bad credit or no credit?

[cohan99]

I've been out of work for more than 10 years, therefore, I've had no credit cards or loans during this period. I recently got back to the work force and want to get my credit back on track. Since I don't know how my credit looks like and don't have anything recent in my credit report, does my credit will be considered as bad credit or no credit? I recently applied for a Capital One Card and got approved a low credit line. But I also applied for an Orchard Bank Card and got denied. Is there another easier way to get credit? any other cards that are easy to get approved? perhaps department store cards?

[disneysteve]

Is there another easier way to get credit?

Why are you trying to get credit? Are you looking to buy a house, finance a car, go into debt for something else?

Since you were approved for the Capital One card, work with that for now. Use it each month to charge no more than 30% of the credit line, so if you have a $1,000 line, charge less than $300. Pay it off in full and on time every month. After you do that for 6 months, you can probably call them and request an increase in the credit line. Continue to charge no more than 30% of the line and pay it in full and on time. That will help.

You said you don't know how your credit looks. Get a free copy of your credit report from annualcreditreport.com. You can also choose to purchase your credit score from myfico.com, though unless you are looking to take on debt for something, I'm not sure why you'd need to do so.

[vips]

Credit score can definitely affect every aspect of our life from what we do in our home till the our presence in outside areas. To get credit we can start from bank, cosigners, collateral which is based on personal loan and vehicle loan. There are certain ways which start credits from parents credit habits.

[bjl584]

I've been out of work for more than 10 years, therefore, I've had no credit cards or loans during this period. I recently got back to the work force and want to get my credit back on track. Since I don't know how my credit looks like and don't have anything recent in my credit report, does my credit will be considered as bad credit or no credit? I recently applied for a Capital One Card and got approved a low credit line. But I also applied for an Orchard Bank Card and got denied. Is there another easier way to get credit? any other cards that are easy to get approved? perhaps department store cards?

You will have "ghost credit." Not bad, just non existant. The easist way to build credit is to get a card with no annual fee. Start charging a few everyday purchases like gas and groceries. Then, pay off the bill IN FULL each and EVERY month. Your credit will build in no time.

[timothygroom]

Hi there! Very interesting discussion. What if I'm looking to buy a house or finance a car while I have no credit. I'm working for 4 months only (this is my firs job) and I have a Capital One Card for 4 moths with a $1,000 line which are paid off regularly and on time every month. How do you think when I should apply for a credit to buy a house or how much time it will take to have a good credit score?

[MiaVitug]

I agree with @bjl584..

You have a "ghost credit" and it's not bad.. Everyone started with a ghost credit lol
Just build up with one (Capital One) first since you're not yet really looking into getting loans right away, right? If you have managed to build good credit with that and then interested in building with another one, then go for it long as you can manage having good credit with both banks

[Nightfly]

@timothygroom: I don't think any lender will touch you in the current credit environment with such a short job history for a home loan. Besides, you really shouldn't be thinking about shouldering a mortgage (or hefty car loan) yet anyway. As for the OP, Capital One is a good start - their interest rates are through the roof but you can always switch to another card in about six months. Don't bother with Orchard if Capital approved you, their cards are "secured".

[dh1989]

I applied for a few credit cards when I turned 18. Denied for every one. I had to get a secured card for a few months. After that the credit offers wouldn't stop coming.. (this was back in 2007).

Your score is going to look low but your credit report will show the reason (lack of credit). Expect to get denied for a lot of things for a while. I tried to pull an unsecured $500 loan from my credit union at an extremely low interest rate just to help build my credit history. This was back when my score was still in the 600s. I was denied. I had over $20,000 in liquid assets at the time and could prove it. Still denied - explanation: lack of credit history.

After 4 yrs of having a couple cards that I pay off every month I have a 760 credit score.

[vitalogist]

Building your credit takes time. Since you have a card, use it often and even max it out. The important thing is to pay the bill every month.

[kv968]

Building your credit takes time. Since you have a card, use it often and even max it out. The important thing is to pay the bill every month.

I wouldn't suggest maxing it out since doing so will show that you're using 100% of your available credit which is a factor they look at when determing your credit score. As Steve suggested, just charge up to something like 30% of available credit and pay it in full every month. High credit utilization could hurt your score.

[disneysteve]

Building your credit takes time. Since you have a card, use it often and even max it out.

I wouldn't suggest maxing it out since doing so will show that you're using 100% of your available credit which is a factor they look at when determing your credit score. As Steve suggested, just charge up to something like 30% of available credit and pay it in full every month. High credit utilization could hurt your score.

Absolutely. DO NOT max out your credit line. Don't even come close. Once you get over about 30%, it actually starts lowering your credit score.