SSN and Credit History

Old Oct 29th 2002, 3:59 pm
  #1  
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Default SSN and Credit History

Hi -
I am a US resident alien and have had a SSN for 5 years. I am trying to build my credit and have been denied cards because my SSN is "new". I have had a credit card (through my bank) with a $250 limit for over a year, and I attempted to increase the limit and was not accepted. According to my bank, my credit history is good but there is a flag on my credit report because I've only had my SSN for 5 years - in other words it makes me look like I'm 5 years old. I have also tried to get a new different card through offers and such, but have not been approved.

This is also a concern because I would like to buy a house in the next year and am afraid I will not be approved for a mortgage.

I have no other credit history to transfer to the US because I was only 20 years old when I came here.

Has anyone run into this? Can anyone give advice?

Thank you.
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Old Oct 30th 2002, 12:12 am
  #2  
Hnchoksi
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    >Subject: SSN and Credit History
    >From: Athabasca [email protected]
    >Date: 10/29/02 11:59 AM Eastern Standard Time
    >Message-id:
    >Hi -
    >I am a US resident alien and have had a SSN for 5 years. I am trying to
    >build my credit and have been denied cards because my SSN is "new". I
    >have had a credit card (through my bank) with a $250 limit for over a
    >year, and I attempted to increase the limit and was not accepted.
    >According to my bank, my credit history is good but there is a flag on
    >my credit report because I've only had my SSN for 5 years - in other
    >words it makes me look like I'm 5 years old. I have also tried to get a
    >new different card through offers and such, but have not been approved.
    >This is also a concern because I would like to buy a house in the next
    >year and am afraid I will not be approved for a mortgage.
    >I have no other credit history to transfer to the US because I was only
    >20 years old when I came here.
    >Has anyone run into this? Can anyone give advice?
    >Thank you.
    >--

Ask the credit card company where they checked your credit---Experian or one
of the other two...if you are denied credit, you are entitled to a free credit
report. Get that report from the agency and see what is really on it that is
denying you the credit. There may be some discrepancy on the report.

Peoples' pets get credit card offers. If you have paid all your bills on time,
5 years is more than enough to establish a good credit history...
 
Old Oct 30th 2002, 12:27 am
  #3  
L D Jones
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Default Re: SSN and Credit History

Hnchoksi wrote:
[ ... ]

    > Peoples' pets get credit card offers. If you have paid all your bills on time,
    > 5 years is more than enough to establish a good credit history...

The pets may get offers but they won't necessarily be approved. I agree
that 5 years ought to be enough to have a sufficient credit history.
 
Old Oct 30th 2002, 8:43 am
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Sorry, you have to build a credit history. They have to get to know you. They didn't get serious about sending me credit cards until I had paid off my first car at $450 a month for 3 years. Credit is one of those things where needing it automatically makes you less likely to get it. On the other hand, I got the car loan through the credit union associated with my company. So if you can join a credit union you may have more luck with the house.
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Old Oct 30th 2002, 8:16 pm
  #5  
Alistair Bell
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Default Re: SSN and Credit History

[email protected] (Hnchoksi) wrote in message news:...
    > From: Athabasca [email protected]
    > >This is also a concern because I would like to buy a house in the next
    > >year and am afraid I will not be approved for a mortgage.
    >
    > Peoples' pets get credit card offers. If you have paid all your bills on time,
    > 5 years is more than enough to establish a good credit history...

Paradoxically, as long as you have a decent downpayment, a mortgage is
MUCH easier to get than a credit card! We got a mortgage on our house
with a year's credit history (and not much on that) and a year later
responded to a preapproval offer for a credit card and got a piddling
$500 credit limit.

A car loan is also a good way to build a credit history; again with a
decent downpayment you should be able to find _something_ even if the
interest rate is horrendous (our first car loan was at 12.9% -- now
we're paying 4.55%)
 
Old Oct 30th 2002, 9:53 pm
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Default Re: SSN and Credit History



Last edited by suebo; Nov 8th 2002 at 2:11 am.
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Old Oct 30th 2002, 11:22 pm
  #7  
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Checking out a credit report is definitely the first thing to do. The whole story sounds very odd to me. I got my first credit card 2 months after I came to the States as a student (!). Another thing is that credit companies are very different. Some are very fussy while others are somewhat easier to deal with. In my case, the first credit card was from CapitalOne which is apparently very aggresive in getting new clients.
 
