Let's Talk Credit...

[Alfster]

So my better half has FLAWLESS credit. My credit is below average. Had a lot of credit card debt, student loans, and didn't pay shit on time for roughly 2 years. I've been solid for the last two years, but that doesn't really help me much.

We're talking marriage, but she wants me to try to try to improve my credit score prior to marriage. I'm not entirely sure how that works, but I'm sure my piss poor credit wouldn't help her FLAWLESS credit.

I've been at my "new" job now for about 1.5 years, making roughly double what I was before. Haven't missed a payment or anything on my student loans (but that's all I have left now).

I've convinced her that if I am to purchase what I want (aka a jet ski) and use credit...it would help my score. I'm not entirely sure this is a true statement, but it seems to have worked. I would only finance roughly 3-4k, so I'd pay roughly 2/3's up front.

Credit wise, if I were to purchase the boat and use credit...What's the best "credit building" option?

1) Secured personal loan
2) Having her purchase it w/her Fucking Flawless Credit (this wouldn't help me build any credit)
3) Having her co-sign for it
4) I don't fucking know

Any ideas?

[Delias]

Does your credit suck from previous jet ski purchases gone awry?

[Alfster]

Hah, no. It sucks from building credit card debt over roughly 5 years of college and forgetting to pay on time. These are all paid off now...

The last two vehicles I purchased were from family members, so I didn't go through a bank. I've paid these off, but yah, can't help my credit since I didn't use a banker.

[Delias]

Hah, no. It sucks from building credit card debt over roughly 5 years of college and forgetting to pay on time. These are all paid off now...

The last two vehicles I purchased were from family members, so I didn't go through a bank. I've paid these off, but yah, can't help my credit since I didn't use a banker.


Well her co-signing for it can actually damage her credit if yours is bad enough. I'd go with the loan.

[Tgo01]

There really isn't any magic tricks to build good credit. Pay your bills on time, keep your oldest lines of credit open (don't close your oldest credit cards that you've had a good history with), make sure your debt to credit ratio is good (if you owe 2,000 dollars on credit cards with only 2,200 dollars total credit and you finance a 4k jet ski that could fuck things up.)

I don't know your financial situation but if you are serious about building good credit I would get your credit cards under control first if they aren't already. As far as the jet ski itself I don't think it matters much what type of loan you get, I just wouldn't recommend her being a co signer. You might get a better rate but I just don't recommend any non married couples start mixing their credit and bank accounts like that. Could lead to messy things later in life.

Either way financing a jet ski could hurt your credit score in the short term but if you pay the bill on time it could help your score in the long run.

[Candor]

I suggest keeping your credit and hers completely separate until 7 years has passed since your last late payment. At that point, the late payments will slide off your history and no longer affect your credit score.

Until then, secure what credit you can and never miss a payment. Ever.

[Taernath]

Buy it, then pay off what's left with a monthly installment. I think the account needs to be open a year or so for it to affect your score.

Have you ever used a credit reporting agency? Maybe buy a report from one just to see where you're standing. They will probably give you the lowdown on what to do to improve your score (have more credit than debt, increase age of accounts, etc.)

[Stretch]

If you're trying to rebuild your credit, the easiest (and least dangerous) thing to do would be to get a credit card, use it for every day purchases, and pay it off in full every month.

You would probably pay a crazy amount of interest on an installment loan for something like a jet ski.

[Allereli]

everyone gets a free credit report every year.

https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp

definitely review and make sure there are no mistakes, if there are, start disputing

[BriarFox]

Tgo01 gives good advice.

Things that help credit: having a mortgage in good standing, having a high credit to debt ratio (which often means that having MORE credit cards is a good thing), having long-term accounts in good standing (i.e. good payment history).

Things that hurt credit: "hard" inquiries (like when you open a new account or loan), accounts with negative payment indicators, accounts only open a short time, low available credit, lots of department-store credit cards (I don't know why these hurt your score, but they do), fraud alerts, etc.

[Tgo01]

everyone gets a free credit report every year.

https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp

definitely review and make sure there are no mistakes, if there are, start disputing

If you want you could dispute everything that is negative. The finance companies have something like 30 days to respond with their proof saying that the information is indeed correct. If they don't respond the credit agencies will remove the negative mark from your report.

[GS4-Seomanthe]

Obtain a loan on your own, and make timely payments. In fact, if your income is predictable, just set it up to auto-pay. Might want to do this with your credit cards too. All my credit cards are set to auto-pay the minimum when it's due, so I'm not screwed if I forget one month. Then I just go in and manually pay the rest whenever I feel like it.
Do not cancel any of your credit cards (closing them reduces the total amount of your credit lines and hurts your score).
Don't open a whole bunch of new credit lines at once.
If you actually have legitimate reasons for not having made your payments on time before, you can instruct Experian/Equifax/Transunion to place a memo on those items on your credit report, where you get to explain the situation. It won't improve your score, but it will show up when someone pulls your report.

[Alfster]

There really isn't any magic tricks to build good credit. Pay your bills on time, keep your oldest lines of credit open (don't close your oldest credit cards that you've had a good history with), make sure your debt to credit ratio is good (if you owe 2,000 dollars on credit cards with only 2,200 dollars total credit and you finance a 4k jet ski that could fuck things up.)

I don't know your financial situation but if you are serious about building good credit I would get your credit cards under control first if they aren't already. As far as the jet ski itself I don't think it matters much what type of loan you get, I just wouldn't recommend her being a co signer. You might get a better rate but I just don't recommend any non married couples start mixing their credit and bank accounts like that. Could lead to messy things later in life.

Either way financing a jet ski could hurt your credit score in the short term but if you pay the bill on time it could help your score in the long run.

I think the biggest mistake I made was I paid off my credit cards and then closed them all. Financially, we're sitting in a great place - and our finances are 100% tied together. We've been together now for about 8 years now and have a joint checking account. I don't even have my own account anymore - she's a CPA and does all of our budgeting.

Long story short, my on time payments started when she forced me to care, then I got sick of it and let her take over the expenses.

[RichardCranium]

A small personal loan will help a little bit.

Put down $500 on a secure credit card. Charge anywhere from $100 - $150 on it a month, and pay it off monthly. After a few months of this, get an unsecured credit card and do the same. You'll have a decent credit score in no time.

[Alfster]

Buy it, then pay off what's left with a monthly installment. I think the account needs to be open a year or so for it to affect your score.

Have you ever used a credit reporting agency? Maybe buy a report from one just to see where you're standing. They will probably give you the lowdown on what to do to improve your score (have more credit than debt, increase age of accounts, etc.)

Here's a question...

On my report, I've got a card that's not truly mine - but I do have access to. It's my parents account - and I got the card for emergencies only (and I don't recall ever actually using it). It's showing opened in 1987 (go go 5 year old with a credit card).

That card has a HUGE line of credit available. Is that going to hurt me? Should it even be on there?

[Tgo01]

I think the biggest mistake I made was I paid off my credit cards and then closed them all.

Yeah that was a mistake but no sense in beating yourself up over it now. Most people don't realize that keeping credit cards open is actually good if you have them paid off. Of course you also don't want too many credit cards because that makes lenders worry too. If you don't have at least one credit card now I'd take everyone's advice and get a credit card and use it at least once a month and just pay the bill off in full every month. Keep the credit card forever. Just don't get a credit card with an annual fee, those are stupid.


Financially, we're sitting in a great place - and our finances are 100% tied together. We've been together now for about 8 years now and have a joint checking account. I don't even have my own account anymore - she's a CPA and does all of our budgeting.

If you all already co mingle your income and expenses you might as well have her be a co signer if she doesn't mind. It shouldn't hurt her score, it should help your score in the long run and you should get a better rate. Wins all around.


Here's a question...

On my report, I've got a card that's not truly mine - but I do have access to. It's my parents account - and I got the card for emergencies only (and I don't recall ever actually using it). It's showing opened in 1987 (go go 5 year old with a credit card).

That card has a HUGE line of credit available. Is that going to hurt me? Should it even be on there?

