Applying for a credit card can be a daunting task, especially if you have no credit history or if you have bad credit. But there are credit cards out on the market for such cases, and one example is the military credit card USAA Secured Platinum American Express Card, which may be the best.
Cards benefits and features
The USAA Secured Platinum Express Card is not a prepaid card or a debit card. It is a card that will help you build and improve your poor or non-existant credit score, which will be essential if you want to apply for other cards with higher credit limits and better privileges in the future.
When applying for this Secured Platinum Express Card, you will need to open a two-year Certificate of Deposit, or CD, with USAA. This is an interest-earning account that requires a minimum of $250 for your initial deposit. It’s considered your security deposit and the money you shell out from $250 up to $5,500 becomes your card’s limit. You can even earn interest with your CD account, and you get to keep it as long as you do not default on paying your credit card bills.
There’s no introductory APR, but there is a low regular APR of 9.90%. It seems like a disadvantage, but this annual interest rate isn’t as high as other cards, and remember, you only have to pay if you have remaining balance on your card at the end of your billing cycle.
The card allows for balance transfers, cash advance, and foreign currency exchange. There is no debit card transaction fee, credit card purchase fee, load fee, ATM fee, and activation fee.
Application
You are going to be asked a few routine questions before you start applying for the card. This determines your eligibility with the USAA and establishes your online access. And if you are not eligible for this specific card, there are other USAA credit cards and products that might be available for you.
Photo credits: Card and Calculator– Credit Cards–Natloans, David Castillo Dominici via Freedigitalphotos.net,
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