Thread: How to build credit fast with no credit history?

The problem: I'm 25 and have almost no credit history. I want to build credit fast. I applied for a Kohl's card about 5 months ago and got declined, because I had absolutely no credit. Since then, I found out about getting a signed secured loan from my credit union, which I guess is borrowing my own money, and paying myself back (losing a lil money to the bank for interest) to build some credit history. I've put 2 payments down on a 12 month auto-pay system so far..so I guess I've got 2 months of history paid on time?

Now..I want to buy an 800 dollar dslr camera from best buy. They have a credit card, which I almost want to apply for, to see if I could put it on there to start paying off and building faster credit score..rather than just history(from the loan thing in p1). If I sign up, it says I can get an approval or denial in 60 seconds.

If I get approved, but for a low amount, can I decline to get the actual card? Will this hurt my credit?
Will they tell me what limit they'll allow me to have?
I've read stories about them giving out 300 dollar credit lines..that doesn't go very far to 800 dollars, but honestly, I don't care..I can / will just buy it out right with cash, cuz I've got more than enough..I just want to build some credit here since I have almost no history.
If I get a card with 300 dollars, is it considered wise to say..put 90 on the card, pay the rest cash, and just pay that off over the 18 month no interest duration?

My biggest problem right now is, this thing is on sale..and I need to get the sale price, and I don't know when that resets. Hope I can get a credit card pro to help out..

That loan will help big time, but if you have no history at all it'll take a few months before it shows up. The last thing you want to do is have a ton of inquiries show up as soon as you have a report, so don't go applying for cards like crazy. See if you can get a secured card through a small local bank or credit union, with maybe a small $500 or so loan that you can pay off in 2 months. Having a couple of paid off accounts will help you a ton.

Another good thing to check out is whether or not you can get an unsecured card from a local bank or credit union with a co-signer. I know my local credit union hands out VISAs to people with new or bad credit if they have a relative co-sign for them. On that same note, having a relative add you as an authorized user on a very old card with almost no utilization and a decent limit with no late payments or anything helps a ton. My dad added me to a 10 year old account as an authorized user and my scores started to leap sky high.

Building your credit will take a lot of patience. You won't have cards you want for at least a year or so - longer if you actually waste inquiries applying for them.

Give yourself 6 months between appling for new credit. Let your new account age some first. Pay with cash, it is always the best any way. If your worried about a sale at Bestbuy, it will probably be on sale again and again. Or go to Amazon.com everything is always cheaper there.

You will need to well round yourself to build a good score. You need more than just credit cards. Things like ultility bills in your name, car loans and mortgage loans help with deversity on your credit report and will increase your score much faster.

Watch out for some gas cards and small banks. Make sure they report to the bureaus or it's not worth your time.

When I went through college I had no credit history of any kind and then when I graduated I was getting denied left and right for apartments, car loans and whatever I applied for. I did a few things to build up my credit but it is too early to tell yet how fast it is gonna help me.

-dad added me onto his Amex gold card.
-mom added me to her car loan through Lexus financial
-got a secured card through my bank

Been about 4 months with all this on record.

Does using your credit card to spend more $$$ monthly increase your credit score at a faster rate? For example, if I just used my credit card to make 30 $10 purchases in one month, will that increase my credit score as fast as using that card to make 30 purchases $20 purchases in a month.. or 50 $40 dollar purchases?

Would getting 4 different credit cards (that all report to the 3 bureaus) and making a small number of purchases on each card increase my credit score faster than using one card for all purchases?

(btw, I have no established credit) but I just moved and have lots of stuff to buy, so I'm wondering How I can get an excellent credit rating as fast as possible (and I know it will probably take years, no matter what).

Other than Credit cards, any suggestion on how to increase my credit score fast?

Thanks for your help!