If it's on your credit report then the credit companies think the line of credit belongs to you. The only way this would affect you negatively is if there are any late payments or the credit card is almost maxed out. Otherwise the credit line is only going to help you really.

[Taernath]

Put down $500 on a secure credit card. Charge anywhere from $100 - $150 on it a month, and pay it off monthly. After a few months of this, get an unsecured credit card and do the same. You'll have a decent credit score in no time.

I'd say make it $2000. You get credit score added or subtracted relative to the size of your cards - larger is better, with $2000 being the lower limit. Plus, if you charge more than 50% of the card's total value that's another mark against you.

[Taernath]

Here's a question...

On my report, I've got a card that's not truly mine - but I do have access to. It's my parents account - and I got the card for emergencies only (and I don't recall ever actually using it). It's showing opened in 1987 (go go 5 year old with a credit card).

That card has a HUGE line of credit available. Is that going to hurt me? Should it even be on there?

Your parents probably did the equivalent of co-signing for the credit amount on the card.

The question is, how much do you hate your parents?

[AestheticDeath]

If you're trying to rebuild your credit, the easiest (and least dangerous) thing to do would be to get a credit card, use it for every day purchases, and pay it off in full every month.

You would probably pay a crazy amount of interest on an installment loan for something like a jet ski.

This. If you have two years worth of late payments, you probably won't be fixing it anytime soon. Even with a year or so of good habits, you would probably be stuck under a ceiling somewhere (650-700?) until the last negative thing drops off.

I had one credit card late payment, and 6.5 years later I am still stuck around 862 TransUnion score, which is prob like 750-765 Xperian.

[AestheticDeath]

I'd say make it $2000. You get credit score added or subtracted relative to the size of your cards - larger is better, with $2000 being the lower limit. Plus, if you charge more than 50% of the card's total value that's another mark against you.

I think 30-33% is the problem area.

[Tgo01]

I had one credit card late payment, and 6.5 years later I am still stuck around 862 TransUnion score, which is prob like 750-765 Xperian.

I thought credit scores topped off at 850?

[AestheticDeath]

Transunion is fucked somehow, goes to 900-950 I think, the others are lower


edit: looks like TransUnion goes to 990...

[SHAFT]

There's no quick fix to bad credit. It takes time. Be flawless from here on out on payments. Nothing over 30 days late.

[Rallorick]

if your wife is a CPA, why are you getting credit advice from the message boards?

The rest of this is probably already said... everything rolls off your score over time. sometimes if you have an active account with a company, you can request they remove something - I've heard of this, but never seen it in action. If your partner has better credit, and can get a better rate - go that route... it won't do anything significant to move your needle.

[AestheticDeath]

http://money.cnn.com/2013/01/24/pf/credit-score/index.html

[AnticorRifling]

Transunion is fucked somehow, goes to 900-950 I think, the others are lower


edit: looks like TransUnion goes to 990...

Yeah they just have to be odd balls, shit is annoying.

[Ker_Thwap]

First, forget about credit scores. Make good financial decisions instead, such as not buying a jet ski on credit as a lame excuse to improve your credit. If you really want to get the jet ski, get it. But finance as little as possible, for as short term as possible, because I doubt you'll get a good rate.

[Bobmuhthol]

First, forget about credit scores. Make good financial decisions instead, such as not buying a jet ski on credit as a lame excuse to improve your credit. If you really want to get the jet ski, get it. But finance as little as possible, for as short term as possible, because I doubt you'll get a good rate.I have a feeling you're going to get a great rate because interest rates are kind of low right now. This is the time to borrow. If you do what is being suggested here and keep paying for things in cash, you'll never actually build credit, so your rates will have a large credit spread on top of a high base rate in the future. I think you'll agree that it makes more sense to take that spread today with a small amount of money as opposed to financing a mortgage later.

As far as actual advice, take the loan and get her to cosign, unless she's unwilling to take the inquiry. Minimize the spread and enjoy the benefits of having a loan.

[Parkbandit]

So my better half has FLAWLESS credit. My credit is below average. Had a lot of credit card debt, student loans, and didn't pay shit on time for roughly 2 years. I've been solid for the last two years, but that doesn't really help me much.

We're talking marriage, but she wants me to try to try to improve my credit score prior to marriage. I'm not entirely sure how that works, but I'm sure my piss poor credit wouldn't help her FLAWLESS credit.

I've been at my "new" job now for about 1.5 years, making roughly double what I was before. Haven't missed a payment or anything on my student loans (but that's all I have left now).

I've convinced her that if I am to purchase what I want (aka a jet ski) and use credit...it would help my score. I'm not entirely sure this is a true statement, but it seems to have worked. I would only finance roughly 3-4k, so I'd pay roughly 2/3's up front.

Credit wise, if I were to purchase the boat and use credit...What's the best "credit building" option?

1) Secured personal loan
2) Having her purchase it w/her Fucking Flawless Credit (this wouldn't help me build any credit)
3) Having her co-sign for it
4) I don't fucking know

Any ideas?

The best way to fix bad credit is: Time. Shit that was bad before will drop off and no longer be part of your credit history. I'm working with my oldest daughter right now to build up her credit. We basically took out a loan in her name and it's automatically taken out of her checking account each month. But she's different.. she had no credit history before, where your credit history was bad.

Go through your credit report and get old stuff taken off it by closing those accounts that you no longer use and have been paid off. If it's really bad, go through a reputable credit recovery company to help you.. it'll still take time, but far less time than you waiting to have things drop off.

[Allereli]

I really wish the importance of credit reports was taught in school

[Whirlin]

There's been a lot of good comments over the last three pages, and I may just be rehashing various posts.

First, it appears to me that you're using credit as an excuse to get a jetski. The overall impact of purchasing a jetski are fairly negligible on your credit compared to other opportunities. It may help, yes... but admit it, you just want a jetski.

Second, if your wife is concerned about your low credit, that really appears to be an indicator of something else. While I can commiserate with her (I have a degree in accountancy, I just didn't take the CPA route, and my GF doesn't have great credit), there are simple workarounds that can be done, such as delaying marriage til after a house/mortgage is created.

Third, I have a very tiny, simple piece of advice. Throw out your Debit Cards, and get a credit card through your bank. Low credit limit is fine, you're just looking to establish a good base of credit at this point. Set up a reoccurring calendar entry on your Gmail Calendar, work's Outlook calendar, or work Lotus Notes, whatever, just to pay off the balance online. Put ALL your daily transactions through the credit card instead of a debit card/cash, and just pay it off each month. It's just using a credit card rather than a debit card. Debit Card does nothing for credit, Credit card gets you some points, keeps money in your account a little longer (yay .00001% more interest for a day!), and establishes credit, at the cost of a 5 minute administrative hassle each month.

[Kastrel]

As someone who has basically 0 credit, rather than bad credit, and has no credit cards (or knowledge of them since I have NEVER used them), what would be the best kind of credit card for me to pick up?

[Allereli]

As someone who has basically 0 credit, rather than bad credit, and has no credit cards (or knowledge of them since I have NEVER used them), what would be the best kind of credit card for me to pick up?

you should get your score anyway and see what your number is. Have you ever had any sort of loan?

www.creditcards.com sorts popular cards into categories and rates them. I find it helpful.

[Whirlin]

As someone who has basically 0 credit, rather than bad credit, and has no credit cards (or knowledge of them since I have NEVER used them), what would be the best kind of credit card for me to pick up?
#3 of my post above.

I recommend going to your bank. Pretty much all banks offer two things: Online banking, and credit cards. It'll likely also be a fast approval, as they're already familiar with your spending/saving habits, and they don't need to query outside sources. And since you're an existing customer, you can utilize the same credentials and just get a new line item added for the credit card. Then it's just a matter of 5 minutes a month while you're saturated, resting, running ;waggle to log into your online bank account, and move money from your checking/savings account to your credit card account to pay off the balance.

[Delias]

As someone who has basically 0 credit, rather than bad credit, and has no credit cards (or knowledge of them since I have NEVER used them), what would be the best kind of credit card for me to pick up?

