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No Credit History. Can I get a Barclaycard?

B

Brionious

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Apr 19, 2010
2
0
Im wanting to upgrade from my current macbook to a new one, maybe even a pro. Im a college student and have never had a credit card because I havent really needed one, but I want to finance my new mac with a barclay card.

My question then becomes will they give me one? Anyone with some knowledge on this please let me know. Will Visa give out a barclaycard to a first time credit card user and will they give me a big enough line of credit to make a purchase for somewhere between $1,000-$1,500?

Thanks,
Brian
 
I would doubt it. Usually the free credit card offer they send out to college age kids only come with a small limit as the don't know if they can trust you - $500 and under.

I ran into this problem to. I never needed credit. Even for a car, I simply saved my money, and paid cash. So for being financially responsible I got punished when applying.

A few years back I applied for a credit card at a regional lumber yard and was denied. I was looking to run through maybe $15K or so in the next couple years as I built a 4 stall garage and shop on my parents house. So instead I had my parents (who have good credit) sign up for a card and then sign me on as a authorized user of the card.

Because I am an authorized user on this card it shows up on my credit history. Although most of payments run through this card were mine you can accomplish the same thing if most of the payments are actually your parents. From this I was able to get a $15K VISA card.

Just be sure your parents don't make late payments on the card - you are a authorized user and their failure to pay on time will show on your credit history, which is the opposite of what you want to do (I was lucky in that respect). Send payments via the internet or mail EARLY - don't wait until the last minute. And be sure to save your money if you buy under a program which allows you to pay off the balance in 12 months with no interest - don't keep thinking well thats a long way off - make sure you save a lot of extra $ for unexpected expenses. If you can't plan long term don't do it, you'll only screw up your credit long term.

Also, is there a specific reason why you need a computer for college? Are you doing it because everyone else is? I went through college with a 3.84 (4.0) GPA (during which I worked and started a small business) and I am not a rocket scientist - I did it without a computer. The best computer you can have is a pencil and a 70 page notebook.
 
DC3400 said:
I would doubt it. Usually the free credit card offer they send out to college age kids only come with a small limit as the don't know if they can trust you - $500 and under.

I ran into this problem to. I never needed credit. Even for a car, I simply saved my money, and paid cash. So for being financially responsible I got punished when applying.

A few years back I applied for a credit card at a regional lumber yard and was denied. I was looking to run through maybe $15K or so in the next couple years as I built a 4 stall garage and shop on my parents house. So instead I had my parents (who have good credit) sign up for a card and then sign me on as a authorized user of the card.

Because I am an authorized user on this card it shows up on my credit history. Although most of payments run through this card were mine you can accomplish the same thing if most of the payments are actually your parents. From this I was able to get a $15K VISA card.

Just be sure your parents don't make late payments on the card - you are a authorized user and their failure to pay on time will show on your credit history, which is the opposite of what you want to do (I was lucky in that respect). Send payments via the internet or mail EARLY - don't wait until the last minute. And be sure to save your money if you buy under a program which allows you to pay off the balance in 12 months with no interest - don't keep thinking well thats a long way off - make sure you save a lot of extra $ for unexpected expenses. If you can't plan long term don't do it, you'll only screw up your credit long term.

Also, is there a specific reason why you need a computer for college? Are you doing it because everyone else is? I went through college with a 3.84 (4.0) GPA (during which I worked and started a small business) and I am not a rocket scientist - I did it without a computer. The best computer you can have is a pencil and a 70 page notebook.
Click to expand...

Well mot people dont NEED a laptop, I already have a macbook, but its about 4 years old and so I need to upgrade it because its getting slow and the battery life sucks. Regardless, its not necessary but since I can afford it Im going to get a new one.

I could pay for pretty much all of it up front but don't necessarily see my savings drop to that low. I plan to pay for at least half when I make the purchase and then pay the remaining over the next few months. Anyone know if you pay for half up-front will the no interest 12 months still apply? ie the purchase would be less than $1000.
 
Not sure about the credit card for financing, but if you put any charge on the card, be attentive to the terms. How long is the introduction interest rate? Are you able to charge less than 50% of the credit limit (going over 50% limit reduces credit score for many creditors). If you are able to do that and make consistent monthly payments, you will have a good revolving account on your credit report which would make getting future loans easier (car, mortgage, etc.) Also, if they turn you down, don't go aggressively shopping around for a credit card because that gets recorded too.
 
