I was looking through some old posts and found this question. I thought it was a good one so I wanted to post an answer here. The question comes from ‘freespirit’:

I am young and want to start building my credit up so I can make things easier on myself when I want to finance a car our something. I am 20 and currently have no credit at all..when I apply for a credit card I am always turned down, what are my other options when it comes to building my credit up?

Answer: You’re not the only one.New Federal regulations are making it nearly impossible for anyone under 21 to get a credit card. You must have a parent co-sign on a card with you or add you as joint on one of their current cards. Careful with this. If they are bad with money – run away.You want to develop credit. Not ruin it.The only way to get top scores fast is to charge small things like food or gas and pay in full each month. Some people get credit cards and start charging up a storm and carry balances which hurts credit in the long runNo co-signer you can trust?Then go to your bank where you have your checking and savings. (online)And see if they offer secured cardsCompare them to Citi and Orchard bank since they carry among the bestUse it wisely! Charge only small things like food or gas and replace the money in full each month. Only 10% of these cards “turned” into credit cards in 2009, because people refused to use them correctly. Keep charges very small and pay in full each month – just like with credit cards

Tagged:Credit