I recommend the basic Amex green card- you are supposed to pay the full balance each month so there really isn't an interest charge unless you select charges to pay over time. They do collect a membership fee though, I think it is like 70 bucks a year or something... I forget. Anyway, I've had one for 10 years or so and it has been a solid contributor to my score.

[Kastrel]

you should get your score anyway and see what your number is. Have you ever had any sort of loan?

www.creditcards.com sorts popular cards into categories and rates them. I find it helpful.

Never had a loan for anything. I pay for everything with cash with I manually take out of my bank account, using my debit card only for "oops, not enough money" situations and the uncommon online only purchase (and Gemstone).

My weird money habits with my debit card are for the same reason I never had a credit card; I don't like the concept. But its apparent that that is not a suitable reason not to have one, and it will work against me one day. So I will have to do something about it.

[Whirlin]

Never had a loan for anything. I pay for everything with cash with I manually take out of my bank account, using my debit card only for "oops, not enough money" situations and the uncommon online only purchase (and Gemstone).

My weird money habits with my debit card are for the same reason I never had a credit card; I don't like the concept. But its apparent that that is not a suitable reason not to have one, and it will work against me one day. So I will have to do something about it.

Yep, I was in that same mindset 3 years ago... Using a credit card is an administrative hassle that doesn't make sense if a person can afford to meet obligations instantaneously. Unfortunately however, credit is a game you need to play if you ever want a mortgage... Honestly, I can't really think of any other BIG implication of credit. As long as you're not planning on buying a house in the next 2 years, you have plenty of time.

[Kastrel]

My big issue is that I have an OCDness about money. I'm not the most thrifty person in the world, but I don't trust myself with the concept of a credit card. I simply don't. I can follow the advice of "deliberately buy stuff with it and fully pay it off immediately", but I'm also a fairly negligent and forgetful person when it comes to paperwork and keeping up to date with stuff, and I suspect what would happen is that I would forget to pay stuff off.

But I could set something up like auto-payments from my bank account too. Lets just say that up until this point, it has been smarter and better for my finances to not have one, but I should probably do the smart thing and try and change that.

[Allereli]

Never had a loan for anything. I pay for everything with cash with I manually take out of my bank account, using my debit card only for "oops, not enough money" situations and the uncommon online only purchase (and Gemstone).

what about big ticket items like a car or education? I only ask because you mentioned small everyday things

[Kastrel]

what about big ticket items like a car or education? I only ask because you mentioned small everyday things

I am priviledged enough that these sorts of things were paid for out-of-pocket. Except for everyday purchases which I make myself, things like paying bills and insurance and the like go through my parents, not because they do it for me, but because it is to their advantage due to the way they have me set-up. They don't pay for me, but I pay them cash that they use to pay for themselves and myself at a cheaper rate than I would be paying if I were not under their plans. Its a complicated set-up, and they like to play the system for whatever extra cash they can (like a few years ago when my dad took me off the family insurance because I was the oldest child to reduce the average age, but getting me company insurance by listing me as an employee at his business because I would bring the average age of his employees down).

So yeah, I don't do loans, its all paid for out of my pocket, even my current housing situation and my last car (god damn axle falling off).

[BriarFox]

You could get a secured credit card (basically, you put down the money, then you get a card that has a limit with the amount you've put down). It gives you a lower interest rate and will build your credit. Also, you'll know that it's already, in a way, "paid off." Then just set up automatic debits from your checking account to pay the balance in full every month. Have the bank sent you an email or text alert when a payment is about to go through so you know it's coming and don't accidentally overdraft.

[Kastrel]

That sounds like a reasonable idea.

[Allereli]

I am priviledged enough that these sorts of things were paid for out-of-pocket. Except for everyday purchases which I make myself, things like paying bills and insurance and the like go through my parents, not because they do it for me, but because it is to their advantage due to the way they have me set-up. They don't pay for me, but I pay them cash that they proceed to pay for themselves at a cheaper rate than I would be paying if I were not under their plans. Its a complicated set-up, and they like to play the system for whatever extra cash they can (like my dad taking me off the family insurance because I was the oldest child to reduce the average age, but getting me company insurance by listing me as an employee at his business because I would bring the average age of his employees down).

So yeah, I don't do loans, its all paid for out of my pocket, even my current housing situation and my last car (god damn axle falling off).

While that's very good and well-meaning of your parents, it doesn't help you in the long run to become an independent person. good for you for seeing that it's something you need to do if you don't want to depend on your parents to co-sign for everything, which might be an intermediary step to establishing yourself.

[Kastrel]

Oh, definitely. Its a financially advantageous situation because of the money it saves, its financially inconvenient because it doesn't teach me how to manage my own finances. Officially severing said connection is RSN. I was waiting until I finished my MS, which is done, they just won't send the diploma until May. Once I get my job with it and have a steady income, things will be going differently. I wouldn't have done things differently, because one of the quirks of my weirdness with money is that the concept of being in debt would drive me through the roof. I am a very low stress individual, but one of the few things that overstresses me is the idea that I am not "in the green".

Part of the problem is that I don't officially have my own mailbox. Due to quirks with my grandmother's house (which I inherited) it doesn't seem to have its own actual address, and all mail goes through them. Not only does it make it a lot easier for them to just do it as they do it now, it makes it very inconvenient to get my own mail, further complicated by the fact that I share a name with my father, meaning all my mail "looks like their" mail. I need to move to change this, and I'd like to be prepared for said move, rather than hold off on any progress until that moment.

[diethx]

Wait, secured credit cards that have the limit of what you've already paid, still charge you interest? So wait, why would you do that? Even with no credit at all, I'm sure he could get a credit card that he doesn't have to pay for up front and so long as he makes payments in full, won't owe interest on it.

[BriarFox]

Wait, secured credit cards that have the limit of what you've already paid, still charge you interest? So wait, why would you do that? Even with no credit at all, I'm sure he could get a credit card that he doesn't have to pay for up front and so long as he makes payments in full, won't owe interest on it.

They're for people who are a high-credit risk (or have no credit history), as far as I know. If you can't get another card, or can't get one with a good interest rate, you can go this route. They charge interest the same as any credit card, though, so if you pay them off every month, you don't get hit with interest.

[BriarFox]

By the way, a decent APR is about 8-17%. Try to get something in that range if you can.

[Kastrel]

I think it would help alleviate my concerns about accidentally missing a payment. I am very worried about that. Anything where it is setup to pay automatically would be very important for me.

[diethx]

Yes I get that. But that's like paying $500 for the privilege of being able to charge $500, and then pay another $500 to pay it off. That just makes no sense to me, I guess.

[BriarFox]

Yeah, I know. But you haven't "lost" the first $500. It's still yours.

[Ryvicke]

Secured cards are for people who are really having trouble getting any of the shittier credit cards. Sometimes the only accessible "real" credit cards for people with really bad credit charge pretty nuts annual or monthly fees and have an insane interest rate. There's also the issue of even applying for credit cards hurts your score, so if someone with really bad credit isn't getting accepted, continuing to apply for bad cards that won't approve you is hurting your score. Secured cards are a sure thing, and help build credit, despite the obvious issue of having someone lend your money back to you.

[diethx]

Ok. Maybe this is harsh of me, but grow the fuck up. Part of being an adult is being responsible enough to know what payments need to be made, and by when you need to make them. If you're forgetful, things like email alerts and receiving a paper statement should help. Going further, keep a small spreadsheet of all your creditors and the day each one is due every month. Check it weekly, or multiple times a week.

Being forgetful is really no excuse for not making your payments on time, and using that as a crutch to avoid building good credit is ridiculous.

[Kastrel]

Ok. Maybe this is harsh of me, but grow the fuck up. Part of being an adult is being responsible enough to know what payments need to be made, and by when you need to make them. If you're forgetful, things like email alerts and receiving a paper statement should help. Going further, keep a small spreadsheet of all your creditors and the day each one is due every month. Check it weekly, or multiple times a week.

Being forgetful is really no excuse for not making your payments on time, and using that as a crutch to avoid building good credit is ridiculous.

