- Discussion board

i am 19 years old, and have been working full time for the past YEAR AND A HALF, and have a checking and savings account. i dont have bills to pay, or rent or anything, no credit history. not a student, gross about $20K/year. i have tried visa and mastercard through my bank, target, and american express and nobody has aproved me due to a lack of credit history....well no friggin shit, im trying to establish it, its not like im asking for a huge limit! someone help please..

Hi,

Your situation is pretty typical. Unfortunately, banks prefer to woo students rather than young people who are working.

It will be easier for your to get a store card or a line of credit at your bank.

Did your bank (where you have your checking and savings accounts) actually refuse to give you a line of credit? (not a credit card - that's not surprising, but a LINE OF CREDIT such as an overdraft protection - in fact, anything that gets on your report as a line of credit). You might want to speak with your account representative (just go in as say "I have an account with you guys and I would like it to discuss it with bank representative") and when somebody sits down with you, politely explain that you're trying to establish a credit history and that as a client, you feel they could help you in this matter. If they flat out refuse any credit line (not a very smart move on their part), I would try to open an account somewhere else - at least moving your savings elsewhere. Again, this would NOT be a credit card, but it WILL show up on your report. In a few months you can get a real card.

These two (a store card and a line of credit) are the 2 least expensive ways to establish a credit history.

Other than that, there are always secured cards. They are expensive, but some people say it's worth the pain. Secured cards are real ("major") credit cards. Gradually, their status can be changed to an "unsecured" product.

Finally (if everything else fails), there are also merchandise cards that are VERY expensive, only offer product from one catalog and offer only a single benefit - they do report to credit agencies and so you can establish a credit history this way. I wouldn't normally recommend it, but if you don't want to go with a secured card which requires a deposit, this is another alternative. [As of today (10/31) we don't have such products on our site].

Best of luck
- Gromco

I agree with gromco, you should definitely try to go through your bank first and foremost. Im not sure about the overdraft protection idea but in general if you have been in good standing with your bank on your checking account (no overdrafts, etc.) then they will most likely be willing to give you a credit card. If that fails then its on to the next step.

You can try Secured or Pre Paid cards, many Pre Paid cards now a days report to credit bureaus which will boost your credit rating. They work in the following way: Deposit a certain amount of money into a bank account to which the Credit Card issuer has access, once that has been established the Credit Card issuer will give you a line of credit matching the amount in your bank account. This is to ensure that if you do skip out on paying that they can take that money as repayment. If you pay on time and keep in good standing then you may be able to apply for regular credit cards without this requirement.