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All American Gold Card
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Review
of the All American Gold Card
The All American Gold Card was last reviewed on 12th March 2007
Summary - The All American Gold Card is a card designed for those
looking to establish or re-establish their credit. This card can only be
used at usashoppingclub.com as it is a catalog store value credit card. Is
this the right card for you if you want to build your credit? Read further
to find out.
Fees - There is a one-time application fee of $149.95. However, there
is no annual fee or monthly processing fee which is common in credit cards
in this category. Hence, your total first year fees will be $149.95. There
is no interest charges, but you have to pay the greater of 15% of your
balance or $25.00 monthly. Your credit payments is also reported to one
major credit bureau (the terms and conditions, however, do not say which
credit bureau they report to).
Application Criteria - Though there are no credit or employment
checks and you have to be discharged from bankruptcy to qualify for the card.
usashoppingclub.com - This catalog card can only be used at
usashoppingclub.com. The Shopping Club offers over 14,000 products.
Unsecured Credit Line - You can get an unsecured credit line of up to
$5,000. The amount will be lower initially and your credit limit will be
increased periodically if you have made timely payments. Your monthly
payments will also be reported to one major credit bureau.
$300 Grocery Gift Card - The All American Gold offers a $300 grocery
gift card consisting on 30 $10.00 coupon certificates.
Fine Prints - There are a few fine prints that you have to be aware of
before you apply for this card.
When you are approved, All American Gold will give you a 30-day *free trial
whereby you can access your credit report. (On their website, they are not
specific as to which credit bureau you do you get your report from). However,
after 30 days, they will start charging you $9.95 per month to access your
credit report unless you inform them that you are canceling this service.
This is rather annoying as many people will not even be aware that they have
been signed up for this service. You can actually get a free report from the
three major credit bureaus once a year. Even if you wanted to get instant
access to your reports and credit scores, you will be better off buying this
service from the credit bureaus themselves.
Under the terms and conditions, you will be automatically given a 30 trial
of All American Gold elite membership program (as a cardholder, you are a "member"
of the usa shopping club. As an Elite Status Member, you will receive
privileges in USA Credit Care, USA Prescription Discount Plan and USA
Emergency Roadside Assistance Plan. If you choose to be an "elite member",
you will be charged $19.95 monthly fee (more like your bank account will be
debited with a monthly $19.95 monthly payment to USA Gold) until you call
them up to cancel it.
On the All American Gold Card website, there is a section that says that you
stand a chance to win a free DVD. To get a chance to win that free dvd, you
have to once again enroll in a membership of an external website call
freecooloffers.com. Unlike the previous two cases, you are not "automatically
enrolled or given a free trial". My take on this to forget about this offer
as your one-time payment to get this card will probably get you a very good
Sony DVD player!
When you submit an application for the card, you would have authorized All
American Gold Card to debit your bank account of $114.95 as an enrollment
fee and $35.00 for the application fee. The $35.00 application fee is non-refundable
(which means if you change your mind about getting this card, you will lose
$35.00). Hence, you have to be sure this is the card you want before you
apply.
If you are looking to reestablish your credit, you should weigh the choices
among unsecured, secured, prepaid or catalog cards. I still believe getting
a secured credit card should be the first choice. The key advantage of the
All American Gold Card is that aside from the one-time application fee,
there are no other fees involved, like monthly processing fee, transaction
fees that are so common in prepaid credit cards and unsecured credit cards.
You are limited by where you can actually use your card. Hence, it will be
your choice between cost and convenience.
Positives
Reports to one credit bureau
Negatives
One-time processing fee
Can only use card at www.usashoppingclub
All American Gold Card
Cost and Fees
One-time Application Fee $149.95
Fees for late payment $10.00
Fees for Returned checks $20.00
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All American Gold Card |