An alternative perspective is that I know myself well enough to know that there is a serious risk involved, whether I try to remember or not. I'm actively trying to "not" use it as a crutch, otherwise I wouldn't be inquiring in this thread. I'm making an effort to change, but at the same time, saying "Don't worry, I got this, I won't forget" is not realistic. I have a tendency to "forget" things like my email exist, and not check them for a week. I'm not saying that I can't figure something out, what I'm saying is that I DO need to figure something out, that will be a beneficial decision for my credit but also won't be risky knowing my personal flaws.

[Allereli]

I think it would help alleviate my concerns about accidentally missing a payment. I am very worried about that. Anything where it is setup to pay automatically would be very important for me.

most cards you can set up automatic payments through the card site or your bank. mycheckfree.com is also a good clearing house, but a little obsolete now that banking billpay sites do everything.

I think you can work with the post office to get a real address for your house.

[BriarFox]

By the way, in case it was unclear, if you can get approved for a good, unsecured credit card, obviously do that. You can set up automated payments et al either way. It's easiest if you get the credit card from the same bank you use for your checking account.

[Kastrel]

most cards you can set up automatic payments through the card site or your bank. mycheckfree.com is also a good clearing house, but a little obsolete now that banking billpay sites do everything.

I think you can work with the post office to get a real address for your house.

Someone earlier suggested credit cards THROUGH the bank? Would that work, and/or streamline things regarding automatic payments?

You'd think, but 20 years and neither my grandmother or my parents managed to figure it out. I'll see what can be set up though. Honestly, a P.O. Box might even be worth considering.

[diethx]

saying "Don't worry, I got this, I won't forget" is not realistic

That's totally what I suggested doing.

I will repeat: remembering things is part of being a responsible adult. If you have to leave a million notes and have a million backups to those notes, then that's what you have to do.

[Kastrel]

That's totally what I suggested doing.

You can think what you like, but that would not be a smart decision for me. Does that mean I'm irresponsible? Sure, lets call it that. Haven't figured out a way to change that yet. But I know that I am more than likely to forget something or miss a payment at some point, or screw something up and forget to check my mail and see that my checks didn't go through, or something random like that.

[Tgo01]

If you have one of them new fangled smart phones you can even set it up to beep at you the day or week before your bill is due. You can even ask the credit card company to make your due date the first of the month or whatever day you are most likely to remember the date. Trust me, they want your money, they'll make things as easy as possible for you to pay them.

[Bobmuhthol]

creditkarma.com
mint.com

You're welcome.

[BriarFox]

Mint.com is great.

[Kastrel]

If you have one of them new fangled smart phones you can even set it up to beep at you the day or week before your bill is due. You can even ask the credit card company to make your due date the first of the month or whatever day you are most likely to remember the date. Trust me, they want your money, they'll make things as easy as possible for you to pay them.

My phone is pretty dumb, but I can set appointments and alarms on it. A specific date like the 1st would probably be helpful for me.

[diethx]

You can think what you like, but that would not be a smart decision for me. Does that mean I'm irresponsible? Sure, lets call it that. Haven't figured out a way to change that yet. But I know that I am more than likely to forget something or miss a payment at some point, or screw something up and forget to check my mail and see that my checks didn't go through, or something random like that.

Sorry, I forgot to use my idiot-italics.

I feel no pity for you. Just because you admit to being thoroughly irresponsible doesn't make it any less obnoxious.


creditkarma.com
mint.com

You're welcome.

I love Mint so, so very much.

[Kastrel]

Sorry, I forgot to use my idiot-italics.

I feel no pity for you. Just because you admit to being thoroughly irresponsible doesn't make it any less obnoxious.

Its a good thing I didn't ask for your pity.

[diethx]

Yes, it most certainly is!

[Delias]

I am telling you, just get an amex green card. The full balance of whatever you charge is due at at the end of the month in which you charged it. It's pretty hard to fuck up. You can set up certain charges to pay over time, but it's actually kind of a hassle to do it. It's almost retard proof.

[Back]

Don't fall into the credit trap! This is a ploy by banks to keep making money from you your entire life. Every transaction has a fee, you pay interest on the card while you get little to zero interest on your savings, they charge fee to everyone on both ends of the transactions for using credit cards... they are sucking you dry for your entire life. They've built up this idea that you even need a credit rating so you can buy a house or a car. Is this really the American dream? To them you are a source of money to siphon from to feed their already unimaginable wealth.

[Bobmuhthol]

I am telling you, just get an amex green card. The full balance of whatever you charge is due at at the end of the month in which you charged it. It's pretty hard to fuck up. You can set up certain charges to pay over time, but it's actually kind of a hassle to do it. It's almost retard proof.I strongly recommend not taking this advice because annual fees are fucking retarded.

[Kastrel]

I think its more likely that the "credit trap" would fall into forgotten and dusty recesses of my life.

As an aside, what happens if you establish good credit and then just stop using your credit cards forever? Does it slowly taper off?


I strongly recommend not taking this advice because annual fees are fucking retarded.

That was my initial thought.

[Ashliana]

As an aside, what happens if you establish good credit and then just stop using your credit cards forever? Does it slowly taper off?

That was my initial thought.

If you go too long without using a credit card, the lender may decide to cancel your account. It's not a bad idea to put a recurring, small monthly charge (Gemstone, for example) on a card, then set the card up to automatically pay itself from your checking account. The inactivity period varies from bank to bank (some don't do it), and some are less likely to do it if you have other business with them. I've gone 2+ years without using my checking/saving bank's credit card, and they haven't cancelled it.

[Bobmuhthol]

As an aside, what happens if you establish good credit and then just stop using your credit cards forever? Does it slowly taper off?Your credit score is all of the information in your credit report condensed into one number. It follows a formula. "Last time you used a credit card" isn't an input into the formula, so your credit score will not suffer strictly for the fact that you didn't use the card. But if you start closing accounts, that will have an impact.

[Allereli]

Someone earlier suggested credit cards THROUGH the bank? Would that work, and/or streamline things regarding automatic payments?

You'd think, but 20 years and neither my grandmother or my parents managed to figure it out. I'll see what can be set up though. Honestly, a P.O. Box might even be worth considering.


You can think what you like, but that would not be a smart decision for me. Does that mean I'm irresponsible? Sure, lets call it that. Haven't figured out a way to change that yet. But I know that I am more than likely to forget something or miss a payment at some point, or screw something up and forget to check my mail and see that my checks didn't go through, or something random like that.

You shouldn't even be writing checks anymore, electronic payments go through much faster. If you're the type to forget about checking your email, make checking your bank website a habit, maybe place it in between checking the officials and the PC once a day. Your bank should have free billpay, in which they'll send payments to anyone for free (even if it involves mailing).

I think the only advantage of the bank credit card is that they know you. I think the terms of my Wells Fargo card are horrible, I don't use it, and I'm not even sure why I still have it, but they sent me one years ago to supplement my debit card for overdraft protection. I would aim high and go for a good card at first, because hey, you never know. Since you don't have any debt, you might want to go for a cash back or travel rewards card. Delias' suggestion is also good if you get denied. Many cards also have good benefits like extended warranties, additional car rental insurance, advance event ticket purchases, etc.

Most cards now let you pick a due date.

http://www.ehow.com/how_5815979_address-new-house.html they probably tried this already, but it never hurts to try again. I've used a PO box a couple of times when I was transitory for a couple of months between apartments and when in school. UPS store PO boxes are a ripoff especially if you have a USPS office close to you.

[Whirlin]

I think its more likely that the "credit trap" would fall into forgotten and dusty recesses of my life.

As an aside, what happens if you establish good credit and then just stop using your credit cards forever? Does it slowly taper off?


As defined earlier, total credit line is taken into account when determining creditworthiness.

And really, it's either play the credit game, and set yourself up eventually get a mortgage, and avoid the situation like the OP where you're holding someone else back, or never get a credit card, have little/no credit, get denied mortgages, and then post on PC about how your fiance is going to leave you because your credit rating is going to cause her to also be permanently ineligible for owning a home....