Or you could just avoid all the hoops and BS the credit cards "provide" you with and save up some money. Patience is a virtue. The FICO score need not be your master.
 
Brionious said:
Anyone know if you pay for half up-front will the no interest 12 months still apply? ie the purchase would be less than $1000.
Click to expand...

There's usually no penalty for paying early.

The way these "interest free" promotions work is that the interest is calculated but deferred during the promotional period. If the balance is paid off, the deferred interest essentially goes away. But once you go one day beyond the promotional period, you will see all that calculated interest plus any subsequent interest immediately show up on the balance.
 
Brionious said:
Well mot people dont NEED a laptop, I already have a macbook, but its about 4 years old and so I need to upgrade it because its getting slow and the battery life sucks.
Click to expand...

Well I'm sure you want a new one but you can always replace the battery for ~$100, the battery usually lasts around 2 years or so before it starts to wear down. I think around 450 cycles. Not positive.

As far as it getting slow, have you upgraded the RAM? You can for like $60 bucks. Do you maintain it? Check out Yasu.

Anyone know if you pay for half up-front will the no interest 12 months still apply? ie the purchase would be less than $1000.
Click to expand...

The amount on the card has to be more than $900 to allow the 12 months. It applies for the first purchase only in the Apple Store. I imagine if you use it with another card, as long as the amount is over $900 with the Barclay card then you should be fine.

Now the question is will you be accepted with no credit and most likely the answer is no. Of course you can always try, won't hurt anything.
 
renewed said:
The amount on the card has to be more than $900 to allow the 12 months. It applies for the first purchase only in the Apple Store. I imagine if you use it with another card, as long as the amount is over $900 with the Barclay card then you should be fine.
Click to expand...

Watch out if you get a new card with special (good) terms for the first purchase. If you have that, use it to buy a Mac _and nothing else_. If you buy say a Mac and a mouse, it _could_ happen that Apple charges for the mouse first and for the Mac a day later, and you used up whatever excellent introductory terms you got on a ****dy mouse.
 
It'd be a good idea to try, and then wait a couple of months then pay iot off entirely, just to build up your credit.
 
I take it you're in the UK if you want a Barclaycard. I have a student Barclaycard and it only gives me £300 (and I have a pretty good credit rating).

What you may want to consider is applying for a student bank account with Natwest, they give you a £2000 overdraft, although you may want that for 'living' once you are in college.
 
The credit system is completely broken and always has been. You need a credit card and/or loan to get credit history, but without credit history you can't get either of those things.

I wasn't able to get a credit card until I joined the military. Then they guaranteed you a small one you could use on base, I used it and ended up getting an American Eagle card to use in those stores and went up from there.
 
renewed said:
Well I'm sure you want a new one but you can always replace the battery for ~$100, the battery usually lasts around 2 years or so before it starts to wear down. I think around 450 cycles. Not positive.

As far as it getting slow, have you upgraded the RAM? You can for like $60 bucks.
Click to expand...

Personally, I wouldn't spend $160 on a MacBook that's 4 years old. That'd be better off funding a new MacBook.
 
chrono1081 said:
The credit system is completely broken and always has been. You need a credit card and/or loan to get credit history, but without credit history you can't get either of those things.
Click to expand...

The thing with credit cards though is that they are what we call unsecured loans. There's nothing but your history backing up the claim that you will repay. If you have no history, then how will the bank know how creditworthy you are? It sounds backwards, I know, but it really isn't. Car and home loans are easier to obtain since there is an asset that can be taken away if you default on the loan.

I've always advocated getting a credit card from your bank and just using it for everyday purchases that you pay off every month for the first few years. It worked for me.
 
Brionious said:
Well mot people dont NEED a laptop, I already have a macbook, but its about 4 years old and so I need to upgrade it because its getting slow and the battery life sucks. Regardless, its not necessary but since I can afford it Im going to get a new one.

