How To Establish Credit For The First Time

Want to build your credit? Here are some thoughts on how to establish credit for the first time.

How Do You Begin To Establish Credit?

I remember trying to establish credit in the U.S. five years ago when my wife and I returned from working in Mexico for 20 years. Our Social Security numbers returned the same message from every store where we tried to get some credit: “No data available”. So how does one begin to establish credit and finally obtain a credit card?

One of my colleagues at the school where I worked told me something that I had a hard time believing: “No worries, you’ll be swamped by credit cards offers 2 years from now. If you want a head start then build your credit by going to a store that will give it to you at a high interest rate. Buy something cheap that you need for the apartment.”

First Step: Buy Stuff From Places That Will Accept Credit. Start Small!

This story applies to most young people who work for the first time and need to establish credit. Of course, in my case, we were both over 50 and salespeople could not believe that we had no history of credit. We did, but it was so long ago that even the credit bureau had forgotten about it.

So we went to the local furniture store and bought a big queen mattress and the frame to hold it. The salesperson was used to people coming from Mexico, and as long as they could produce a paycheck stub, she was happy to charge outrageous interest rates. And so we went from store to store looking for a chance to open an account. Sam’s said no, J.C. Penney wouldn’t even consider it, same for Sears (I think the lady was trying not to laugh), and so instead, we turned to smaller stores. Slowly but surely, we built up our credit with little mom and pop stores till we were able to buy a house 3 years later with no money down.

Second Step: Wait For Those Credit Offers and Manage Them Well

And lo and behold, after 2 years exactly, our mailbox began to fill with credit card offers. It seems that somebody had passed the word that we were to be trusted, up to a point. Of course, the rates were above 20% a year, so it was pretty imperative that we become choosy about how we’d take on additional credit. So we kept the amounts low on the first two cards.

This is the secret of building good credit: keep the balance low and pay on time every time. Some people believe erroneously that paying one day late is no big deal. A few credit cards offer you a grace period which may be up to 3 days, but most do not. So pay on time as much as possible.

Tips To Build Your Credit and Manage Your Credit Accounts

1. Do not cancel credit cards once you pay them off, even if you think you won’t need them. That keeps your credit score up.
2. Keep an eye on your credit score. Cheap or free credit scores can now be obtained online.
3. Your liability will never be more than $50 if at all, but only if you report ID theft or misuse of your card within 24 hours. So don’t wait to report any issues to your credit card company if you suspect somebody is using your credit card number fraudulently.
4. Establish limits on all your credit and debit cards. Tell the company to refuse payment on amounts above X dollars until you approve it. For example, somebody stole my debit card number in a restaurant and tried to buy something in excess of $1,000. Since I had established a limit of $300, my bank refused to pay, then called me to follow up.
5. Never allow your credit or debit card out of your sight. Friends look at me funny when I stand up in the restaurant and accompany the waiter to make the payment. Hey, once burned…
6. Check your credit card activity regularly on the Internet; don’t wait for the paper statement to arrive in the slow mail. By then, things may be too late!

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Categorized under: Debt, Credit and Loans