Possibly Idiotic Credit Question

Money Management
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A few weeks ago, my apartment managers informed all of the residents that the apartment complex was being torn down and rebuilt, so we had to be out within three months.

I found a place a mere 16 minute walk away that was (pretty much) perfect. I filled out the application, paid this, that, and the other fee, got a glowing recommendation from my current apartment managers, and everything looked good … and all that was left was a credit check.

I (foolishly) thought I would be fine, seeing as how I don’t buy anything on credit when I’m not working (thank you for that, frelling Covid), but apparently the credit report came back with a “No Credit History,” somehow ignoring a used car I bought with a secured loan about twelve years ago.

While the fact that a lot of folks were getting unemployment, turns out if you’re self-employed, that doesn’t work.

I also tried applying for one of those Covid-related business loans, but after filling out the first page of the application online, I found that I was not able to move to the next page.

That, of course, prompted an e-mail to Support, where I was told, “Well, it works just fine with Internet Explorer.”

I told her I was on a Mac, and asked why they hired a company to design their website that only designed for a specific web browser?

Still waiting to hear back on that, but not holding my breath.

Found another place – or more correctly, my apartment manager found a place for me – and I move in this weekend … but still, I can’t say I’m very happy about being turned down for credit because I don’t buy anything on credit.

All that said, I followed a link in a Penny Hoarder e-mail to this community to see what kind of things I could do to increase my credit score.

Sorry for the novel! ?

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How frustrating!!
When I was turned down at an apartment complex for my credit (self employed) , I offered to pay for several months deposit. It worked.

I also keep one credit card, use it for gas only, and pay it off monthly. That has helped increase my score.

Good luck with the technology. ?

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Buy only items that don’t cost much in which you can pay off the bill monthly. My electric bill is billed to one credit card monthly and my internet service is billed to another card, that way I keep them active.

Some other thoughts besides the above are like mentioned from KellyfromKeene, use it to buy gas or a pizza, or some other small purchase, meaning under $50.00 a month.

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@big.lew I knew a young lady years ago who paid all of her household bills on a credit card. She said it kept her organized and she liked making one large payment and getting it over with. I imagine it helped her credit as well. I could see myself doing that but only if the companies wouldn’t charge to process credit/debit payments; for example, CenterPoint gas. They don’t charge if you use your checking account. Still, I like the idea.

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It’s beyond frustrating when you are conducting your life in a mature responsibile manner, you’re penalized for it. Unfortunately, we live in a capitalist society that thrives on taking your money.

It wasn’t a novel. Thanks for sharing. Quick answer is obtain one card to “establish” and build credit. Your 12 year old loan is perhaps off of your history by now.

If you have a hard time getting one, go for a secure one through your bank or Discover. They won’t kill you in annual fees or high rates. Try a credit union first , if privy to one.

Happy housewarming and good luck Sorry for the novel?

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Thanks, Kelly!

Unfortunately, a local court has taken my driver’s license away because of an illegal U-turn I made back in 2014 to avoid driving a mile down a steep hill to turn around. He gave me the ticket, and made my non-stick-driving passenger drive my car for two miles while he followed.

Good thing I’m a good teacher!

Went to court, got fined $400 or so, payable in $25/month increments … and then that nasty cold snap hit the east coast, and particularly hard hit was the area my clients were in … so I missed a couple payments, and the debt was sent to “Bruno in Collections.”

Some author recommended not dealing with collection agencies, so I ignored Bruno and Friends (did I forget to mention the whole “lack of work” bit?).

Later, someone on YouTube recommended checking your credit report, so I did … and despite a sizable bill for a few Student Loans sitting on the table in front of me at the time, there was suddenly absolutely nothing on my record – including those loans and that ticket – so I called the courthouse and asked when I could get my license back.

The gal asked me for my name and license number, punched it into her computer, and told me my debt had been sold to (you guessed it …) another bill collector.

Got one phone call and one letter. They got no payments either.

Long story short, no car, no license, no job … so while a gas card might be good ordinarily, not in this case.