Old Nov 3rd 2002, 11:10 pm
  #8  
James Donovan
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This is strange. I know people who came in the country a year ago and are
getting cards with $2000 credit limit and more. Here are some things you
need to ask yourself:

Did you pay ALL your bills on time? I mean every last one, including your
phone and cable bills because if you pay late, it could end up on your
credit report.

Did you have a high balance on your card when you applied for credit again?
You should pay off your credit cards and keep them clear for a month before
applying for a new one, or at least keep the balance low in proportion to
your limits.

Do you know if your credit card company reports to the credit bureaus? Some
cards don't, and they're utterly useless if you're using them to build
credit history.

How much money do you make? Some companies (like AMEX) will not give you a
card unless you make at least $20,000 annually. Some companies are more
lenient.

Do you have a stable, permanent job? If not, you will be denied credit
instantly.

Did you get divorce? Joint accounts with your ex spouse that you are left
to pay can have a negative effect on your credit.

Did you file for bankruptcy or get sent to collections? This will
definitely have a negative effect on your credit history.

Do you know who has your SSN, name and address? Identity theft could also
be a cause of denied credit, and is usually curable.

You should get a copy of your credit report. Under the Fair Credit
Reporting Act, you are entitled to a copy of your report if you are ever
denied credit. You can also order one online from www.equifax.com or any of
the credit bureaus. If you find something that you would like to have
resolved, you can call or write the credit bureau and file a dispute with
them and get it resolved if the information is correct. That is your
entitlement by LAW.

"Athabasca" wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
    > Hi -
    > I am a US resident alien and have had a SSN for 5 years. I am trying to
    > build my credit and have been denied cards because my SSN is "new". I
    > have had a credit card (through my bank) with a $250 limit for over a
    > year, and I attempted to increase the limit and was not accepted.
    > According to my bank, my credit history is good but there is a flag on
    > my credit report because I've only had my SSN for 5 years - in other
    > words it makes me look like I'm 5 years old. I have also tried to get a
    > new different card through offers and such, but have not been approved.
    > This is also a concern because I would like to buy a house in the next
    > year and am afraid I will not be approved for a mortgage.
    > I have no other credit history to transfer to the US because I was only
    > 20 years old when I came here.
    > Has anyone run into this? Can anyone give advice?
    > Thank you.
    > --
    > Posted via http://britishexpats.com
 
Old Nov 3rd 2002, 11:21 pm
  #9  
James Donovan
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Default Re: SSN and Credit History

"on-the-go" wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
    > Checking out a credit report is definitely the first thing to do. The
    > whole story sounds very odd to me. I got my first credit card 2
    > months after I came to the States as a student (!).

Credit card companies tend to be more giving towards students. They have
"student credit cards" that help college students build credit. American
Express and Discover seem to like college students.

    > Another thing is
    > that credit companies are very different. Some are very fussy while
    > others are somewhat easier to deal with. In my case, the first credit
    > card was from CapitalOne which is apparently very aggresive in
    > getting new clients.

Capital One has changed quite a bit, and they are not as receptive as
before. The easiest cards to get to build credit are secured cards. Pay a
small ($500) security deposit, that may even earn some interest, and you get
a credit card with a $500 limit. After a year or so of paying your bills on
time you may be able to get your deposit back and limit raised. If not, you
will be able to get another card from another company.
 
Old Nov 8th 2002, 12:26 am
  #10  
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If you'll be trying to get a student credit card don't say you're a foreigner otherwise they won't accept it.

Open a checking and a savings account, they count very much.

Don't ask too many companies in a short period of time, they don't like that either.

