're under 25 years of age I recommend Chase cuz of the student account Bank of America doesn't offer that any more but the do have ebanking that its no charge if you don't have direct deposit as I know most of us don't have

BBVA its all good

Bank of America and Citibank

Wells Fargo, opened account in 07 with ITIN and school id. A few months ago (right before DACA was announced) I got a secured card from them, haven't used it much though. I'm pretty happy with them.

I'm not sure what the current going interest rates are for capital one but I do know that for me it's four times higher than my wellsfargo, chase, and bofa savings account. I split up my funds between banks because I have the tendency to spend spend spend and by splitting it up I forget I even have the money. That's the only reason I keep my other savings accounts instead of combining the funds.

Also, I can't remember which bank specifically but I think it was cap one where I opened the account online. All I did was enter my itin number and that was it. I recommend the rewards checking as well just for the fact that those give you free points too.

I applied for my first credit card online and was approved after couple days. It was only $500 credit limit but couple months later I applied for another credit card that gave me $4000. I never had a secured card and I only use credit cards that give me points/cash back. Personally, I don't understand why people go for a card that's low in apr with no rewards since you can always call the company later and ask for an apr decrease.

I'm sorry for my ignorance I've never had a credit card/bank account.. What do we benefit from the rewards program? What credit card do u use? And doesn't APR come in play only in case of loans and such? Or is that like an interest rate for credit cards or something? I'm a total noob when it comes to financing.. Thnx in advance for ur helpp and time:.

Wells Fargo, ITIN & Consular ID Card

There are certain credit cards that give you cash back or points every time you use the card. It depends on the company to choose the system but usually you get 1% cash back or 1 point for each dollar you spend. Also, company's like to give additional points for certain categories. Sometimes the categories change every three months. I have a citi forward card that gives me 5 points for every dollar I spend on movies, restaurants, bookstores, and etc. and 1 point/dollar for everything else. My cap one credit card gives me 2% cash back on certain categories and 1% for everything else. Then there's my chase freedom credit card that is on the quarterly system where the categories change every three months. I think currently I get 5% cash back whenever I use my card at restaurants. Back in January they were doing 5% cash back for amazon and I bought my laptop then just so I can get the cash back. If they give you points then you can either redeem them for cash, gift card, or merchandise, but I usually get the gift card because it's the best value.

APR is an interest you pay if you don't pay off your balance in full each month. My advice is to just pay it all off each month and if you can't then don't spend the money. If you really need to buy something with your credit card and you can't pay it off then open a new credit card account that gives you 0% APR for a year+. Sometimes you'll have to make your purchase within three months of opening the account for the 0% APR deal to apply.

From personal experience cap one is easiest to open, and to make the deal even sweeter they don't charge international transaction fees. The downside is that it's hard to raise your credit limits. Citi raises your credit limit like crazy every time you ask and you can do it online. Downside is that the points they give you are worth less when trying to convert them into cash. However, if you can then you should get chase freedom cus they have a lot of perks on top of the 5% cash back quarterly categories.