Six Red Hot Ways to Build Great Credit
Credit is often the first thing that lenders, banks, and even employers look at. They want to see how responsible you are in general, and the easiest way to do that is to check your credit score. If you have a low credit score and are looking to raise it, or if you are just starting out and want to build a good score from the beginning, check out the below tips.
Choose Credit Cards Carefully
The most important step to building a good credit score is choosing the right credit card. You want to look for a few things while choosing a card, including: transfer fees (zero transfer balance fee is best), spending limit (higher is not necessarily better), and annual fees. I highly recommend that you choose one of the many credit cards with no transfer balance fee, and if you can find one, a card without an annual fee. A small fee may seem like nothing, but trust me – transfer balance fees add up VERY quickly.
Borrow From Friends and Family
If at all possible, I recommend borrowing from friends and family instead of banks or other companies. Why? Because whenever you borrow from a company, you run the risk of damaging your credit score, and on top of that, you are forced to pay high interest. And just like you want credit cards with no balance transfer fee, you want loans with low or no interest.
Don’t Spend More Than You Can Pay
This one may seem obvious, but overspending forces millions in to debt, and damages their credit scores, often permanently. You may be thinking, well, my card – no transfer balance, right? Low interest, right? Why not spend a lot? BAD IDEA. Never spend more than you can afford to pay back.
Don’t Be Tempted By Reward Schemes
Many credit companies offer you a no fee transfer balance credit card and a great reward system in order to encourage you to spend more. Don’t be fooled! First of all, cards with good reward programs usually have higher interest or annual fees, so in the end it ends up about the same. On top of that, these reward schemes exist for the sole purpose of making you spend more – which ultimately leads to debt and a poor credit score.
Negotiate With Credit Companies
Believe it or not, you can actually negotiate with your credit company. Especially in an economy like this, these companies are prepared to do whatever they can to help you out. They will often offer you a custom payment system, low fees, or something similar. Remember, just because they are a big company doesn’t mean that they won’t negotiate.
Use Local Banks
Many people don’t trust local banks, credit unions, etc. However, in reality, smaller banks are almost always better for you and your credit than large banks. Local banks often offer no fee transfer balance credit on your cards from them, and on top of that, they offer much lower rates as far as loans and cash advances.
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