Rebuilding my credit

[Anonymous]

I have pretty poor credit and I was thinking about signing up for the credit based cards to pay off my debt and then make those payments on time to try and rebuild my credit so that I can be considered for credit in the future. I don't have that many debts, but the ones I do have are a bit too much to tackle all at once. Would this be a good call? Thanks in advance for any and all help. 

[RonM21]

Welcome to the forums!! If you can, could you provide more detailed info about your negatives, scores, inquiries, etc. It will allow us to give you a better reply. Thanks.

[tealrobinson]

IMO, using a credit card to pay for debts that you can't afford to pay off to begin with sounds a lot like robbing Peter to pay Paul.

Unless you could get a card with 0% interest for a predetermined amount of time, which (judging by the little amount of information you gave us) isn't a possibility, you would only be digging yourself into a deeper hole.

But, then again, maybe it has worked for someone else?

Just my thoughts. 

EDIT: Welcome to the boards, btw.

[Anonymous]

Thanks!  I honestly don't know my score, but as far as my debt is concerned I have one for $199, one for 581 (which I've been paying off) and another for $1,873. My credit was run by the company I work for, which is why I have the info that I do.  If I had to guess, I'd say my credit is in the upper 400's to low 500's.  That's what happens when you have years of crap jobs and can't make ends meet, let alone pay off existing debt. :-(

[Anonymous]

It's not that I can't afford to go the route I'm currently on, I was just thinking that this could help kill two birds with one stone. Speed up the inevitable, if you will. :-)

[tealrobinson]

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@Anonymous wrote:

It's not that I can't afford to go the route I'm currently on, I was just thinking that this could help kill two birds with one stone. Speed up the inevitable, if you will. :-)

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It was just a thought.

I know the way my brain worked when I first started rebuilding, I wanted to save someone else the stress of it all.

Best of luck!

[Anonymous]

I appreciate it! I'm trying to find the best way to fix it without going outside my means.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I appreciate it! I'm trying to find the best way to fix it without going outside my means.

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Most creditors (and collectors) will work out extended payment plans, and often the interest they are allowed to charge will be much less than what a credit card will be charging you - 6-12% vs 20-25%.

Getting some revolving accounts established should be a priority anyway, just don't use them to pay off collectors unless you can pay the cards off quickly.

[RonM21]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

I appreciate it! I'm trying to find the best way to fix it without going outside my means.

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Most creditors (and collectors) will work out extended payment plans, and often the interest they are allowed to charge will be much less than what a credit card will be charging you - 6-12% vs 20-25%.

Getting some revolving accounts established should be a priority anyway, just don't use them to pay off collectors unless you can pay the cards off quickly.

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To Norman's point, maybe getting a secured card from like Cap1 can be an option to help get your credit moving. Your thought process is right in not doing anything beyond your means.

[Anonymous]

I'd start by spending a dollar and getting your 3 FICO 08's from Credit Check Total to see where your starting point is here.  Or, if you don't want to drop a buck at least head to the Discover site and get one free score there.  You were estimating your score the be in the 400's or low 500's which makes obtaining additional revolving credit lines more difficult, but you could be pleasantly surprised to see your scores are a little higher than you think.  It's tough to set goals and know where you're going unless you know where you're starting.