Credit cards for your kids?

[thom02099]

I added both my kiddos (daughter 17/son21) as AU as a Christmas present in 2011.  Both are gainfully employed and I wanted them to start learning and respecting the power of credit.  They were added to my  Citi Diamond Preferred MC, AMEX Clear,and Discover More  (now IT).  Citi and AMEX allowed me to set limits on them, Discover, I just monitor closely.  All 3 report as TL for both kiddos, and because of these additions my daughter had a 728 EX score when we did a refi on her vehicle loan.. This wouldn't have happened with pre-paid cards.  

[bs6054]

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@Cleanmachine wrote:

Consumers under the age of 21 can obtain a credit card if they have a co-signer.

The co-signer is a Parent or Guardian who agrees to pay off the debt if the child becomes unable to pay.

OR

If under 21 years of age must provide documentation that proves they can pay off the credit requested.

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I think that is what the law says, but... My daughter at 18 got her own card (Capital One Journey) with a $2500 limit, and the "documentation" was merely putting a number on the application.

[ceemee2203]

I think your child could learn responsibility if at the end of every month you provide her with the bill that she has to pay for her charges. As long as you stick with it, she'll learn how she's spending her money and about the responsibility of paying it back.

When she's older, she'll appreciate it.

Plus, if she's an AU, and you can set her limit, you won't have to worry about paying out $1000 because she lost her mind one day and "just had to have that bag."

[distantarray]

when I get a child I'm adding the kid to my amex as legally allowed lol, I wonder if they would let me add them as a new born?  this way when they turn 18 they got 18 years of backdating

[snowkitty]

I definitely want to be able to set a limit....after all she is a 16 year old girl who loves clothes, shoes & to spend money! I'm trying sooo hard to teach her and my son about how important credit is. I show them my stuff all the time. I messed my credit up so bad when I turned 18.....twice in fact because my parents bailed me out the first time. I do not want them to follow in those footsteps.

On mobile....sorry for any errors

[snowkitty]

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@distantarray wrote:

when I get a child I'm adding the kid to my amex as legally allowed lol, I wonder if they would let me add them as a new born?  this way when they turn 18 they got 18 years of backdating

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lol   

[sambam94]

18 year olds do not need documenation..well, maybe some banks do, not what I've seen though..Chase, USAA, Barclays

[thom02099]

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@ceemee2203 wrote:

I think your child could learn responsibility if at the end of every month you provide her with the bill that she has to pay for her charges. As long as you stick with it, she'll learn how she's spending her money and about the responsibility of paying it back.

When she's older, she'll appreciate it.

Plus, if she's an AU, and you can set her limit, you won't have to worry about paying out $1000 because she lost her mind one day and "just had to have that bag."

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+1, Amen to that! 

When the bills come in, I let my kids know right away.  I set up alerts for balance changes so I get notifications.  They then pay me in cash, which i deposit and use to pay their bills. 

[jake619]

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@distantarray wrote:

when I get a child I'm adding the kid to my amex as legally allowed lol, I wonder if they would let me add them as a new born?  this way when they turn 18 they got 18 years of backdating

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I would've tried it with my 4yo but Amex minimum AU age is 15.  As an aside, where do you plan on "getting" your kid?  Are they any sales now?

[pkosheta]

Adding a child as an AU is good if you trust your kids.  I started at age 10 and my credit is great because I learned to manage it at a young age.  It can be a great teaching tool.  However, at age 16 kids tend not to listen ( I know I didn't). At age 10 mom and dad had my ear to a far greater degree and so I was indoctrinated/exposed to engage in responsible  Credit behavior.  It is also hard to abuse when you cant even drive yourself to the store ( and before amazon.com lol).  It paid off and I cannot thank them enough.