scollinguk

Hi Everyone!

My wife and I are currently preparing for a move to the US, probably to North Dallas as she works for Sally Beauty UK at the moment and I work for O2 (the phone company). Fingers crossed she will be able to transfer internally as their HO is in Denton and I am currently trying to find a recruitment agent for AT&T or Verizon that covers the Dallas area.

My I-130 has been filed and we have got the notice of receipt.

We are in Clovis, NM for Christmas with her Dad at the moment and have opened bank accounts with Bank of America today. We leave on Thursday and want to setup anything we can while we are here.

They have setup the accounts so that the US address is where her Dad lives and put our physical address as our address in the UK.

I was hoping to open a 'secured' credit card at the same time that I could use for small purchases and pay off each month to begin to build some credit rating so that when we arrive we have enough credit to easily rent an appartment and possibly lease a car.

However when the Personal Banker tried to add the secured credit card to the account it showed an error message that as I have a UK physical address I am not eligable for a credit card yet.

She just advised that when I move to the US I could then adjust the address to my new physical address and then after 180 days I could apply for one.

I would really like to begin the process of building a credit rating as soon as possible so that I can avoid any problems renting an appartment when we arrive.

Does anyone have any advise on other ways I could build credit while we are still in the UK or other methods of helping the potential apartment/lease problems before we arrive?

Many Thanks,

Scott

Moonshadow_Girl

Just off the bat, I would advise getting an American Express card in the UK. We haven't done it ourselves, but threads here on BE say that your credit information is transferable. I would also suggest that if you're still in the U.S., have your wife open a credit card or get a secured card and at least add your name as an authorized user.

Welcome!

cranston

+1 for the Amex card, I used their global transfer service and it is excellent.

scollinguk

Fantastic,

I will get an American Express, I have one through Lloyds TSB but from searching I can see it needs to be with them directly to use the service.

If the cards are in my wifes name and I am added as an additional card holder will that also show on my credit rating in the US?

Any other ideas are more then welcome too!

Thanks everyone!

cluedweasel

I transferred a Capital One card from the UK to the US when I moved over. That did help build my credit history a little quicker.

TimNiceBut

Another vote for an Amex card, it'll make it much easier to get an unsecured CC in the US. I've had one in the UK for years and had no problem getting a US card on the back of the UK one, with a bit more than half the credit limit of my UK card (which they didn't close, btw, I have both at the moment).

That said, the Global Transfer scheme just makes it easier to get a card in the US, you won't build a US credit history with a UK card, nor (AFAIK) does it magically transfer part of your UK credit history with you. But you can at least skip the fun part with the secured CC.

E3only

This is my experience....

I went through global transfer american express. The beauty of the program is that the 'start date' or the 'Member from date' of the US Amex will be start date of the non-US amex (in my case - australia). So when I moved up here, I got a US Amex no questions asked (they just asked for my AUS american express card #, looked up my 10 year history and gave me a US amex with handsome limit).

After I got that credit card approved, I signed up for american express credit alert system. I looked up my credit score and it was 730+.

Great! but note that, generally banks will not only check the credit score but also how long the SSN has been valid for. So I actually got denied a car loan - the bank did say I had a good credit score but the length of the SSN is just not there.

Moral of the story is, AMEX is good way to get a US credit card. However, you will still need to build some history. Having a credit score and an established credit score are two different things. But Amex is a great way to get a leg up...

scollinguk

Wow, thanks for that!

When you applied for you US american express did you do that over the phone or go somewhere to speak to someone?

Many thanks,

Scott

TimNiceBut

You'll find most of the info here:

http://www.americanexpress.com/globa...nsfer_en.shtml

Basically once you're in the US and have an address, you call them on the appropriate number (with your UK card) and they'll talk you through the options. In my case they actually suggested that I'd apply online for a card (which of course didn't go through due to lack of credit history), then call them back with the application number so I'd get all the perks for a 'new customer', even though they still treated me as a customer since 2004.

E3only

+1

I applied online, got declined and I got a reference number for the application.

I then called the global transfer team 1800 #. Gave them the reference number. They asked for me
- SSN
- Perm address
- Bank details
- Australian American Express #.

She then checked my Australian history, asked me to hold, said she is going to get supervisor to approve the card, and 3 mins later said card approved and will be sent out in 7-10 days. That's that....

scollinguk

Fantastic,

I have also found a credit card through Virgin Atlantic that is designed for Expats. It doesnt need a SSN, just your passport number along with the usual information. I have applied for that as well as a Amex card directly through Amex as my existing one is through Lloyds TSB so I am not sure if they will accept that or not.

My wife has applied for a Sears, Walmart, and JCPenney store credit card and each one has said that a decision will come through in 7-10 working days.

Another option I am thinking would be to have her added as a liable additional user to her Dads credit cards so that as he uses them she will develope a credit rating.

I am hoping that doing all of this will give a good enough basis for when we come over, I by no means expect magic but better then starting with nothing!

Thank you to all of you!

Scott

E3only

You do realize that too many credit inquiries will screw the person’s credit score?

avanutria

Be aware that not everyplace will accept American Express as a form of payment. Big places will but independent small shops will often hesistate. This is because AmEx charges a much higher commission fee (about 6 or 7%) compared to Mastercard and Visa (about 2-3%). However, if you keep a checkbook in your car/bag you will likely be able to get round this problem, as most small/independent shops are pleased with checks as there's no commission at all. And if all else fails there's always your BoA debit card.

I have an AmEx and a Visa and I get 1% cash back bonuses with the AmEx so I use it whenever possible, and have encountered about a dozen places in the past year that won't accept it, but they're all small - my karate school, the local Woodcraft store, a local yarn shop, a local furniture store, and so on. In fact, the furniture store cut us a deal - they gave us 1% off of our furniture order in exchange for us using the Visa, as it ended up being the same for me and cheaper for them. On our second order we paid with a check and they gave us even more of a discount.

BritishGuy36

No it will not, since she is the only one that has what's called 'financial responsibility'.

The best bet for getting your rating up as soon as possible is to do the Amex thing. They are only allowed to transfer your last 6 months of credit history, but you will probably move in about 6 months anyway.

I did the Amex thing since I had a great credit rating in the UK, then when I got to the US I phoned them up and they used my UK history as a basis to approve me for a US-based Amex card with a $10k credit limit, no questions asked.

As for places that don't accept Amex, just use your debit card that you get with the bank account you open when you get here.

EricK

Do you already have an Amex in the UK? If not you may fall foul of the following from the T&C's:

To be eligible for a Card transfer, your Consumer Card must be issued by American Express. You must be the Basic Cardholder, and have held the Card for at least 12 months