24 Looking to build Credit... What are some good tips on your first Credit Card

to keep it G although i'm not to fond of the credit institutons it is growing more and more necessary to obtain even average things w/o good credit. It shall def be beneficial to me in the future
 
Lol at dudes always saying CCS are traps, don't spend money you don't have and you should be good. Treat it like a debit card.
 
I have a 775 credit score, and I've had 2 credit cards since I turned 20. I'm 25 now.

There are really no secrets. No one gave me any advice, I sort of just went with common sense - paying my bills on time literally every month for the past 5 years, keeping a balance in cycle, while also paying interest on some items (which I hate, but it helps nonetheless).

Just be smart man. I have 40 year old men envying me for my credit :lol: it's probably why my employer hired me to be honest.

Good luck.
 
WhatCanISay said:
DAYTONA 5000 said:
Why do you want to build your credit? Credit is just a trap.
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Your credit is actually more important than cash in this country. If you have 500k cash in the bank but crap credit, yea you can buy a 500k home.

But if you have phenomenal credit and say 100k in the bank you can put less than half of that as down payment and buy a 1 million+ home and build equity and more credit as well.

Many many many other advantages, as well as opportunities of having instant money in your hands when you need it while paying really low interest on that money.

Heck, even employers check your credit history.
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This is untrue on so many levels. The reason they check your credit is to see how responsible you are. This is primarily done by the larger institutions in an effort to weed out people. Since most people are employed by small businesses though, you should be able to relate on a more personal basis and explain why you don't have any credit (you don't believe in borrowing money).

Since I switched to using cash last year, I can tell you that there are MANY more benefits than by using your CC as a debit card. That measly 2% cash back isn't going to offer you a whole lot in the long run. Even though I have always been responsible and frugile, I can easily save in 2 months what my CC rewards were for the entire year.

The housing analogy? We just came off of the biggest housing crash in the last 80 years, and we're still buying this theory? I would rather have a paid for house $500K house than a $1MM house with $900K in debt. Plus... isn't the point of credit to buy a house? Not buy a house to build credit?
 
If you've gotten by this long without building your credit, I wouldn't make it my primary concern. If it becomes an issue, then start doing your research. If you're hell bent on building your credit right now, there are to options to look at that are actually beneficial. First, try getting an overdraft line of credit on your bank account. It's similar to a credit card in that it builds your credit history, but it will also prevent you from paying a $30 overdraft fee if you lose track of your expenses one month. Be careful though, because the interest rates on outstanding balances are typically in the 17-20% range. Credit Unions are usually much easier to secure these types of accounts for. Secondly, look into a secured credit card from a credit union. You will have to put up the money up front, but at least you won't have to worry about an outstanding balance being sent to collections since they already have the money in case you don't pay.
 
DAYTONA 5000 said:
If you have the money then why even bother to use credit? Paying someone interest to borrow money doesn't sound appealing to me, sorry.
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to build credit.. ive had my cc for 3 years and havent payed interest once, I pay my entire bill on time every month
 
wait can u still possibly get a credit card if you don't have a job, bad or no credit, and owe a cable company????????? Might be a stupid question ..........
 
Animal Thug said:
I have a 775 credit score, and I've had 2 credit cards since I turned 20. I'm 25 now.

There are really no secrets. No one gave me any advice, I sort of just went with common sense - paying my bills on time literally every month for the past 5 years, keeping a balance in cycle, while also paying interest on some items (which I hate, but it helps nonetheless).

Just be smart man. I have 40 year old men envying me for my credit :lol: it's probably why my employer hired me to be honest.

Good luck.
Click to expand...

This.

I was to steal your avy so bad! :lol:
 
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the only way to get a good credit score is to go into debt? What does a good credit score get you?
 
JumpmanPro97 said:
the only way to get a good credit score is to go into debt? What does a good credit score get you?
Click to expand...

A good credit score can help you out in many ways, financing, mortgages, some jobs actually check your credit history too.
 
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So much conflicting information in here. Here's some tips for you because you don't have a credit card yet.

Find out what your credit score is from https://www.annualcreditreport.com/

First off, if your parents have a credit card, tell them to add you as an authorized user to their account. Why do you want to do this? The age or longevity of their credit history will transfer over to you. Let's say they have 15 year old credit history. You will get this as well. Credit history affects your credit score. The older it is, the higher the credit score.

Getting your first credit card is not easy. You might have to get a secured credit card from a bank (Bank of America for example) or a credit union. This means you have to up money upfront. You have to deposit a thousand dollars. Then you use that for about a year or so and then they will transfer you over to a unsecured (regular) credit card. If you're lucky, you might be able to get an unsecured card based on your credit score, income, debts, and expenses like rent.

For the rest of yall:

Don't wait until your billing statement to end before paying off your credit card.

Your balance at the end of your billing statement is reported to three major credit bureaus by your credit card company. Let's say you have a $3000 credit limit. If you spend $2000 dollars a month on that credit card and wait until after your statement ends to pay your balance, your credit card company will report you as utilizing $2000 of your $3000 credit limit. This is a credit utilization rate of 67%. This will negatively affect your credit score, EVEN if you pay it off in full before the due date. Ideally, you want your credit utilization rate to be 30% or less, and under 10% is even better.

BUT...you still want a balance reporting. So before your billing statement is over, pay off everything EXCEPT 1%-19% of your credit limit. THEN you pay the rest of the balance before the due date so you don't incur any interest charges.

