Credit is one of life’s unfortunate Catch-22s. We all know that we need access to things that we can’t pay for with hard cash. We either do without, or we use the credit system to help us get what we want. Let’s assume for a second that you just graduated from college and want to get your first credit card. You fill out the forms and wait for the reply, only to find out a few weeks later that your request for credit has been denied. Why? This may sound familiar, but it’s probably because you don’t have any credit history. So the question arises as to how do you establish a credit history? Well, you get a credit card, of course…
It’s a frustrating conundrum, but luckily there are a few easy and cheap methods to build credit history that really work well for anyone, at any given time no matter the circumstances.
In recent posts I’ve mentioned this before and I will say it again, your best bet to building credit history is to take your own money and open up secured card accounts. A good bank to utilize for this is Capital One. You can call Capital One and take anywhere from $300 to $500 of your own money and open up a credit card account with them. The account reports just like an unsecured credit card, except you’re using your own money. Even if you have bad credit right now, you can still open up secure card accounts and begin adding positive accounts to your credit while you work on deleting and disputing negative items. A long history of credit on someone’s credit file looks so much better to a lender than someone who has no credit history or limited history.
Problem: Lenders are saying that you have “Insufficient Credit history”.
Solution: It’s simple, USE credit! In order to establish credit history you have to actively use credit. I would recommend 3-5 active accounts that you open as mentioned above to begin the re-building process.
2015 CREDIT RESTORATION PROGRAM
If you are interested in our Credit Restoration Program where we consult our clients on restoring their credit profiles to align with their personal and professional goals email me now at dean@deancantave.com with the subject line, “Credit Coaching/Consulting Services” to schedule a 30-minute consultation. I want to START you off on the right foot in 2015!
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