[ryanmartini]

Hello everyone.

I came of the age 18 last year and 19 is coming up already in november! O.O Since I was age 16, I have had a few visa cards in my name linked to my mom's amx she uses for business, along with some personal cards. The result is that my credit has been built up to a nice starting point for me.
However, going through college, I want to continue building it so when I do enter the job market, I wont have such a hard time getting an appartment, a loan, etc.. I am thinking about maybe getting 1-2 cards, not VISA's , but store cards. I am thinking like a Newegg one and a gas card. Note: These are just ideas and I look forward to your comments

Also another thing I need to get around to doing is starting to save money. I was very fortunate to get some sums of money for my highschool graduation from my grandparents, and a few uncles and aunts who are well off. My Mom doesnt think I should invest it, which makes since, going into school, sitting in a higher yielding savings which is tangible, [no nasty fees] seems to be a good idea. So what are some words on this, and what are some good high yielding accounts to look at ?

Thank You senior oc members

-Ryan

[PhysX]

Do you have a cell phone? i dont know about down there, but up here having one can help your credit / build it as long as you pay the bill on time. thats an easy way

[benbaked]

Well, if you drive then a gas credit card is an idea. Also you could look at a student card for some department store, something with a limit of $100 or so. Those were my first two cards actually, a chevron card and a student card for the bon marche.

At your age you will not find a big time card (VISA/MC) with a reasonable interest rate, and a lot of the offers you'll get for the first couple of years you build your credit will have incredibly jacked up interest rates.

[Frodo Baggins]

There have been a few credit card threads around here, so do a search.

I remember in one of them, someone (Malpine?) posted a link to a site comparing different cards available to students. I did a quick search, but I couldn't find it.

[vogster]

I would say get a VISA. Use it to build credit. It doesn't have to have a really good APR or really high credit limit. If you use it to buy every day stuff and then pay it off every month and pay it off on time you will build credit and you won’t have to worry about the APR because you won’t ever have to pay interest. This is something you have to stay dedicated to though. If you start carrying a balance you can end up in trouble. I'm 25 and I have awesome credit because I have had a credit card since I was 16. What I explained above is all I did.

As for savings if you can save 10% of everything you make through you life you will be set. I don't know a ton about savings but my advice would be to look into Roth IRAs which is very long term but has good returns or a Money Market Account which is much more liquid but will have much smaller returns.

In reality I wouldn’t take financial advice from anyone on an internet forum.

[ryanmartini]

Originally Posted by vogster

I would say get a VISA. Use it to build credit. It doesn't have to have a really good APR or really high credit limit. If you use it to buy every day stuff and then pay it off every month and pay it off on time you will build credit and you won’t have to worry about the APR because you won’t ever have to pay interest. This is something you have to stay dedicated to though. If you start carrying a balance you can end up in trouble. I'm 25 and I have awesome credit because I have had a credit card since I was 16. What I explained above is all I did.

As for savings if you can save 10% of everything you make through you life you will be set. I don't know a ton about savings but my advice would be to look into Roth IRAs which is very long term but has good returns or a Money Market Account which is much more liquid but will have much smaller returns.

In reality I wouldn’t take financial advice from anyone on an internet forum.

There are alot of students in here, and I think I would benefit in the end from hearing their end of the story But yes, the final decision will come down to some more research and talks with our families accountant. Alas, I am more of a discussion geared person, and love to learn through talking and hearing others. So this is always my first stop

I have looked into the IRA's. Not sure how much is a good starting balance, still need to research some more on those.

Originally Posted by benbaked

Well, if you drive then a gas credit card is an idea. Also you could look at a student card for some department store, something with a limit of $100 or so. Those were my first two cards actually, a chevron card and a student card for the bon marche.

At your age you will not find a big time card (VISA/MC) with a reasonable interest rate, and a lot of the offers you'll get for the first couple of years you build your credit will have incredibly jacked up interest rates.

yeah i understand that. I am looking into some department store cards.

@Frodo I will continue to search for that comparison, thanks for mentioning

Originally Posted by PhysX

Do you have a cell phone? i dont know about down there, but up here having one can help your credit / build it as long as you pay the bill on time. thats an easy way

I do have one, but it is currently a branch on my Mom's executive-godlike line off of her work.

almost unlimited everything. SO we might have to see if the points earned through a cell phone are worth all the goodies Hehehe

[kraven]

Originally Posted by ryanmartini

Also another thing I need to get around to doing is starting to save money.
-Ryan

I recommend you start saving first while having a very small cap on a card. Take little steps so you don't hose yourself.

As for a high yield account, IRA or Roth IRA, whichever works best for you.

[SteveLord]

When I was your age, I got screwed over early on with my credit.

Bought my wife a yorkie puppy for anniversary gift. They approved me for $3000. (for those who know, yorkies are expensive)

But instead of charging me $30 a month like they were suppose to, they charged me $300...which of course I couldnt afford to pay. Despite their screw up, I got screwed in the end.

I really hate the credit system to be honest with you. You can easily get burned, but take years to recover from. People only look at the score too...regardless if youve been making payments on things for a long time. Then there's that crap where people cant tell you YOUR OWN score when they deny you.

[vogster]

Originally Posted by ryanmartini

There are alot of students in here, and I think I would benefit in the end from hearing their end of the story But yes, the final decision will come down to some more research and talks with our families accountant. Alas, I am more of a discussion geared person, and love to learn through talking and hearing others. So this is always my first stop

I have looked into the IRA's. Not sure how much is a good starting balance, still need to research some more on those.

If you're very careful about the advice you receive and don't take everything as law you should be fine and might learn something.

