British Expatriate Network

Thanks for making a "finance" board, by the way. smile

Some of you will remember my predicament here - no debt therefore no credit record, and I'm following up on your advice to look for a secured credit card to start building a history. BUT... there are so many of them! Some don't report at all, and others charge exorbitant fees, set-up, account maintenance, etc., and actually use up all the line of credit with fees. I just wondered if there was one in particular any of you could recommend.

By the way, I mentioned under another topic that I found a Capital One card described as being specifically for people "new to the country". Apparently their info was misleading, since the declined me and gave as reasons that I did not have sufficient credit history!! Go figure that one out! I tried calling them up and after about 20 minutes of talking to machines I got through to a human who actually told me they don't have information on the web offers!

Please bear in mind this info is 20 years old, but should still work.

Start with the major Department stores. JC Penny etc Get two or three and USE them.
After about six months apply for a Major credit card. It worked for us.

Hint you or hubby should have a job of course.

I remember those days only too well. Good Luck!

Surely the way to go dept store cards are the easy way and at this time of year are a litle easier to obtain they ALL report to the credit agency and there is not usually a start up fee .

When i declared backrupcy in the 80s i used them to start building up my shattered credit and was successfull in getting a decent rate C/C within a year .

buy something you can afford to pay of and do it in a few months ,dont forget to use ALL of whatever credit line they grant you.

I even bought things on the card and took them back unopened a few weeks later ,that shows up on your credit detail as a credit paid in full in a short time , get them to increase your amount as soon as you can and get as many as you can , pay them all off in a short time . if you are lucky enought you might qualify for one of the *12 months same as cash cards* these are usually for purchases over $300 and if you pay the full amount within 12 months NO interest is charged .

to use up all the credit on the card without buying something you dont need use them to buy groceries, gas , etc save the money you would have spent had you paid cash and pay them of as soon as you get the bill . Usually no interest is charges if you pay the whole amount within 30 days

Beat them by playing the game with there rules and they beat themselves .


smile

Do you have a bank account here, celticana? If so, why not make an appointment to ask them for advice -they maybe have a secured card service themselves that they just don't advertise.

Can you get your name added to some of hubby's cards/loans as a co-borrower rather than just a secondary card holder? Is there a mortgage on your house?

I have to differ on a couple of things with previous posters. You should not get a lot of cards. Credit score is counted partly on the total maximum credit of all your credit cards, so you should limit yourself to two or three. By all means check with your bank, although they have probably contracted out to one of the big organizations. Perhaps if you want to buy a fairly high value item, secure a loan from your bank, using the cash. When it is paid back, you will be on the way. Ask the manager about it.

These days people just out of bankruptsy can get cards at high interest because they can't go bankrupt again for, I think, five years.

Sometimes, you can get credit for a single item, housewares or such, from department stores. That would be a start if it is still possible.

Here's a useful site for those who don't already know about credit ratings

http//www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/credit/scoring.htm

I agree with londonsquare that you should not get as many cards as you possibly can when starting out on your rating. For a start, the more applications you make, the lower your rating. I also disagree about taking them up to the max. But I think you already know this and are asking for a recommendation from someone who did the secured card route so you don't have to apply to lots, right? Let me hunt a little -I didn't need to use this route, but I may be able to find someone who did.

Meanwhile, who's name is on your household bills? I understand most utilities companies report. Do you have a mobile phone? Try getting your name on some non-credit cardthings which report. The mortgage would be best.

Do you work? could you take a job just to get your own income which makes you more credit-worthy?

Here's a useful site for those who don't already know about credit ratings

http//www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/credit/scoring.htm

I agree with londonsquare that you should not get as many cards as you possibly can when starting out on your rating. For a start, the more applications you make, the lower your rating. I also disagree about taking them up to the max. But I think you already know this and are asking for a recommendation from someone who did the secured card route so you don't have to apply to lots, right? Let me hunt a little -I didn't need to use this route, but I may be able to find someone who did.

Meanwhile, who's name is on your household bills? I understand most utilities companies report. Do you have a mobile phone? Try getting your name on some non-credit cardthings which report. The mortgage would be best.

Do you work? could you take a job just to get your own income which makes you more credit-worthy?

alrighty, then. I've bumped a few relevant topics for you -there are more, just search the site using "secured credit".

hth

My suggestion, since you live in TX would be this one:
http://www.wellsfargo.com/credit_cards/s...d/secured/

Open it with the minimum $300; decline the optional Rewards program and any other rubbish they try to sell with it including the worthless insurance. Cost is $19/year. Try to spend around $60/month on it; never let the amount go over $150.
Pay it off in full and on time every month. Around 9 months after opening it, apply for an unsecured card such as a Discover -- they don't mind short credit histories too much.

Cap1 have an 'r' missing in second place. Avoid if poss. Wells Fargo are hardly saints but their shark-like activities are mainly relegated to their subprime arm using the name WF Financial rather than endemic throughout the whole organization.