I could pay for pretty much all of it up front but don't necessarily see my savings drop to that low. I plan to pay for at least half when I make the purchase and then pay the remaining over the next few months. Anyone know if you pay for half up-front will the no interest 12 months still apply? ie the purchase would be less than $1000.
Click to expand...

According the date of your post (April 2010) your MacBook Pro is almost 6 years old now, (unless you got the first Core Duo). I have the Core 2 Duo, the first one, and I just got a battery that works great for $26.50 (from Ebay) and the RAM is about $26 also for a 2GB SODIMM (PC2-5300) to max it out to 3GB. (Yes, it's the original Core 2 Duo, not the Santa Rosa that could take up to 6 GB RAM). I'm running OS X 10.7.4 now.

So you can get a new battery and max the RAM out for about $50 now. That is if you still have the old MacBook Pro. I'm looking at the Retina MacBook Pro and was wondering if I could start building a credit history since I have none, with a Barclaycard Visa Card. Apparently, according to the other posts here, I probably wouldn't get the card.

I have the cash now, but I want to start building credit. (I used to have credit about 15 years ago, and I don't think my last card was paid off? So perhaps my credit score was lower once. I just have no credit now.)
 
Last edited:
BlizzardBomb said:
Personally, I wouldn't spend $160 on a MacBook that's 4 years old. That'd be better off funding a new MacBook.
Click to expand...

Well, today, you can get the same thing and spend about $50 on a 6 year old MacBook Pro that's currently running Mac OS X 10.7.4 Lion. It's just I can't go above the 3GB RAM or run Mountain Lion. I already have the new battery (for $26.50), and 3GB Max RAM (years ago), and the case is like new since I had the whole thing replaced under AppleCare for free.

I have a 27" iMac with 16GB of RAM, and I will run Mountain Lion permanently when it comes out next month, but I'll need a new MBP to run Mountain Lion on it. The Retina MacBook Pro seems to fit the bill!

I guess I'll have to use my debit card instead of the Barclaycard Visa Card because of my Zero Credit. I just wanted to build credit, and I thought this would be an easy way.

Are the prior posts in this thread still relevant today about it being unlikely to get a Barclaycard Visa Card without any credit history for a purchase around $2600?
(I know it doesn't make any difference that I have the cash savings for it anyway, or does it?)
 
Brionious said:
Im wanting to upgrade from my current macbook to a new one, maybe even a pro. Im a college student and have never had a credit card because I havent really needed one, but I want to finance my new mac with a barclay card.
Click to expand...

To get into debts just to buy a computer - or a car or anything other than a house - is a very, very stupid idea. Debts take away your freedom, it's as simple as that. And the only thing that is worth getting into debt for is the house you live in - because that is your home. And it's usually the only thing that might actually GAIN value while you're paying it off. EVERYTHING else only loses value. And in the case of a stupid computer, you might still be paying for it when it's already out-dated.

You don't need that new Mac. You WANT it, but you definitely do not NEED it. If you want a different machine so badly, buy something that you can pay for with the cash that you have.

If you don't want to take my advice, listen to what Brad Pitt said in Fight Club: "We work jobs we hate to buy **** we don't need." That is EXACTLY what you are planning to do.
 
Agreed!

There is a huge HUGE difference between want and need. When I started my dual bachelors, geez 5 years ago now. I had a iBook G3/900 for use while in class and a Digital Audio Dual G4/533 both running 10.4.11 and ya now what? Even for an I.T. Geek like me they did just damned fine for everything I threw at them.
I ended up with a TiBook/500 when my G3 died from the video chip issue that plagued those computers. The point it this: When you are in college there are a few types of people you will meet.

1. Those that know how to get things done with what they have.
2. Those that will spend mommy and daddie's money like it's tap water.
3. Those that will spend themselves into more debit to keep up with 2.

Agreed, your macbook is old. (As I type this on my G4 1.5 PB...sigh). Unless you are a video/music major or studying Photography? Bit the bullet, quit complaining and make what you have work! Would I love a shiny new MBP? Hell yeah I would! But I would sell it to get a C2D pro. Hate the damn keyboards on the new ones. :D
Like others have said, at least for me here in the US, I had to earn my degree on 100% loans while working my way through college. My kids can't eat text books for some reason.:D So really think about what you are looking to do. That's all
 
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