Check out creditboard and myfico forums for more info.
 
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DAYTONA 5000 said:
If you have the money then why even bother to use credit? Paying someone interest to borrow money doesn't sound appealing to me, sorry.
Click to expand...

Who says you have to pay interest though. Pay it in full and you're good. I got my first credit card when i got my first job at 17, now 24. I've paid every single bill on time and in full so i've never had a single late fee or a penny of interest gained on any balance. It's a good way to build credit and at the same time i get reward points for using my credit card. Don't be dumb with it and buy something when you don't have that balance in your checking account. I see dudes buying stuff on their CC they don't have the money for at the time of the purchase saying "it's cool i get paid next week", smh :x That's the mentality that will get you in debt.
 
WhatCanISay said:
crcballer55 said:
This is untrue on so many levels. The reason they check your credit is to see how responsible you are. This is primarily done by the larger institutions in an effort to weed out people. Since most people are employed by small businesses though, you should be able to relate on a more personal basis and explain why you don't have any credit (you don't believe in borrowing money).

Since I switched to using cash last year, I can tell you that there are MANY more benefits than by using your CC as a debit card. That measly 2% cash back isn't going to offer you a whole lot in the long run. Even though I have always been responsible and frugile, I can easily save in 2 months what my CC rewards were for the entire year.

The housing analogy? We just came off of the biggest housing crash in the last 80 years, and we're still buying this theory? I would rather have a paid for house $500K house than a $1MM house with $900K in debt. Plus... isn't the point of credit to buy a house? Not buy a house to build credit?
Click to expand...
Have you tried to buy a house recently ? It isn't even remotely as easy as it was years ago. Even if you have good credit, you still need to prove all the money in your bank is yours (which takes quite a bit of time ) , you still need to have a low debt to credit ratio, your yearly expenses must not exceed 50% of your yearly income and a few other qualifications .

Having NO credit is much different than having BAD credit. And noone should be put in the position of having to explain their credit score to their future employer for ANY reason. That's like trying to explain your felony charges to your boss and say "I never did anything and was falsely accused"

Credit isn't for everyone, but I highly suggest building a very nice credit history to anyone who is ambitious and driven to live a higher quality of life.

Credit is necessary . PERIOD.
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Just because you don't have a credit history, doesn't mean that you can't buy a house. There is a thing called "alternative credit history". This is where they look at other items you pay other than your car loan, student loan, credit card, etc. If you pay all of your bills on time, why shouldn't those be reported to the lender as a sign of responsibility as well? Isn't it ironic that if you pay your cell phone or rent on time every month that you don't get credit for that on your FICO, but if you miss a payment, it's reported as a delinquency? Under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, a creditor must accept any alternative credit accounts for which you are responsible to anyone who requires a credit check when your creditworthiness is being assessed.

Check out Ecredable.com. They offer credit reports that include non-traditional credit history like association dues, utilities, insurance payments, etc.
 
NikeAirForce1 said:
So much conflicting information in here. Here's some tips for you because you don't have a credit card yet.

Find out what your credit score is from https://www.annualcreditreport.com/

First off, if your parents have a credit card, tell them to add you as an authorized user to their account. Why do you want to do this? The age or longevity of their credit history will transfer over to you. Let's say they have 15 year old credit history. You will get this as well. Credit history affects your credit score. The older it is, the higher the credit score.

Getting your first credit card is not easy. You might have to get a secured credit card from a bank (Bank of America for example) or a credit union. This means you have to up money upfront. You have to deposit a thousand dollars. Then you use that for about a year or so and then they will transfer you over to a unsecured (regular) credit card. If you're lucky, you might be able to get an unsecured card based on your credit score, income, debts, and expenses like rent.

For the rest of yall:

Don't wait until your billing statement to end before paying off your credit card.

Your balance at the end of your billing statement is reported to three major credit bureaus by your credit card company. Let's say you have a $3000 credit limit. If you spend $2000 dollars a month on that credit card and wait until after your statement ends to pay your balance, your credit card company will report you as utilizing $2000 of your $3000 credit limit. This is a credit utilization rate of 67%. This will negatively affect your credit score, EVEN if you pay it off in full before the due date. Ideally, you want your credit utilization rate to be 30% or less, and under 10% is even better.

BUT...you still want a balance reporting. So before your billing statement is over, pay off everything EXCEPT 1%-10% of your credit limit. THEN you pay the rest of the balance before the due date so you don't incur any interest charges.

Check out creditboard and myfico forums for more info.
Click to expand...

This guy knows. ( I work for a bank)
 
JumpmanPro97 said:
good debt? that's insane. The only good debt would be a mortgage on a house. Pay in full and only use in emergencies. Cash is king
Click to expand...
:smh: :smh:

then there is a such thing as good debt then?

you have an asset that's worth 10k, and you owe 1k... that's debt that can be easily taken care of w/ money in your pocket w/ the sale of the asset...

good debt.
 
im 22 been living on my own with my girl for 4 years not, with no CC. it has sucked at times when things like random car problems start or emergency hosptial/dentist vists, but i has made me more responsible. i just finally got approved for a CC a couple days ago and its a great feeling :smokin
 
Once you get your CC / Credit game up. Companies will start sending you good CC offers.

75k Miles for amex :smokin
 
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