Authorized User Question

[ramblin_wreck08]

My girlfriend has no credit history.  I thought adding her as an authorized user to my Amex PRG would be a good way to her get started. 

Will the full credit history of the card show up on her report, or will it start reporting the day she's added (how will it factor into average age of accounts)?

How would this affect her utilization? I know when I pulled my FICO 98, the card factored into utilization (have since learned on here that it will not do so under current models).  Since she has no revolving limits, it couldn't possibly report as a balance with a limit of $0, could it?

[djrez4]

It will show the full history and the balance will appear as it does on your report.  The CRAs have finally figured out that a balance on an Amex Charge card should report differently than one on a regular revolver and have adjusted so it doesn't factor into utilization the same way.

Do you plan on actually giving her the card?  That's a good way to kill a relationship.

[Anonymous]

Yeah. +1. I would just add her as an AU without issuing a card.

[webhopper]

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@Anonymous wrote:
Yeah. +1. I would just add her as an AU without issuing a card.

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I somewhat disagree with the statement that giving her a card will kill the relationship. I gave my husband a zync in Feb but we knew we were getting married end of may so no big deal. If you are serious about the relationship and you have plans to get married and/or combine finances then give her a card. If not then have her get her own secured card and maybe add her as an au without giving her the card

[Anonymous]

I added my husband as an AU on my card but didn't issue him a card. I think marriage is much different than GF/BF. I didn't issue my husband a card because he loses things and is a stay at home Dad so I just give him my card when he needs to use it. When he stops losing stuff I told him I would consider giving him a card. Plus I am the one in the relationship that controls the finances and balances the budget so I need to be aware of all charges made to effectively do my job. So I think it depends on many unique factors of the relationship but a GF/BF relationship should wait until the relationship is seriously considered as long term by both parties.

[ramblin_wreck08]

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@webhopper wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:
Yeah. +1. I would just add her as an AU without issuing a card.

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I somewhat disagree with the statement that giving her a card will kill the relationship. I gave my husband a zync in Feb but we knew we were getting married end of may so no big deal. If you are serious about the relationship and you have plans to get married and/or combine finances then give her a card. If not then have her get her own secured card and maybe add her as an au without giving her the card

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I am currently shopping for an engagement ring and we are going to combine finances once we tie the knot.  I want to 1. Help her build her credit so it doesn't hold us back for home or car purchases in the future and 2. So she can learn to responsibly handle credit now so she doesn't get us into trouble in the future.  For the time being, I was thinking about putting maybe a $250 or $500 limit on the card to help her grow into the responsible use of credit.  Once we're married I can add her to some of my high limit cards with longer history to really boost her credit.

[Anonymous]

That's great! Congrats! My husband stays at home as a Dad like I said because our son is autistic and he needs a secure environment. We are closing on a $334K in mid Feb and I am only qualifier on the loan. Different avenues for different circumstances.

[Anonymous]

Oh, we will be married for 11 years in September!

[webhopper]

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@ramblin_wreck08 wrote:

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@webhopper wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:
Yeah. +1. I would just add her as an AU without issuing a card.

---

I somewhat disagree with the statement that giving her a card will kill the relationship. I gave my husband a zync in Feb but we knew we were getting married end of may so no big deal. If you are serious about the relationship and you have plans to get married and/or combine finances then give her a card. If not then have her get her own secured card and maybe add her as an au without giving her the card

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I am currently shopping for an engagement ring and we are going to combine finances once we tie the knot.  I want to 1. Help her build her credit so it doesn't hold us back for home or car purchases in the future and 2. So she can learn to responsibly handle credit now so she doesn't get us into trouble in the future.  For the time being, I was thinking about putting maybe a $250 or $500 limit on the card to help her grow into the responsible use of credit.  Once we're married I can add her to some of my high limit cards with longer history to really boost her credit.

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I think as long as you set the spending limit for something reasonable given her income then you will set her up for future success with credit and finance. Its best to include her in this conversation so that you don't give her a limit that will leave her frustrated. This can be a good segway into budget / goals / finance sort of conversations which I personally think are important to every relationship.

[webhopper]

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@Anonymous wrote:
Oh, we will be married for 11 years in September!

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My husband and I are transitioning to roles where he is going to be a full time student and part time employee... va is paying for school plus a stipend... Its a little scary but we are lucky that my income; his va disability benefits; and our low debt ratios allow us to do this for our future. its scary for both of us because hes worked full time for the last 15 years never has drawn unemployment even for 1 day and I'm a little scared because of the income loss and the tighter budget we need to adhere to. This will be a very interesting year! I hope we don't kill each other!