How quickly can I build credit from nothing?

[Gardenhand]

From my experience six to seven months can generate a score in the low 700s providing there are no derogatories in your history. I decided I wanted to buy a house also so I opened five acounts.

3) secured credit cards

2) secured installment loans

after about 6/7 months my middle score was 722. At just under a year I have been Preapproved for a FHA mortgage from three different lenders (broker, small local bank and larger bank). My job history, reserves and debt are all excellent so that may be helping me get approved with such a short credit history. 

But as long as you don't have any collections or anything and you get a few tradelines I'm pretty sure your first scores will also be in the low 700s in 6/7 months.

[Anonymous]

Hello all,

This is my first post in the forums.

I'm having a similar situation with the OP. I'm still in college right now, just started building my history by having my first CC back on October 2014. Didn't think that building one as soon as possible is a good idea. 

I'm planning to buy a new car next month, but it seems like I don't have enough history to have a credit score (at least 6 months?)

Can I still apply for a loan and getting a decent rate? Is it true that applying to credit unions is better than to my bank?

I always pay my cc in full before due, overall utilization is around 20-30% (although I had almost used the entire limit on one month - but still paid on time)

Thanks!

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Hello all,

This is my first post in the forums.

I'm having a similar situation with the OP. I'm still in college right now, just started building my history by having my first CC back on October 2014. Didn't think that building one as soon as possible is a good idea. 

I'm planning to buy a new car next month, but it seems like I don't have enough history to have a credit score (at least 6 months?)

Can I still apply for a loan and getting a decent rate? Is it true that applying to credit unions is better than to my bank?

I always pay my cc in full before due, overall utilization is around 20-30% (although I had almost used the entire limit on one month - but still paid on time)

Thanks!

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I would agree strongly with revelate. Get 2 more secured cards. BOA is a good one for the 3-2-1 rewards. US Bank has a couple that are no af (harley davidson and another cobranded one which I cant remember at the moment) or State department federal credit union has also been good to people. A share secured loan,alliant CU is a good one for this (500 dollar 4 year term, payment 11.02 a month total cost of the loan over 4 years is roughly 23 bucks). I went from 0 TLs in my LIFE to 5 secured cards and 2 share secured loans over the last year. I started with 7 baddies now down to just 1 on experian only, and my scores are 734, 719, 688.It really doesn't take long to get a decent score. And with that decent score come decent offers. Alliant has twice in the last two months sent me preapproved auto loan offers, as well as getting decent CC offers now too.

[Pway]

Building credit takes time, dedication and patience. Having your first secured card is a way to go. Give that card some time to report and maybe apply for a store card. Keep your utilization low and allow your scores to rise. Keep in mind this process takes time and there is no quick way to build your credit. I wish you the best on your credit journey. 

[takeshi74]

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@Anonymous wrote:

How quickly can I build credit from nothing?

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Highly YMMV.  It can be relatively quick (6 months to a year or so) but be prepared to be in this for the long haul.  A number of factor are affected by the length of your credit history -- not just AAoA but Payment History, etc.

[bdhu2001]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

Hello all,

This is my first post in the forums.

I'm having a similar situation with the OP. I'm still in college right now, just started building my history by having my first CC back on October 2014. Didn't think that building one as soon as possible is a good idea. 

I'm planning to buy a new car next month, but it seems like I don't have enough history to have a credit score (at least 6 months?)

Can I still apply for a loan and getting a decent rate? Is it true that applying to credit unions is better than to my bank?

I always pay my cc in full before due, overall utilization is around 20-30% (although I had almost used the entire limit on one month - but still paid on time)

Thanks!

---

I would agree strongly with revelate. Get 2 more secured cards. BOA is a good one for the 3-2-1 rewards. US Bank has a couple that are no af (harley davidson and another cobranded one which I cant remember at the moment) or State department federal credit union has also been good to people. A share secured loan,alliant CU is a good one for this (500 dollar 4 year term, payment 11.02 a month total cost of the loan over 4 years is roughly 23 bucks). I went from 0 TLs in my LIFE to 5 secured cards and 2 share secured loans over the last year. I started with 7 baddies now down to just 1 on experian only, and my scores are 734, 719, 688.It really doesn't take long to get a decent score. And with that decent score come decent offers. Alliant has twice in the last two months sent me preapproved auto loan offers, as well as getting decent CC offers now too.

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+1 and you need to hold off on buying a car until you can get a good rate. BOA and Alliant looks like the way to go to get the most bang.

[TURNERHOOVER]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I'm 23 and have no credit. When I was younger, I decided to be responsible by avoiding student loans and credit cards, and to pay everything in cash or out of my checking account. I guess I thought that would count for something later. Now I'm thinking about buying a house in the relatively near future, and I have no credit whatsoever, which is apparently worse than having bad credit.

So, starting from nothing, how quickly can I establish a "respectable" credit score? I've just gotten a secured card with a $200 limit. But is it realistic to hope to buy a house within a year or two without an obscene interest rate on the loan? Is there anything else I should be doing as well? I'm new to all of this, so any advice on what to do or expect is appreciated.

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Considering your age, I'll assume at least a year. I've learned good credit building takes time and a lot of patience. (Also having bad credit is worse than no credit)