:-)
 
Old Nov 22nd 2002, 4:49 am
  #11  
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Default Re: SSN and Credit History

I don't know about other countries but I came from CND 12 months ago
and I got an AMEX with $20,000 within the first week of getting my
SSN. I got a $100k limit now and I still don't have a job...

Just make yourself sound important and pay all your bills. Also helps
if you have 200k all the time in your bank account from other
savings...


On Tue, 29 Oct 2002 16:59:24 +0000, Athabasca
wrote:

    >Hi -
    >I am a US resident alien and have had a SSN for 5 years. I am trying to
    >build my credit and have been denied cards because my SSN is "new". I
    >have had a credit card (through my bank) with a $250 limit for over a
    >year, and I attempted to increase the limit and was not accepted.
    >According to my bank, my credit history is good but there is a flag on
    >my credit report because I've only had my SSN for 5 years - in other
    >words it makes me look like I'm 5 years old. I have also tried to get a
    >new different card through offers and such, but have not been approved.
    >This is also a concern because I would like to buy a house in the next
    >year and am afraid I will not be approved for a mortgage.
    >I have no other credit history to transfer to the US because I was only
    >20 years old when I came here.
    >Has anyone run into this? Can anyone give advice?
    >Thank you.
 
Old Nov 22nd 2002, 6:04 pm
  #12  
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What is it, that you want to tell us? That you have 200K on your account? Well, good for you, but not very interesting and also not very helpful, since the minority would have so much money....
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Old Nov 22nd 2002, 6:10 pm
  #13  
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Originally posted by guest
If you'll be trying to get a student credit card don't say you're a foreigner otherwise they won't accept it.

Open a checking and a savings account, they count very much.

Don't ask too many companies in a short period of time, they don't like that either.

:-)
-----------------------------
Are you quite sure about the above.

I have a Korean friend whose husband came to the US to study. As soon as he arrived, he had no problem being offered and being accepted to get a student credit card from an American credit card company.

No, he looks Korean. He's even got a Korean sounding name.

Ironically, he and his wife (she's not a student and had was not eligible to work in the US) had no problems with credit in the US whilst I, a legal immigrant who's been in the US for 6 months cannot get a regular credit card (I don't want a secured credt card) at all at this point.



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Old Nov 22nd 2002, 6:13 pm
  #14  
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Default Re: SSN and Credit History

Originally posted by Homer
I don't know about other countries but I came from CND 12 months ago
and I got an AMEX with $20,000 within the first week of getting my
SSN. I got a $100k limit now and I still don't have a job...

Just make yourself sound important and pay all your bills. Also helps
if you have 200k all the time in your bank account from other
savings...


On Tue, 29 Oct 2002 16:59:24 +0000, Athabasca
wrote:

    >Hi -
    >I am a US resident alien and have had a SSN for 5 years. I am trying to
    >build my credit and have been denied cards because my SSN is "new". I
    >have had a credit card (through my bank) with a $250 limit for over a
    >year, and I attempted to increase the limit and was not accepted.
    >According to my bank, my credit history is good but there is a flag on
    >my credit report because I've only had my SSN for 5 years - in other
    >words it makes me look like I'm 5 years old. I have also tried to get a
    >new different card through offers and such, but have not been approved.
    >This is also a concern because I would like to buy a house in the next
    >year and am afraid I will not be approved for a mortgage.
    >I have no other credit history to transfer to the US because I was only
    >20 years old when I came here.
    >Has anyone run into this? Can anyone give advice?
    >Thank you.
----------------------
From my research into credit history and getting a credit card in the US, it would seem that Canadians get "special" treatment from banks and credit card companies, despite being from an overseas country.

The aforementioned US financial institutions are able to check Canadians' credit history whilst not being able to check say, British people's credit history...
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Old Nov 22nd 2002, 6:16 pm
  #15  
boomer2
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Default Re: SSN and Credit History

My credit history doesn't show how long I've had my SSN although I know there are systems that allow people to get this information. You might want to get two or three SECURED credit cards, where you pay a deposit of $100 and they report your creditworthiness to the credit agencies every month. It's not a great option, but it will get a lot more ink on your credit report, which is probably what it is currently missing.
 

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