Secured Visa

I've mentioned before my want to get a secured Visa card to try and build some credit back with Visa. When I was younger and dumber I had some trouble with Visa which resulted in me losing the Visa, having a 90 day late payment on my credit history and having to buy myself out of collections in a hurry to stop it from also showing on my credit history at a rate of 36%. Crazy, right?! Yeah well... you live and you learn.

Now I feel I am older, wiser and ready to face the CC demon again in a more responsible manner and without the pressure from a stupid ex BF. I want this credit card for a variety of reasons.

• I want to start rebuilding credit
• I want to reestablish myself with Visa
• I would like to be able to use my credit card to reserve things, sell on Etsy.. etc
• I would want one in case of an extreme, EXTREME emergency where waiting for a bank transfer won't work. (Like medical, car breaks down in nowhereville, have to schedule emergency flight or whatever)

So the best option for me or anyone with little to no credit history or bad credit history is a secured credit card. This is also an option for persons who do not meet other credit card requirements such as level of income. So today I went online to find out more through CIBC. This is the statement I found:

At CIBC, we understand that establishing a credit history is important. Your credit history is a record of your past borrowing and repayment. This information is used by lenders, such as credit card companies, to determine your means and ability to repay debts.

If you have recently immigrated to Canada and don’t have the credit history or employment income required for a credit card, we can help. A secured CIBC VISA Card allows you the convenience and security of a credit card without the credit history and employment income usually required.

A secured VISA Card requires a security deposit equal to the value of the credit card limit. The deposit is placed in a CIBC interest-bearing savings investment, so your money grows while you establish your credit rating.

That really was not enough information for me so I decided to call the toll free number to find out more. I spoke to a really nice gentlemen who gave me all the info I wanted even though this is a service only available by going directly into your local branch. So here it is in a nutshell:

• A deposit is required for the amount you which to have available on your credit. (Ei- You need a $500 limit.. you put $500 down. You want $1000... you pay a $1000 deposit)
• The deposit is held in an interest bearing savings account for a duration of 25 months
• After the 25 month "graduation" period you are sent a letter of notification at which point you will have your deposit returned to you with interest. The stipulations are removed from the card and you will have a regular Visa (Classic for CIBC).
• There is no credit check, just basic info needs to be provided
• If there are any problems such as late payments or such behavior the 25 month "graduation" period will be extended.

So I definitely doing this. I'm just wondering how soon I can get the deposit together. I think I will just do the $500 down but I want to ask if I can extend my limit by placing an additional deposit down the road and whether that would change the "graduation" date.