Annual Fee for Credit Cards?

[A S U]

I have pretty bad Credit. I have received alot of crap offers for $250 credit lines with annual fees/enrollment fees, which leaves me like $70 avail credit.

However today I receive one with a $70 annual fee and $2000 limit. Should I always stay away from CC with annual fees, or is it okay??? I have just about zero chance of getting a normal card right now. Just curious if this is normal and does anybody have experience with this..

Thanks.

[adenosine]

I wasn't able to get a card either when I had no credit, but I applied at Bank of America for a secured card. Their annual fee was only 29 dollars, and I canceled it before I had to pay it for the second year. According to bankrate.com, Wells Fargo only has an 18 dollar annual fee. There are even a few credit unions that have no annual fee, if you're able to become a member.

http://www.bankrate.com/brm/rate/cc_rate...amp;max_recs=50

[Jon34]

I used to work for a CC company. If you are in a bad credit bucket you will get a lot of crap offers. In order to take on your credit risk, the company a) wants to get paid nicely for it and b) wants to limit its potential loss if you don't pay.

If your credit is bad, and you can't get approved for a no fee card (you can actively seek out cards and apply instead of waiting to see what offers you get in the mail), then you could accept the best card you can get even if it has a fee. Then pay on time every month (preferably the full balance so you don't get charged the exorbitant interest), and eventually you will build up your credit so that the next year you can either not have to pay the fee or you'll be able to get a better card.

A couple other notes:
A secured card (as someone else mentioned) is one that requires you to pay a deposit up front that you get back if/when you cancel, and helps ensure that you are less of a risk. These often have lower fees than other annual fee cards.
One useful trick with credit cards: if you ever find youself stuck with some kind of one time fee, like an overlimit fee or even a late fee, call them up and complain. Maybe play dumb, but if it is your first offense they will almost always waive it. Generally speaking, credit card companies want to keep your business. They have whole departments devoted to coming up with ways of making you stay with them. If you are worth $100 in net present value to them, they will be glad to waive a $15 fee if it prevents them from losing a customer.

Jon