Good Cards for Beginners

[Remedios]

@Anonymous  Those scores are really not her scores. Without AU accounts she would not even have a score till next month, let alone 790.

Most lenders separate AU accounts during the approval/denial process for that particular reason. 

She can let the her own accounts age, then start applying, but adding all those AU accounts is somewhat equivalent to shooting yourself in the foot. Now they become reasons for denial in addition to new/thin file. While we do not see that field on our own reports, lenders are provided with the date account was added. 

Once you're ready to buy a house, most lenders will make it a requirement those accounts be removed anyway so her profile can be scored on it's own merit. 

Sometimes you really have to let it go and let the time do it's thing. 

[ChargedUp]

As the other have said, let the recent inquiries age a bit. I'd personally wait at least 6 months, but a year would be ideal as they won't weigh her scores down at this time.

After that, go to all the pre-qual pages and see who bites. Cap One Quicksilver would almost be a "gimme" with a clean thin file. Let that age a bit with prudent use and then go look at the pre-qual sites again. If you guys are in BB&T territory, I'd suggest adding them to the mix for a SP card as well, but income permitting, she should be able to get her foot in the door with the major card players at this time

Predatory lenders are for those with tons of lates and charge-offs and no way to get a secured card. Not a fit in this case.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Thanks for the feedback everyone! It's an eye opener for sure, I think once her report updated this morning on experian and seen how the inquiries took a toll. It's a reality check and she decided just to be happy with what she has and figured December would be her early chirstmas present for an approval. 

As far as my AU's, the oldest is 2 years old, the rest are around the 7-8 month mark. 0 Lates, I pay all my balances in full. The most recent one which I haven't put on her report yet is the Paypal MC, I'm waiting for atleast 6 months maybe a year to add it on her account.

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There's no reason why she should be an AU on six of your credit cards; especially when your accounts are so young.  Being added as an AU to a clean, well-aged account or two should be enough.  But in your case none of your accounts are really aged since the oldest is only 2 years old.

Also, your statement "I had her upgrade to the Quicksilver after that we needed a new bedroom set so since I knew I was at my limit I had her apply for an IKEA card" appears to have been overlooked by other commenters.  Are any of your cards currently at or near their limit? You should know that authorized users assume the utilization rate of the primary cardholder.  So since that card was "at my limit" it also affects her credit report and credit score; ideally you want an authorized user to be on a card that is paid in full after use.

[HeavenOhio]

On a card with AUs, when any one of the its users requires an optimal look on his or her report, you need to be able to quickly bring its balance down to zero. Money should be within arm's reach to zero out the balance.

[Anonymous]

I’m not exactly sure where some people are saying my reported AUs are carrying a balance? I replied to an individual about not carrying a balance and paying everything in full.

If it was the comment about me being at my limit, that was me saying I’m at my limit with applications and going to garden but I appreciate the feedback from everyone!