I am just out of high school, and I was wondering how can I build credit and stay out of debt?

Answer 1

Getting one or two credit cards is a great way to build credit. It is important that you pay the balance EVERY month. This shows that you are a reliable purchaser. Caution: maxing out your cards, and not making payments will ruin your credit in a hurry. Trust me, I had great credit, until I went a little overboard on spending and then lost my job!

Answer 2

Best way to get credit for staring out would probably be to get yourself a secured credit card. Great for building credit, and your spending money that is yours - and not putting yourself into debt.

Don't take out loans, although yes they can build credit - you shouldn't have to pay the interest just to get credit. Credit is a tool, not something to put you into debt for.

Honestly, secured card is the way to go - then in a few years or even a year from now once youve secured a job etc, then maybe apply for a credit card. Pull your credit reports, and get an idea of what your score is. Head over to whogavemecredit.com to see what kind of card you can get. It's not an exact science, more like a guessing game - but it can lead you in a good direction.

Good luck!

Answer 3

Try getting a secured credit card at the bank. You must have a saving account with the same amount in it as the amount you want a credit card for. Your best bet is to start small $500.00. Charge a small amount each month and be sure to pay the bill in full each month. DON'T charge more than you can pay off. Another good one to apply for is a gas card, but always pay off the card when the bill arrives. Also try getting your own cell phone. You will also establish credit with the checking account, just make sure you keep it balance and don't have any over drafts. Get help in balancing the statement each month if you're not sure how. Your can build credit easily, just be sure to build positive credit, negative credit it very hard to overcome no matter how small.

Answer 4

Get a job. Apply for a store credit card and charge something you know you could pay cash for. Make the monthly payment on time every month until the charge is paid in full. Repeat. After you have completed this a couple of times apply for a credit card with your bank. Again same idea with charging and paying off. After about 18 months or so start using your charge card for all of your purchases but make sure you pay the balance in full each month.
Best of luck.
Food for thought; Make sure you pay yourself first every time you get paid. I always wondered what the meaning of that was. It means take out a certain percent of you pay say 20 to 30 percent and put it in saving and don't touch it for any thing or any one. Then when you have done this for a few years you may be able to buy your new car or house with cash.

Answer 5

well what I did was get a credit card, then I went out and bought something. I had the cash in my pocket, and paid it off right away!! If you are disceplined and pay whatever it is you bought right away this will build your credit. And doing this will help you stay out of debt! PLUS pay all your bills on time!! don't have any late fees!! This will always destroy your credit! Set aside money even if its only 20-30% of your check, AND DON'T TOUCH IT! that way if you have an emergency and need money you will have a little nest egg, to get to!
Hope this helps! =)

Answer 6

To build credit, you will need to acquire some debt and pay it off. That's the meaning of credit, knowing that you can get in debt and then pay it off. The easy way is to open a jewelry credit card, or a department store credit card and when you buy something makey monthly payments.

Answer 7

The best way to build credit is to get a steady job and keep it for more than a year. The longer you keep it the more your credit starts to build. Also buying cars, real estate and such will also build your credit. However, you should be carefull if you are planning to lease a car or buy a new home because if you cannot make payments on time your credit will go down.

Hope that helped!

Answer 8

Credit Unions are always more lenient then banks in my opinion. Join one and apply for a credit card. Keep the balance low something you know you can afford to pay back right away if you had to, even though you don't plan to. It is easy to go in debt and so hard to get out. You really should just get the one card and learn to budget and save so you don't need those cards. Because when all is going well your banks and creditors will love you and push more your way, but as soon as something unsuspected happens, they will harrass the mess out of you.

Use of caution and care.

Answer 9

Get a credit card and pay it off each month. Companies like Citibank etc have cards for students. Keep the limit low and just use it for gas or groceries, basic stuff you would pay cash for. Then make sure you have the money on hand at the end of the month to pay it off. That is how you bulid credit. Don't be late with payments and if you chose to start getting a lot of credit cards, becareful with them. If you cancel them all at once it is held against you in your credit report.

Answer 10

Are you going to college. The student unions love new credit card applicants and you can open up a bank account with them. The interest is generally lower as well. The best way to keep up your credit is to never spend more than you can pay off by the end of the month. Creditors want to see a payment history that is never late and balances paid off.