Teaching 19 Year Old About Credit

[Anonymous]

Similar situation with my daughter when she was 18 but she somehow thought that if you don't pay your loans (cards) off in full when they're due you'll go to jail.  Exactly where I want her!!

She's 21 now and just as scared, which is fine.  She lives on her own within her means.  She was an AU on my AX everyday card and I had her get her own CSP card, which Chase has increased the CL twice in 2 years.  She's still on the AX card  but her CL on it is zero. She has a 775 FICO8 score. 

the upshot:  tell them not to spend what they dont already have, and pay in full each month. That's really all there is.  Hard inquires come and go, and taking additional debt -- when you can afford it -- will IMO increase your score. what's left is credit history and nothing to do there but wait.

[Anonymous]

I totally agree! It is better to just spend less than you make and rely on your own money because you can end up in a pile of credits you will never pay off. People have to learn to manage their own finances, not think about where to get a loan, this way, you will take more and more loans and you credit score will be a mess

[Kforce]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Tell them not to spend what they dont already have, and pay in full each month.   That's really all there is.

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Both my daughters have over 830 Ficos with two cards in a few years by just using and paying them down every month.   No secret formula or loans, etc,  just time and paying the cards on time.  Many  make this seem like a  complicated process.  It is just pay you card's every month for a few years and "Bam" you have a good score's.

My daughters have over 830's with two card and I got 850 Fico's with 3 cards and one auto loan.  This is only rocket science if you want too analyze why each point is calculated. It is not  hard to get there with out knowledge of how each point is calculated, looking at scores every month, or doing Azero.  It is just time and paying you bills on time.  How simple and yet so interesting.

Some on this forum must spend a hundred hours some months  working on where a utilization threshold hits.  Just have her pay the CC  bill every month on time

[disdreamin]

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@Kforce wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

Tell them not to spend what they dont already have, and pay in full each month.   That's really all there is.

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Both my daughters have over 830 Ficos with two cards in a few years by just using and paying them down every month.   No secret formula or loans, etc,  just time and paying the cards on time.  Many  make this seem like a  complicated process.  It is just pay you card's every month for a few years and "Bam" you have a good score's.

My daughters have over 830's with two card and I got 850 Fico's with 3 cards and one auto loan.  This is only rocket science if you want too analyze why each point is calculated. It is not  hard to get there with out knowledge of how each point is calculated, looking at scores every month, or doing Azero.  It is just time and paying you bills on time.  How simple and yet so interesting.

Some on this forum must spend a hundred hours some months  working on where a utilization threshold hits.  Just have her pay the CC  bill every month on time

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I didn't realize 830's were possible with a credit history of just a few years, to be honest!

As far as hundreds of hours, maybe some people do  - and maybe the enjoy it? I'm not going to judge what people decide to do, but there is a certain beauty to the KISS philosophy when teaching kids about credit. You can let them know there is a lot more to it, but the basics are "use credit cards responsibly and pay them on time, every time."

[Anonymous]

We were finally able to pull his credit scores and they are in the 720's. He was approved for his first apartment with the minimal deposit required and has no deposit requirements for his utilities. He is applying Monday for his first credit card under his own name.

[Kforce]

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@disdreamin wrote:

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I didn't realize 830's were possible with a credit history of just a few years, to be honest!

You might be correct, time is flying by, I just checked and it is close to 5 years now. but just two cards and no loans.

As far as hundreds of hours, maybe some people do  - and maybe they enjoy it?

I am sure they do, and that is fine. 

Glad to get the info with out personal testing.

I'm not going to judge what people decide to do, but there is a certain beauty to the KISS philosophy when teaching kids about credit. You can let them know there is a lot more to it, but the basics are "use credit cards responsibly and pay them on time, every time."

I found this forum 6 year ago.

Had 850's before getting the "reward  bug".

My scores have only gone down after finding this place.   

However rewards from my real spend is much better than when I had 850 Ficos. 

I am happy with trading a few fico points for better rewards.  

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