The best secured credit cards with no credit checks by Eastwood Bank? No, you don’t have to be a hardcore biker (or even a casual one) to benefit from the Harley-Davidson® Visa® Secured Card. It’s a decent, no-annual-fee secured card for people looking to build or rebuild their credit. And if you are a biker, well, you can earn Harley-Davidson rewards, too. Our pick for: Low fees and interest: The DCU Visa® Platinum Secured Credit Card is a secured card for bad credit, but it offers a lower interest rate than many unsecured cards for people with good credit. You must be a member of Digital Federal Credit Union to get this card, although you can join by becoming a member of a partner organization for as little as $10.

Who should get this card? If you don’t have a bank account and/or your credit check would make a traditional credit card issuer avoid your calls, an OpenSky secured credit card may be just what you’re looking for. But there’s no reason for most people to pay the $35 annual fee. We caution most consumers to avoid paying such fees on secured cards, as there are plenty of annual-fee-free options for consumers with limited credit.

First Progress checks your credit when you apply for one of its secured cards, but it’s not a “hard” inquiry, meaning it doesn’t affect your credit score. The First Progress Platinum Elite Mastercard® Secured Credit Card gets the nod here as the lowest-cost First Progress card. Getting a secured card without a hard inquiry on your credit report can be a benefit to those with lower credit scores, when every point counts. The interest rate on this card is decent for a secured card, though it’s best to pay your balance in full every month, especially when building credit. The annual fee of $29 isn’t terrible — but there are good secured cards available with no annual fee at all.

Provided you make on-time payments with a secured card, your security deposit remains untouched and is remitted back to you should you ever close the account. Some issuers even pay you interest on the deposited funds. In time, given a positive record of making payments, issuers may grant you a credit limit that exceeds the security deposit. Eventually, the issuer may also offer you the option to upgrade to a regular—that is, unsecured—credit card. In many cases, that allows the account to remain open, and its increasing age to be an asset to your credit record, which generally rewards having older accounts. If that option isn’t available, though, one can simply close the secured account and apply for an unsecured card once you’ve attained a solid credit score. The free score-monitoring feature offered by most secured cards allows you to track your progress.

When you manage this credit line successfully, it helps to build a history with credit bureaus and can ultimately improve your credit score. Your card will operate like a normal credit card, with the deposit just there as security. Can I Use My Deposit To Pay My Minimum Payment Or Balance? No. These are two separate financial records that you hold with the company. You can’t decide to turn to your deposit amount so that you can pay your minimum payment or balance; these payments must be made separately. If you are late with a payment, then your card issuer may decide to use some of your deposit to meet the payments. You will usually be notified if this is going to happen; you may also find the card is voided until you can repay the security deposit. Read additional info on Eastwoodbank’s.