I am (fairly) sure I can get the VA to take care of the ticket and license situation, but thanks to that “gift that keeps on giving” known as Covid, the local office is closed, and calling leads to an answering machine, and nobody ever calls back.

Thanks, (insert lots of expletives HERE) Covid!

Pretty sure I can fix this, though.

–gdw

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@lisa.dean.king posted:

It’s beyond frustrating when you are conducting your life in a mature responsibile manner, you’re penalized for it. Unfortunately, we live in a capitalist society that thrives on taking your money.

It wasn’t a novel. Thanks for sharing. Quick answer is obtain one card to “establish” and build credit. Your 12 year old loan is perhaps off of your history by now.

If you have a hard time getting one, go for a secure one through your bank or Discover. They won’t kill you in annual fees or high rates. Try a credit union first , if privy to one.

Happy housewarming and good luck Sorry for the novel?

Thank you, Lisa! The idea of getting a credit card to pay bills has been suggested, and on further reflection is now do-able.

I signed up for an account at Credit Karma sometime back, and they have been hounding me to sign up for a credit card to help improve my credit.

I have a laptop in the shop that’s going to cost $400 for the repairs and upgrades, and will receive $2000 when I move into my new apartment tomorrow.

I was thinking I would put that $400 into a savings account, get the credit card, and use the $400 in savings to make the payments on the card.

Once that’s paid off, this laptop is also having issues with the video, and the same tech proposed moving my upgraded RAM sticks and that 1TB SSD into a newer body, so that’s another possibility.

I also have to get two of my steno machines cleaned and lubed, and both of those will cost about the same.

Oh, and a bit of good news!

I signed into my Xfinity account to let them know I was moving, and there was a reward in the amount of a $50 credit … so essentially, my internet fees will be $0.00 for the next five months (pats self on the back).

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i most certainly do feel guilt about spending money on anything i don’t need

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Hi - to answer your question on how to increase your credit score. Because you’re currently self-employed it may be harder to get a credit card with a lower APY. But I’d still try.

Namely, here are the steps that I’d do to increase your credit score from scratch:

  1. Try to get a regular credit card (Chase Freedom is a good way to start).

  2. If that fails, just get one of those really high APY cards that’ll just let anyone use their cards. Make sure there’s no annual fees or anything tricky that’ll cost you extra money though.

  3. Regardless of which credit card you’re able to end up with, you pay twice a month so you can 1) build up credit, while 2) have an effective 0 expense ratio (both of which will boost up your credit score), and 3) avoid having to pay any interest. You essentially want to be a “deadbeat customer” to credit card companies and pay 0 interest.

It may take a few months for your credit to start rising because without a credit card, your credit history is somewhat limited in terms of age.

–

https://www.goodmoneygoodlife.com

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Thanks, Angie.

In my last comment, I mentioned applying for a credit card and using it to pay off the repair bill for a laptop, which I will get to as soon as I go through all these boxes of stuff the movers were kind enough to pack for me (where is my iMac’s trackpad and keyboard?!?!), so I will do that Soonest.

–gdw

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wow its sad when our lives are all about having credit, my late husband taught me how to keep credit and not get in to debt when he passed away i had to find a place to live, where i could afford it on my own, and of course they did a credit check, thank god i had good credit and go into a senior complex that goes by your income credit seems to take over

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I believe your credit report only goes back 10 years. After returning to the workforce last year I applied for a credit card. Something i had never had before. It should by student loan which which is about 15 years old which I am still paying off. it ddid not show a car loan that I got in 2008 and was done with in 2009. While I wask able to get two cards although i had no employment history but had a perfect payment history on the student loan. Credit services advise to have about five accounts as a good measure. When applying for additonal cards this year, it come back that I don’t have enough accounts yet. For years I carefully managed to support my daughters with their child support payments. Even when they stopped when my youngest turned 18 I made it last till she was 20. The advice to pay twice a month is good. It keeps your kcredit utilzation lower which accounts for over 30% of your credit score. If you havenk’t already apply for one of the free credit report services.

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Signed up for a Discover it card. It’s a secured credit card that used your deposit to determine how much available credit you will allocated. Then use only 10% of the available credit each month for 6 months.

This will be a good start