Repair Credit Report Help

How you should fix bad credit- and what credit cards to go for?

I am a 24 year old married father of two. In my early legal years, I had a problem with my credit, but I've paid almost all of them off in the past few years. I do not have any credit cards, and I never really paid much attention to my credit since paying off the problems- and did not think much about it. I do keep up on my credit report- but I never knew my credit score. However, I'm looking into buying a new car, and in a year or two buying a house. I applied for a car loan at a dealership where they told me my credit is around 350! I never knew it could be this terrible. My wife has no credit at all, so that did not help matters. Now, we're attempting to fix our credit. We know nothing about this, and it's very difficult. We do not not have any current debt, and live modestly. We cannot afford much as we are trying to save up, but we really want good, or at least decent credit. I would love for us to be able to fix both my credit, and establish some sort of credit for my wife. We've heard credit cards, or even store credit cards will help, but know nothing about APRs or what would be best. We have also heard about going to a 'buy here, pay here' car sales place that reports to the credit bureau, but again we only know bits and pieces. We also know a co-signer would help, but we do not have anyone so it is out of the question. Any advice on any parts of these topic would be greatly appreciated. Please no harsh comments, as I know it is a terrible thing- but I am attempting to fix it for my family's sake.

Public Comments

1. My aunt is like you, other than her mortgage she has no debt, she and her husband don't have credit cards (they go off the if we can't afford it we don't need it) and as such, they have crappy credit (simply because they don't use it). A store card can be a great way to build up a little credit, their interest rates can be a little high so be careful with how you spend. One way is to buy what you normally would but instead of paying cash/debit put it on the credit card and pay it off at the end of the month.
2. With your poor credit, you may not be able to get any credit card you want. I would suggest you try to get a secured credit card. Also, some cards are not secured, but have a set limit. When my credit was bad I got an unsecured card that only had a $250 limit. I also had to pay them around $100 as a nonrefundable deposit just to get the card. The company I used was First Premier Bank. I think I just googles "secured credit cards" and that was the first one I found that approved me. It was definitely worth it though as my credit has increased tremendously, all within the last 3 yrs. Once you get a card, only use it to pay for small things, such as gas. Use it once to fill up the car and then pay the balance off immediately. Do not use it unless you already have the funds to pay off the balance. You don't have to use it all the time, but also, don't get a card, use it once and then cancel the account. That won't help at all. The longer you can show established credit, the better your credit score will be.
3. A good way to fix your credit is to go to a bank and open a small 12 month secured loan. With a secured loan, you usually open up a savings account or CD at the bank for the amount of the loan to secure the loan in case you don't make your payments. Basically, you could give the bank $750 and open a CD with this money. Then the bank gives you a $750 loan. Just make sure to make your payments on time every month and it will slowly built your credit rating. Open up a loan under your name, and then another loan under your wife's name. This will help improve your credit and help build some credit for her. Another great choice is to get a secured credit card. Again, you give the credit card company the money upfront (usually around $1,000). Then they give you a credit card with the same credit limit for you to use. Make small purchases and make your payments on time every month.and you will slowly being to built credit. It's important to look for a good company to get a secured card from. Some charge crazy high fees just to sign up for the card, so make sure you compare rates before you apply for anything. If your wife has no credit at all then she should probably do both of these options so she can build up some credit history.
4. What HW said is right, you will have a difficult time obtaining credit. You may want to consider cleaning up your credit through this company that removes ALL your negative marks at an economical fee. Definitely google "secured credit cards" there is one place that also is very well know to extend credit for bad or no credit, www.orchardbank.com Be patient as it will take some time but you will succeed!
5. you caused your problem over a couple of years and it will take a couple ot years to straighten out by paying debts. Find a secured credit card and charge and pay off monthly. Get as high credit line as you can.Your payment record stays on your credit report for 7 years.