Its your choice to participate or not, but don't bitch about the way things are set up, because you ARE powerless, and you WILL NOT change anything even if you rebel. All it will do is hurt you. But if you want to cry and hurt yourself, go for it.

[Kastrel]

I'm just trying to determine the scale of the continued undertaking. Whether it can be a "do it and move on" kind of scenario, or if it requires upkeep, and how much.

Unless I suddenly inherent my family's wealth in the next year or two, I'm not just going to ignore it.

[Tgo01]

I'm just trying to determine the scale of the continued undertaking. Whether it can be a "do it and move on" kind of scenario, or if it requires upkeep, and how much.

There really isn't anything to it. Get a credit card, use it for all of your purchases and pay the credit card off in full every month. You don't have to actually engage in anything or put in any extra effort. Assuming you only use a credit card for purchases you would have paid cash for anyways there is really no reason not to use a credit card instead. Using a credit card is usually faster than paying with cash, it builds your credit, you don't have to worry about keeping money on you (if you are robbed or lose your wallet that cash is gone forever, if someone uses your credit card you're not out a dime.) There really is no reason to use cash except for those few places that don't accept credit cards.

[Whirlin]

Not sure how you could even think that establishing good credit could be something you could set and forget. What in this thread made you think that establishing credit would be a one-time thing?

It requires upkeep, like paying every other bill.

[Kastrel]

There really is no reason to use cash except for those few places that don't accept credit cards.

It helps me limit my spending and keep track of my finances better, but I see what you are saying.

[Bobmuhthol]

It helps me limit my spending and keep track of my finances better, but I see what you are saying.Paying in cash is the worst way to keep track of your finances. There are no records of what you spend it on. As far as limiting your spending, if you're really serious about it get a secured card, but I think that's a bad idea. It shouldn't be very difficult for you to look at how much money you have in your bank account and make purchasing decisions.

[Allereli]

It helps me limit my spending and keep track of my finances better, but I see what you are saying.

I understand the mindset of using cash and seeing the money leave your hand. I had a lot of issues with financial responsibility when I was in my early 20s and have since fixed them and have no marks on my credit report, but I had to go through the process of changing my habits. Taking a minute every day and checking my bank account has been the best move. I'm not one to balance a checkbook.

Wells Fargo and I'm sure other banks will categorize your spending habits without having to set up mint.

[Kastrel]

if you're really serious about it get a secured card, but I think that's a bad idea.

Why is that?

[Bobmuhthol]

Most secured cards are designed for people who have a demonstrated history of being uncreditworthy. Thus, they have fees or a high APR or both built into them, because people who get secured cards don't have a better alternative. You haven't fucked up, so you do have better alternatives. Never, ever, ever get a credit card with annual fees unless the card gives you something that is worth more than the fee.

[AnticorRifling]

Paying in cash is the worst way to keep track of your finances. There are no records of what you spend it on. As far as limiting your spending, if you're really serious about it get a secured card, but I think that's a bad idea. It shouldn't be very difficult for you to look at how much money you have in your bank account and make purchasing decisions.

No records like receipts or the remittance portion of any bill you pay you mean?

[diethx]

I'm not one to balance a checkbook.

Maybe it's the accountant in me, but you just made my skin crawl. lol

[Buckwheet]

I was told that adding someone as a authorized user on a good account will instantly give them all the credit history tied to the good account. Could always try that.

[Kastrel]

Most secured cards are designed for people who have a demonstrated history of being uncreditworthy. Thus, they have fees or a high APR or both built into them, because people who get secured cards don't have a better alternative. You haven't fucked up, so you do have better alternatives. Never, ever, ever get a credit card with annual fees unless the card gives you something that is worth more than the fee.

Hmm, gotcha.

[diethx]

I was told that adding someone as a authorized user on a good account will instantly give them all the credit history tied to the good account. Could always try that.

lolwut?

Yeah I don't think this happens. I've been an authorized user on someone's account and I didn't get their credit history.

[Bobmuhthol]

No records like receipts or the remittance portion of any bill you pay you mean?Yeah, that's what I want to do, pay for cash with everything and file a bunch of receipts. Also, what bills are you paying with cash, what the fuck?

[Buckwheet]

lolwut?

Yeah I don't think this happens. I've been an authorized user on someone's account and I didn't get their credit history.

http://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Understanding-FICO-Scoring/Authorized-Users-and-Credit-Scoring/td-p/1167913

[diethx]

Oh, maybe I misread what you were saying. You meant ONLY the credit card they were an authorized user on shows up. Yes, that is true.

I thought you were saying that once you add an authorized user, you share your good credit history with that person.

[Buckwheet]

So if his girl has 10 credit card accounts in wonderful standing she should add him as an AU and he will get ALL her credit history with the cards instantly. If they are 10 year old accounts the will appear on his report as a 10 year old accounts.

[Bobmuhthol]

http://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Understanding-FICO-Scoring/Authorized-Users-and-Credit-Scoring/td-p/1167913This says that an authorized user gets the account for which they're authorized, not the credit history of the account owner. This used to be a big thing -- parents would list their 13 year old kids on their credit cards, so when the kid turned 18 they would have fantastic credit without ever actually having credit. People in that thread seem to think that this is still possible, but as far as I know it isn't. I think you need to be a cosigner now.

[Kastrel]

Well that certainly sounds like a potentially good move for OP. Would that hurt her at all?

[Buckwheet]

You get the ENTIRE history tied to the credit card account. It has ZERO impact to her unless he spends her money. She can just cut up the cards when they arrive if she wants. It will appear on his credit report as a 10 year old account if her account is ten years old because of the date of inception.

I am not saying he gets her credit entirely. It would be for every credit card account she adds him as an AU on. Not for things like loans and mortgages.

If she tanks her credit with the card company it also will impact him, but he can just call and have them remove him as a AU and it comes off his report.

[BriarFox]

If you can get approved for it, you might think about the American Express Blue Cash Preferred card. It gives you 6% back on groceries, 3% back on gas, 3% back on department stores, and 1% back on everything else. Annual fee is $75, but if you actually use the card for your groceries and gas and such, you get far, far more than that back. AmEx has paid me about $400 to use that card over the last year and a half. The nice thing is that you're buying this stuff anyway, so you're already budgeting for it. Then, you just pay it off in full at the end of every month. If you're interested in that card, I'll send you a referral link that gets you a bonus for signing up (I get one for referring you, too -- yay).

[Bobmuhthol]

There's no "partial" history, so stressing ENTIRE isn't saying much. What diethx and I were saying is that, for example, I can't make someone an authorized user on one of my credit cards and use it to pass through all of my credit. i.e., the person on the other end of the account doesn't matter (perfect credit means nothing), only the account itself.

[AnticorRifling]

Yeah, that's what I want to do, pay for cash with everything and file a bunch of receipts. Also, what bills are you paying with cash, what the fuck?

I didn't realize that if you didn't do it or want to do it then it couldn't be done.

I'll frequently go pay off a store card with cash. Spend 600 on shit for my garden on the store card, next time I'm in the store pay down the balance using cash because I'm there and it's easy....and they give me a receipt.

[Kastrel]

Doesn't American Express have issues with not being taken in a lot of places? When I worked retail, it was the least commonly appearing of our 4 big credit cards, and a lot of users had to ask if we took them because they were turned down all the time.

I don't think I spend $1250 on groceries a year, but if its 3% back on gas as well, yeah, I can see that helping.

EDIT: Also, I recall as a retailer that any time I had to call it in over the phone with American Express, it was the most difficult, time-consuming and least likely to work out in the end. The others were pretty flexible.

[AnticorRifling]

Doesn't American Express have issues with not being taken in a lot of places? When I worked retail, it was the least commonly appearing of our 4 big credit cards, and a lot of users had to ask if we took them because they were turned down all the time.

I don't think I spend $1250 on groceries a year, but if its 3% back on gas as well, yeah, I can see that helping.

Maybe in the late 80s early 90s. AMEX has a pretty solid foot print now.

[Bobmuhthol]

I didn't realize that if you didn't do it or want to do it then it couldn't be done.