Yep, had a bank account ever since I came over - always in the black. Compass Bank - they were the first to turn me down too. They apparently don't have a secured card, but do secured loans, which I might have to use as a last resort.

Hubby doesn't have any credit cards either, so although he's a citizen, he has no credit history either. We rent the house. We actually want to build our credit history because of this - we obviously want the security of owning our own home.

Reading through the previous threads though, I noted that someone had his car insurance taken into account. I also pay mine monthly, so my first task in the morning is to call and ask them to report it!

To be honest, the whole situation here is just getting more and more depressing. I have never before lived in rented accomodation and it really grates on me that we have to pay dead money for rent. When "our" (our = my ex and mine) house was sold we agreed that most of the money that remained after paying off the mortgage would be divided up between our three sons - two of which are now looking at going to University in the next academic year, so they would not have to take out student loans.

You would require at least 4 separate lines with a history of at least a year and preferably two before you qualified for a conventional, prime mortgage at the best rates.

However, mortgages such as FHA or similar lenders with products using alternative scoring might allow you to bypass this requirement. Instead, you would be required to produce a job history and account payment history, e.g. utilities, rent, cell phone, cable company, etc of a year or more. Beyond that, 20 to 30 per cent down for a property will secure a mortgage without documentation.

Insurers will not post your payments to the credit bureaus since you are not borrowing money from them, nor can you default on a payment since it is prepaid. (Many insurers will, however, use the bureaus' data, to calculate your premiums!)

Your idea of borrowing your own money to get started will work. Remember to ensure that you pay minimal interest (FICO takes no account of the amount you pay in calculating the score) and that the loan lasts at least 6 months and preferably a year. One ay to do this is to take a loan for, say, $10k, pay $9k back on the first payment, and then dribble the rest on at $100/month or so until it's finished.

Our household bills vary, mostly though they are in my name. I've already tried this one - none of our utility companies report.

The job thing. Well, I'm a musician, specifically a choral conductor and director and breaking into my field over here is not as easy as one might think. Openings are very limited. I have also taught for a number of years, but had already decided I wouldn't go into a classroom over here. Now though, I'm considering substituting, although that brings on yet more probalems - accreditation. Since i gave up teaching 15 years ago there have been changes in the system back in the UK, and getting any verification of my past experience is an uphill taks.

I try to keep smiling though, and keep trying to think I'll get there in the end.

Thanks once again to all for your input which is much appreciated.

The utility companies do not report -- unless you default!

BUT, it is possible to get a mortgage without a credit report. I am guessing that your husband has both work and bill-paying history. If you have a down payment and shop aroundfor mortgages, you will get one. Mortgages are, surprisingly, one of the easiest loans to get without credit. You can hardly up and take the collateral with you should you default!

If you want to buy a property at this stage, you need to investigate FHA and FHA-type mortgages. If the purchase is a couple of years off, you need to start building a history of credit lines and a work history ASAP.

hmmm.....

In the UK it used to be considered credit, because you were expected to pay for a 12 month policy up front. If you didn't, the company "paid it for you", then you paid them back in (usually interest and service-charge free) monthly installments.

If you had no claims you could terminate it early and would get a refund to cover the unused portion of the insurance, but you may still owe them at that point because some of the premium was for set up costs which had to be paid in full regardless of how long the policy was held.

If you had an accident in that time, you were liable for all remaining payments, even if the car was written off.

Bit of a rip off, but maybe the person for whom this approach worked had a policy of this type?

Don't think that's going to work over here! If you go into your friendly State Farm office, take out, say, renters insurance on monthly payments, pay the first month and then never pay again. 10 months later you call 'em up and tell you've burnt down your apartment by leaving the chip pan on and also next door's, killing the only wage earner of a family of 6 and would they like to sort it out for you please! You will , of course, be happy to sort out what you owe 'em in terms of the premiums you missed...

AFAIK, the policies are cancelled pretty-well straight away if you don't pay -- state laws often mandate 30 days or so notice and those notices will be rushed out to you very soon after not receiving a payment. Not a great expert on insurance -- perhaps Manc'll chip in.

Presumably this is the reason for escrow accounts to pay your homeowners insurance, which are almost mandatory except for those with low LTV and high FICO. Here, you cannot fail to pay your insurance as the insurer will either pay on your behalf or the insurer will report to the lender if you fail to pay and the lender will add their own expensive and limited insurance to your payments. Failure to pay will result on a delinquency marked against your mortgage, not your insurance.

But I do read other people's credit reports very frequently. And insurers don't post! Insurers do use the data from credit reports to determine risk (though they usually have their own proprietary algorithm rather than FICO, I believe) -- another good reason for paying attention to credit scores. I seem to remember some insurance broker telling me that insurers themselves subscribed to a database that flagged those who take out a policy but default on payments. It's very common for someone to pay just one month to show the DMV, then default or simply cancel after their license and tabs are marked as good.