How people improve credit score to buy homes and car? I am a high school student and I'm eager to know. I will like to manage my finance in a good way when I graduate in college and get a job. How long does it take to get a good credit score?
2007-12-07 11:45:25 · 3 answers · asked by dk 6 in Business & Finance ➔ Personal Finance
A credit score is not that important in the big scheme of things.
The only reason anybody really "needs" a credit score is to buy a home. Everything else is a sales job to talk you into buying crap you don't really need.
Learn to save 10% of your money...every paycheck, every month, every year until it's a habit you can't break. Learn how basic budgeting and investing plans work and play around with them while you are young to figure out (1) what works for you and (2) how many of the details you care to know.
AFTER you get the budgeting/spending/saving/investing thing down, then consider applied for ONE national credit. College can be an EASY time to get one, but it is much more important that you be READY to handle it. Charge only what you can pay off every month in full (maybe your gas charges) and NEVER use it to buy anything you cannot ALREADY pay cash for.
If you do this correctly, you will have a good enough credit score to buy a house -- all other things being equal, when you are 25ish and you will never have to worry about your credit score again.
(Side hint from experience: only buying a car you can afford to purchase with cash will put you about $100,000 ahead of all of your peers in just a couple of decades)
2007-12-07 12:05:59 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
MVD34 gave an answer better than I can. I would only add one thing. A credit score is NOT needed to buy a home either. Find a lender that still does MANUAL UNDERWRITING (Churchill Mortgage comes to mind). If you have enough income to support the payments, and don't have a NEGATIVE credit history, you can get a mortgage on good terms without a credit history.
2007-12-07 21:16:29 · answer #2 · answered by STEVEN F 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You start small - a secured credit card, perhaps a store revolving charge card - and manage it well. If you demonstrate good credit management over time, your record will improve.
2007-12-07 19:55:15 · answer #3 · answered by npk 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