[ryanmartini]

so right now i am thinking about the following cards:

Newegg
Gas card, need to figure out which is lower priced around here and FSU

still looking at information on VISA's available to students.

[PhysX]

haha yeha you still need credit to get a visa, or have a good co-signer.

[Tyranos]

I built credit by having one very low limit card initially and paying it off every time I put anything on it. I had to do that for a while so I had credit history. Paying it off all the time didn't do much, but that and simply having a credit history that wasn't at default helped me get a car loan. I bit the bullet and had a higher interest loan, but paid off the car. Paying off a car gives you a pretty nice score! You do that for a while and make sure you keep a steady job. Now I believe all my debts are under 6% interest rates save for one terrible, terrible, credit card from a terrible terrible company. They're charging me 30% for absolutely no reason. This card used to be a Providian, but then it was bought out by Aspire, who immediately raised the rates. I'd like to raise my boot up their asses.

[SewerBeing]

I have a Bank of America Visa card for students which you can get as long as you are enrolled in college. According to the woman who I spoke with at the bank the credit limit is usually between $500 and $1000. Link: http://www.bankofamerica.com/creditc...estTimeout=120

If that link doesn't work it is called the Bank of America Student Visa Platinum Plus Card. It does not have a yearly fee (which is a huge bonus for me) and you do not need a cosigner. I would suggest asking your bank they should have a student card of one kind or another.

[ryanmartini]

Originally Posted by PhysX

haha yeha you still need credit to get a visa, or have a good co-signer.

ive had two in my name since I am 16, if I wanted to I could get a nice card, but I dont want to tempt myself

Originally Posted by SewerBeing

I have a Bank of America Visa card for students which you can get as long as you are enrolled in college. According to the woman who I spoke with at the bank the credit limit is usually between $500 and $1000. Link: http://www.bankofamerica.com/creditc...estTimeout=120

If that link doesn't work it is called the Bank of America Student Visa Platinum Plus Card. It does not have a yearly fee (which is a huge bonus for me) and you do not need a cosigner. I would suggest asking your bank they should have a student card of one kind or another.

Thanks for that, Ill call wachovia tommorow about this. One of the cards Ive had in my name is a bank of america, so that will be nice.

[Skeen]

In a related note, does paying utilites that are in your name reflect on your credit? I guess I have pretty good credit (my highest APR card is 4.9%) but its not something I worked at or really think about.

Just curious.

[Oroka Sempai]

Not missing bill payments looks good on your credit. Best way to build credit is to get a car loan. As for credit cards, put EVERYTHING you buy on your credit card and just dump $ on it from your bank account. Another thing that looks good with a credit card is if you nearly max it out, then pay it off quickly. I got my first Visa with $1000 credit, and I maxed it out (mobo died, so I moved to AM2), and I paid if off in less than a month. Within a year, I had a $3000 limit. I put my rent, insurance, bills, gas, everything on my Visa, get it as high as possible, then dump all the $ from my bank account on it before they hit me for interest. Shows you spend alot, but are quick to pay it back.

Never be late for payments, never make minimum payments, and the banks will love you.

[Soichiro]

Originally Posted by ryanmartini

I do have one, but it is currently a branch on my Mom's executive-godlike line off of her work.

almost unlimited everything. SO we might have to see if the points earned through a cell phone are worth all the goodies Hehehe

If you can find a good enough deal, then it'll definitely help your credit (assuming you pay it in time every month). Sprint has an employee referral plan where you get 500 anytime minutes, unlimited nights and weekends starting at 7 PM, unlimited texting, internet, e-mail, etc. all for $30/month. Just go to http://sprint.com/sero and use aaron.radelet@sprint.com as the e-mail address (it's not mine, just a random one I pulled off of google ). And when you get your phone, be sure to call #733 and put in my number for the referral offer. We'll both get $25 for it. (sorry if I sound like I'm advertising, but I don't work for sprint or anything. I'm just trying to be helpful )

But you have to make sure you pay it on time, or else it'll hurt your credit rather than help it. You can do this with pretty much any kind of contract, such as rent, cable, internet, car and college loans, etc.

[SteveLord]

Ive had a car for almost 2 years...and havent missed a payment yet on my garbage 18% APR...and my credit has barely budged. However, I did get approved for a $500 ZALES card in December to buy a ring for my wife. Other than that...the system is crap...and I am still struggling to find a place to refinance.

[ryanmartini]

Originally Posted by Soichiro

If you can find a good enough deal, then it'll definitely help your credit (assuming you pay it in time every month). Sprint has an employee referral plan where you get 500 anytime minutes, unlimited nights and weekends starting at 7 PM, unlimited texting, internet, e-mail, etc. all for $30/month. Just go to http://sprint.com/sero and use aaron.radelet@sprint.com as the e-mail address (it's not mine, just a random one I pulled off of google ). And when you get your phone, be sure to call #733 and put in my number for the referral offer. We'll both get $25 for it. (sorry if I sound like I'm advertising, but I don't work for sprint or anything. I'm just trying to be helpful )

But you have to make sure you pay it on time, or else it'll hurt your credit rather than help it. You can do this with pretty much any kind of contract, such as rent, cable, internet, car and college loans, etc.

O.O

oooh so tempting !

[Oroka Sempai]

Originally Posted by SteveLord

Ive had a car for almost 2 years...and havent missed a payment yet on my garbage 18% APR...and my credit has barely budged. However, I did get approved for a $500 ZALES card in December to buy a ring for my wife. Other than that...the system is crap...and I am still struggling to find a place to refinance.

Maybe it is diffrent here in Canada?