I'll frequently go pay off a store card with cash. Spend 600 on shit for my garden on the store card, next time I'm in the store pay down the balance using cash because I'm there and it's easy....and they give me a receipt.Yeah, we're fundamentally different people... you get credit cards from stores.

I get turned down trying to use American Express all the time. The worst is when a place takes Discover and not American Express. I have a Mastercard, 2 Visa, and 2 American Express, and each has its purpose.

[Buckwheet]

There's no "partial" history, so stressing ENTIRE isn't saying much. What diethx and I were saying is that, for example, I can't make someone an authorized user on one of my credit cards and use it to pass through all of my credit. i.e., the person on the other end of the account doesn't matter (perfect credit means nothing), only the account itself.

Yes I know this. I said the same thing myself. I am not saying he gets her full credit rating. He just gets the benefit of having a say 20 year old credit card account with flawless history added to his current report and it will also increase his credit line available while decreasing the ratio on the report. So once again. If she adds him as an authorized user to ANY number of credit cards he will get all the history of those specific accounts added to his report. The reason I said full is because people might thing it would show as NEW accounts on his report with a start month of the closing statement after she added him.

[AnticorRifling]

Yeah, we're fundamentally different people... you get credit cards from stores.

Why wouldn't I? Use the rewards, don't carry a balance worth a shit and you're golden. Carrying a balance with their retarded interest rates is a horrible idea but if you have the cash to pay it off why not use it?

[Kastrel]

Maybe in the late 80s early 90s. AMEX has a pretty solid foot print now.

Hmm, this was 2006-2011. Do you think they were just "remembering" back when they got turned down a lot?

[Bobmuhthol]

Why wouldn't I? Use the rewards, don't carry a balance worth a shit and you're golden. Carrying a balance with their retarded interest rates is a horrible idea but if you have the cash to pay it off why not use it?I do practically all of my shopping online and not at Kohl's/Best Buy/Sears/Macy's/Lowe's/whatever, so it wouldn't do anything for me. And working retail really gives you a horrible distaste for retail cards.

[BriarFox]

You really don't spend $1250 on groceries in a year? WHAT DO YOU EAT? But yeah, 6% groceries, 3% gas, 3% department stores, and 1% everything else. Just about every place I've been takes AmEx now, but it depends on your individual location, I suppose.

[AnticorRifling]

I do practically all of my shopping online and not at Kohl's/Best Buy/Sears/Macy's/Lowe's/whatever, so it wouldn't do anything for me. And working retail really gives you a horrible distaste for retail cards.

Fair enough. Yeah the retail cards can be horrid (and having to push them with every transaction probably got old as shit....lucky I just got to tackle people for stealing them).

[Buckwheet]

You really don't spend $1250 on groceries in a year? WHAT DO YOU EAT? But yeah, 6% groceries, 3% gas, 3% department stores, and 1% everything else. Just about every place I've been takes AmEx now, but it depends on your individual location, I suppose.

Doesn't work at Costco for 6% according to their customer service because Costco is not a grocery store. So I don't spend $1250 a year on groceries outside Costco. Shame.

[diethx]

This says that an authorized user gets the account for which they're authorized, not the credit history of the account owner. This used to be a big thing -- parents would list their 13 year old kids on their credit cards, so when the kid turned 18 they would have fantastic credit without ever actually having credit. People in that thread seem to think that this is still possible, but as far as I know it isn't. I think you need to be a cosigner now.

You don't - I was added as an authorized user only to my ex's Old Navy card. It did show up on my credit report and I did get the credit history for as long as I was an authorized user. I don't know if it affected my score, however. I just know that it showed up in my report.


If you can get approved for it, you might think about the American Express Blue Cash Preferred card. It gives you 6% back on groceries, 3% back on gas, 3% back on department stores, and 1% back on everything else. Annual fee is $75, but if you actually use the card for your groceries and gas and such, you get far, far more than that back. AmEx has paid me about $400 to use that card over the last year and a half. The nice thing is that you're buying this stuff anyway, so you're already budgeting for it. Then, you just pay it off in full at the end of every month. If you're interested in that card, I'll send you a referral link that gets you a bonus for signing up (I get one for referring you, too -- yay).

I may be interested in this - please send me a referral link as well as a link to the card description, etc?


I don't think I spend $1250 on groceries a year, but if its 3% back on gas as well, yeah, I can see that helping.

WTF, do you live off of ramen or something? Or do you just eat out a lot? I probably spend at least that each year in produce - probably more. Produce is expensive. :(


Why wouldn't I? Use the rewards, don't carry a balance worth a shit and you're golden. Carrying a balance with their retarded interest rates is a horrible idea but if you have the cash to pay it off why not use it?

I'm the same way - total sucker for store cards/rewards. I never carry a balance, and I love getting the added benefits for buying the shit I'm already going to buy.

[Bobmuhthol]

But yeah, 6% groceries, 3% gas, 3% department stores, and 1% everything else.I personally prefer 2% on everything over that and a $75 fee, but I'm like Kastrel and don't spend a lot on groceries, and $0 on gas.

[Kastrel]

You really don't spend $1250 on groceries in a year? WHAT DO YOU EAT? But yeah, 6% groceries, 3% gas, 3% department stores, and 1% everything else. Just about every place I've been takes AmEx now, but it depends on your individual location, I suppose.

I actually buy primarily pasta ingredients in very large quantities when its on sale. When I first started living on my own, I had a very, very small amount of money and fed myself for 6 months on about $125 (90 boxes of pasta at 50c per, $45, 45 jars of sauce at 70c per, $32ish, 25 boxes of 8-pack granola bars at about $2 per, $50). I don't normally buy so thriftily now, but I didn't go grocery shopping from January until July that year except for toiletries and such.

True story; I was banned from a Super Fresh because I had a cart with 80 jars of tomato sauce which were on sale. I assure you, I took no more than 1/3rd of their total stock.



WTF, do you live off of ramen or something? Or do you just eat out a lot? I probably spend at least that each year in produce - probably more. Produce is expensive. :(

Eating out is one of the reasons why I slowly shifted from my debit card to cash, and was losing track of my funds because it was too easy. I found that I was spending more in a year eating out once a weak than I was spending on groceries eating the other 6 and a half days. I'm trying really hard to only eat out on special occasions now. When I only have $25 in my wallet, going to a fast-food joint and spending half of that is annoying because it means I have to go back to the bank and withdraw more, so it discourages me from doing it.

But no, that price is the cost of 99% of the food I eat, period. I don't have a good estimate on how much I spend in a year these days because my finances aren't as tight, but it is definitely under $1000.

[BriarFox]

Here's a link to the AmEx Blue Cash Preferred: http://www304.americanexpress.com/getthecard/learn-about/BlueCash-Preferred

It looks like the referral campaign I used before is over, and I don't see a new link. Nonetheless, there's the card.

[Kastrel]

Thanks, I'll look into it!

Edit: Bobmuhthol, what is your take on AmEx? The rebate worth the annual fee?

I have low grocery costs, but high gas prices because I live in the middle of nowhere. Every school I have ever attended was 45 minutes away minimum (of course, that is irrelevant as of January), and any job is likely to be 30 or more away, same thing with visiting friends or going to other interesting places. Shopping of any sort is all 15-20 minutes.

[Bobmuhthol]

You really just need to estimate your annual spending in each category. I'm going to use a 2% card as a baseline, but it's technically your next best alternative no-fee card that you should compare it to. You're trying to solve the following equation:

.06 * Groceries + .03 * Gas + .03 * Department stores + .01 * Everything else - 75 = x * (Groceries + Gas + Department stores + Everything else). If x is less than 2%, go for a 2% cash back on everything card. If x is larger, go for the Blue Cash Preferred.

Alternatively, you can look into other credit cards that have no annual fee. I know a few people with Bank Americard (they don't have Bank of America checking accounts), and it's something like 3% groceries, 2% gas, 1% everything else. So unless the extra 3% on groceries and 1% on gas is going to give you $75 a year, that would be the better choice.

[Tisket]

having to push them with every transaction probably got old as shit....

This is one of my pet peeves. I don't appreciate being fucking MUGGED each time I stand at a cash register. I DON'T WANT TO DONATE ONE DOLLAR TO SAVE THE DOLPHINS. I JUST WANT TO BUY MY GALLON OF MILK!

Fucking gangsters.

[Kastrel]

You really just need to estimate your annual spending in each category. I'm going to use a 2% card as a baseline, but it's technically your next best alternative no-fee card that you should compare it to. You're trying to solve the following equation:

.06 * Groceries + .03 * Gas + .03 * Department stores + .01 * Everything else - 75 = x * (Groceries + Gas + Department stores + Everything else). If x is less than 2%, go for a 2% cash back on everything card. If x is larger, go for the Blue Cash Preferred.

Just for clarification purposes, what qualifies as department stores generally?

EDIT: Better question is, how broadly would they be defining department stores?

[Bobmuhthol]

Macy's, JCPenney, probably Kohl's, probably Target, I can't think of other obvious ones off the top of my head. The large stores you'd find in a mall, generally.

[BriarFox]

Sears, Hudson's, Neiman Marcus, Kmart, etc., I think. I don't really know, though; I rarely shop in department stores and use this card. Just groceries and gas for me.

[Originate]

this doesn't relate to OP, but I have been lead to believe that medical claims that are sent to collections do not affect your score adversely, can anyone confirm or deny this?...

[Kastrel]

You list Kmart and Target between the two of you, what about Walmart? I have three Walmarts closer to me than any of the closest Kmarts or Targets.

[Bobmuhthol]

I don't think Walmart will count, personally, but I can't point to anything either way.

[Bobmuhthol]

this doesn't relate to OP, but I have been lead to believe that medical claims that are sent to collections do not affect your score adversely, can anyone confirm or deny this?...I am fairly confident that this will affect your score.

[Kastrel]

I don't think Walmart will count, personally, but I can't point to anything either way.

Weird double standard, but I guess thats why I asked.

[Bobmuhthol]

This might be worth looking at: http://creditcardforum.com/rewards/3496-target-walmart-not-counted-dept-stores.html

Also keep in mind that the grocery thing is for "stand-alone" grocery stores. It wouldn't work in a BJ's/Costco anyway, but say you bought groceries in a similar, accepted store -- you wouldn't get the 6% because it has to apply at the store level, and not the item level.

[Kastrel]

So it would have to be Giants, Safeways, Mars, Food Lion, sorts of things? Thats fine, I usually shop there anyway.

Shame Superfresh closed, they had the best deals.

[Bobmuhthol]

None of those things exist near me, so I'll assume you're in the South since I know I've seen Food Lion down there, and then further assume that those would count.

[Kastrel]

Huh, what super-markets are near you? I'm in Maryland, which southern states consider north and northern states consider south. The great middle-child.

[Bobmuhthol]

Shaw's, Hannaford, Market Basket (which only exists in New England).

[Kastrel]

Damn, yeah, never heard of them. I never realized grocery stores were so regionally based.

[BriarFox]

Yeah, everywhere I've lived has had its own grocery stores, which probably has something to do with supply chain logistics and produce markets. Meijer and L&L in Michigan, King Super in Colorado, Giant Eagle in Columbus, and Stop and Shop and Hannaford and Shaw's and so forth in Boston. There's the Piggly Wiggly down south, too. Kroger is all over the place, though.

[AnticorRifling]

Meijer is all through Indiana as well.

[Parkbandit]

this doesn't relate to OP, but I have been lead to believe that medical claims that are sent to collections do not affect your score adversely, can anyone confirm or deny this?...

Deny.

They do.

[Latrinsorm]

As someone who has basically 0 credit, rather than bad credit, and has no credit cards (or knowledge of them since I have NEVER used them), what would be the best kind of credit card for me to pick up?Get a pink one!
Part of the problem is that I don't officially have my own mailbox. Due to quirks with my grandmother's house (which I inherited) it doesn't seem to have its own actual address, and all mail goes through them. Not only does it make it a lot easier for them to just do it as they do it now, it makes it very inconvenient to get my own mail, further complicated by the fact that I share a name with my father, meaning all my mail "looks like their" mail. I need to move to change this, and I'd like to be prepared for said move, rather than hold off on any progress until that moment.Change your name to P!nk Yourlastname!
Unless I suddenly inherent my family's wealth in the next year or two, I'm not just going to ignore it.Let's talk assassins...
I love Mint so, so very much.I miss Mint. Not that much, that would be weird.
WTF, do you live off of ramen or something? Or do you just eat out a lot? I probably spend at least that each year in produce - probably more. Produce is expensive.Men don't need produce the way ladies do, though.

[diethx]

Yeah, everywhere I've lived has had its own grocery stores, which probably has something to do with supply chain logistics and produce markets. Meijer and L&L in Michigan, King Super in Colorado, Giant Eagle in Columbus, and Stop and Shop and Hannaford and Shaw's and so forth in Boston. There's the Piggly Wiggly down south, too. Kroger is all over the place, though.

I wish we had Meijer and Giant Eagle here in Georgia. When I used to do a lot of couponing, I'd post on a forum dedicated to that and some of the ladies would post amazing deals from those stores!

I do love my Publix, though.

[diethx]

Men don't need produce the way ladies do, though.

Can you overdose on strawberries? If so, I think I am near doomed.

[Thondalar]

Can you overdose on strawberries? If so, I think I am near doomed.

The Florida Strawberry Festival is held every year about 30 minutes from my house...if this was possible I think I would have died years ago.

-Thond

[diethx]

Whew, that's a relief.

[Thondalar]

...I do love my Publix, though.


This.


-Thond

[Taernath]

Hmm, this was 2006-2011. Do you think they were just "remembering" back when they got turned down a lot?

American Express is better than it used to be, but there were a few times in the past couple of years where I noticed that a place only accepted Visa or MasterCard.

[AestheticDeath]

The best way to fix bad credit is: Time. Shit that was bad before will drop off and no longer be part of your credit history. I'm working with my oldest daughter right now to build up her credit. We basically took out a loan in her name and it's automatically taken out of her checking account each month. But she's different.. she had no credit history before, where your credit history was bad.

Go through your credit report and get old stuff taken off it by closing those accounts that you no longer use and have been paid off. If it's really bad, go through a reputable credit recovery company to help you.. it'll still take time, but far less time than you waiting to have things drop off.

Don't forget the time component to the second part. Just closing an account won't take it off your record immediately. Closed accounts will still stay on your record for a certain amount of time.

[Bobmuhthol]

Closing a delinquent account doesn't make it any less delinquent. 2 years for payment stuff, 7 years for civil court and bankruptcy.

[Delias]

My advice is as worthless as my 780 credit score. Instead of getting a credit card, just get a bunch of lotto tickets. They don't have an annual fee, plus you WILL become a millionaire if you buy enough of them.

[Tgo01]

My advice is as worthless as my 780 credit score. Instead of getting a credit card, just get a bunch of lotto tickets. They don't have an annual fee, plus you WILL become a millionaire if you buy enough of them.

Speaking as someone who works for the state lottery I must agree with this 100%.

[Bobmuhthol]

My advice is as worthless as my 780 credit score. Instead of getting a credit card, just get a bunch of lotto tickets. They don't have an annual fee, plus you WILL become a millionaire if you buy enough of them.You don't get a better credit score by being smart with your money. I'm 22 and have a 763, so I'm not sure why you think you're going to credit-intimidate me.

[Delias]

You don't get a better credit score by being smart with your money. I'm 22 and have a 763, so I'm not sure why you think you're going to credit-intimidate me.

Because I'm 31 and have less to live for, and am thus meaner than you.

[Rallorick]

Maybe it's the accountant in me, but you just made my skin crawl. lol

Just saying... I'm an accountant, and I haven't balanced a checkbook since the made my information available on this interweb thing... apparently, it's a pretty big deal.

[diethx]

You aren't a very good accountant, clearly.

[Alfster]

So if his girl has 10 credit card accounts in wonderful standing she should add him as an AU and he will get ALL her credit history with the cards instantly. If they are 10 year old accounts the will appear on his report as a 10 year old accounts.

I sort of have this now from what I can see.

My parents credit card shows up on my history - and it's in wonderful status. I've been a "cardholder" since I was apparently 5 years old - so roughly 25 - 26 years. It's clear that the card's actively being used and paid off every month...

I'm not convinced this is what picked my credit score up, but based on my history...a 730 seems incredibly high for all of the bills I stopped paying on in college.

[AestheticDeath]

If your girl has a problem with 730, dump her.

edit - tho, from the first post I can't see you saying 730 is piss poor unless her 'flawless' is actually a real 850 FICO. So perhaps you just got your number and figured out it isn't as bad as you thought it was.

[Rallorick]

You aren't a very good accountant, clearly.

yes... I am a terrible accountant, circa 1976...

[AestheticDeath]

And getting beyond the actual scores. If for whatever reason, you are set on the jet ski. I would suggest using a couple of low % CCs if you have access to getting them. 10% or less. So like 2 credit cards with a 6k limit, 10% or less interest, and put 2k or less on each one, staying under 30%. (Or one card with a 12-15k limit, putting 4k on it - however you can get the cards to work out - but I would think multiple cards doing this would give a better result raising a credit score - assuming you don't count a possible negative side affect of having new accounts. Whatever small negative you get from new cards, should be more than offset by positive payments and getting them cleared quickly.)

I don't see options 1-3 helping as much. Make sure the CCs are in your name only, not hers, not your parents. No cosigning. And then of course pay the min on one each month, and the other get it paid off ASAP with bigger installments, then do the same with the second. You should do some Bobmuhthol type math and figure out the specifics of how much income you have to dedicate to paying off the balances, and make sure you aren't going to miss payments or pay too much in interest. If you cannot pay off the 4k in 6 months or so I wouldn't suggest doing it. Without doing math, since I hate it, I wouldn't be surprised at having to pay an extra $500-$1000 or something if you take a year to pay off 4k.

Or save more cash, make sure you have a CC that will cover the whole jet ski. Use the CC to buy it in full, Pay off the CC before/when you get the bill. My friend had some really good luck raising his credit score, and more quickly the actual credit limit on a card, buying something fairly large, and immediately paying it off in full. They kind of want to stick it to you with interest so if you can pay off 5k that quick, they will give you 8 or 10k limit instead, and hope you hang yourself.

[4a6c1]

Okay, dumb question. Why is good credit needed? I have "fair"credit from when I was married but I've paid off quite a few large purchases since then - no change. Otherwise, I don't do credit cards, no debt. I'll never buy a house so I guess it doesn't really bother me. I don't see a reason other than that to have good credit...

[Tgo01]

Okay, dumb question. Why is good credit needed? I have "fair"credit from when I was married but I've paid off quite a few large purchases since then - no change. Otherwise, I don't do credit cards, no debt. I'll never buy a house so I guess it doesn't really bother me. I don't see a reason other than that to have good credit...

If you never use a credit card, never get a mortgage, never finance a car and never rent a house/apartment then good credit is pointless for the most part. Of course if you're this type of person you're either part of the evil 1% or you probably live in a part of India that doesn't have indoor plumbing.

[AestheticDeath]

Okay, dumb question. Why is good credit needed? I have "fair"credit from when I was married but I've paid off quite a few large purchases since then - no change. Otherwise, I don't do credit cards, no debt. I'll never buy a house so I guess it doesn't really bother me. I don't see a reason other than that to have good credit...

Car insurance in some cases use credit scores to raise your premium. Why exactly do you say you won't buy a house, do you already have one and never intend on moving? Or always plan on renting or something? What about a vehicle? Do you need one, have one? Ever need to replace one, and not have enough cash to buy it outright? Etc..

And if nothing else you can do some meaningless bragging to your friends letting them know how much more awesome your credit score is than theirs!

[4a6c1]

If you never use a credit card, never get a mortgage, never finance a car and never rent a house/apartment then good credit is pointless for the most part. Of course if you're this type of person you're either part of the evil 1% or you probably live in a part of India that doesn't have indoor plumbing.

lol I don't understand this at all. I don't have trouble renting. I've looked into getting a new car and it's not economical but they did preapprove me. I've gotten loans for large purchases (that were paid off almost immediately after). It must not be as bad as I think it is if it's not bothering me.


Car insurance in some cases use credit scores to raise your premium. Why exactly do you say you won't buy a house, do you already have one and never intend on moving? Or always plan on renting or something? What about a vehicle? Do you need one, have one? Ever need to replace one, and not have enough cash to buy it outright? Etc..

And if nothing else you can do some meaningless bragging to your friends letting them know how much more awesome your credit score is than theirs!

I like to move a lot, I don't want to settle. I have land up north for when I get old (also paid for in the last 4 years with large lump sums and not budging my credit). I could get a new car but I love my car. If I had to replace it tomorrow I would have to get a loan.

What's your credit score AD? brag. So I can go oooooooh your numbers are SO LARGE

[Tgo01]

lol I don't understand this at all. I don't have trouble renting. I've looked into getting a new car and it's not economical but they did preapprove me. I've gotten loans for large purchases (that were paid off almost immediately after). It must not be as bad as I think it is if it's not bothering me.

Not all landlords look at a person's credit rating but some do. A good credit score would get you better interest rates. You may either have a goodish credit score or you got the loans but you got shitty rates.

[AestheticDeath]

On the car thing, its the same as a house, the better your score, the better your interest rate. Getting approved for a loan is really easy. I've seen people with sub 600s get approved. But they pay out the nose on interest. In my mind, if you might ever be in need of getting a new car, or a loan on a used car, you need to be able to get the best interest rate available - or keep trying to improve your score to the point where you can, just in case. Kind of like having a semi large CC, that you only use for emergency. It's just about planning ahead sometimes... whatever.

On my score, like I just said 'meaningless bragging' - that whole last sentence was a joke. But I obviously fail at communication. I think I said earlier in the thread mine is not so great since I have a black mark. Last I checked Aug 2012, Experian was 757. This Feb TransUnion was raised to 862, which I would assume means Experian is higher as well. So I am like 90% or less of the score either would max at. Which is probably just average. My late payment falls off my report this July though I believe. Yippee...

And since I fail at communication, I failed to see if your last sentence was a joke, or if you were insulting me. I don't recall if you were one of my regular 'haters'.

[4a6c1]

I won't pretend I'm anything but a sarcastic bitch but this time, no... I was just being silly.

Heh. So I never really pay on loan interest because I pay them off immediately but I guess they are usually large...I just don't worry about it.

757 WHOAAAAA AD HAS BIG NUMBERS DOES IT HURT TO WALK (this is obvious trolling)

AD, do you have haters? Don't let online nobodies get you down. It doesn't really matter what any of us think. Do we know you?

[Bobmuhthol]

You never pay interest because you pay off your loans immediately? That's equivalent to "I never borrow money."

[SHAFT]

Someone give alfster a quiz. See if he learned anything

[Stretch]

I was told that adding someone as a authorized user on a good account will instantly give them all the credit history tied to the good account. Could always try that.

This used to be true universally. The latest FICO formulas have supposedly tamped down the benefit of authorized user tradelines to make it harder for people to "borrow" someone else's good credit history, but I don't know if existing AUs were grandfathered in.

[Chilango2]

This used to be true universally. The latest FICO formulas have supposedly tamped down the benefit of authorized user tradelines to make it harder for people to "borrow" someone else's good credit history, but I don't know if existing AUs were grandfathered in.

Based off my admittedly personal experience (the plural of anecdote is not data)....I had done some damage to my own credit history in my early 20's and when my wife added me as an AU to her cards it definitely helped my credit rating not insignificantly. I mean, it wasn't magic, but it did help, and made my effort to get a few credit cards which I would then keep low balances on and pay on a regular monthly basis to boost it further project much easier. And this was reasonably recently, she added me as an AU sometime in the last year or two.