Steve_I

Hi LIsa.... The house in FL was in my name only. We got the mortgage through a US broker who specialized in holiday homes for brits. I had to provide proof of income and employment in England and proof of where the deposit had come from. Although I didn't have a SSN I had a ITIN (tax identification number) for IRS purposes. Good job I did as they kept about $8K when we sold the place Got it back about 6 months later

Steve_I

I've started the escape tunnel here mate..... Starts in Peterlee, just up the road from Darlo Thanks for the advice.

Drebin

Didn't know that? Is that a recent change?

Makes me think I was lucky when I did mine... I got a UK Amex about a month before I emigrated. Then it was close to a year after I got here that I finally bothered to try and apply for a US Amex. Got one with no troubles.

So I guess even if you're leaving very soon, it's maybe worth getting one before you leave and then 'transfer' it later when you can. There was a vast difference in the limit I got on that Amex, versus the credit card I had with the same bank that did my checking. Definitely worth a go IMO.

FLexpat

Steve,

When you arrive, and you opt for the AIG US Inbound membership (great deal), you can get your car lease with <removed>. They are partners with AIG as well as with Enterprise. They have been able to help endless expats without credit score. Good luck!

Steve_I

Many thanks for the tip.... web site is a bit vague on costs but email sent....

meauxna

FYI, that user has been banned for repeatedly promoting his company (and not identifying it as his). User your own radar when you get the quote, but mine did not approve.
YMMV

Steve_I

Thanks M. PM sent....

AddyLaddy

Does using a transferred Amex card start earning you USA credit history - i.e. contribute to your FICO score ?

chartreuse

Yep. I had a valid FICO score as soon as my AMEX started reporting, because they dated the history back to when I opened the UK one.

AddyLaddy

Cool! I only got one last year and haven't really used it. I guess I must start doing that to generate some 'real' history ??

What happens to the transactions on the USA card, are they converted into GBP and then applied to your UK account ?

EricK

Amex issue you with a new US card, you keep your UK card. Transactions in the US are posted to your US account in $, transactions on your UK card are posted in £ to the UK account.

I still own a property in the UK so my UK card is registered there.. not quite sure what happens if you do not have a UK residence though?

AddyLaddy

I just phoned the Amex transfer number and they said they will only transfer cards issued by them and not cards issued by UK banks. Unfortunately, mine is from a UK bank and so is not eligible.

Oh well, back to the drawing board on obtaining USA credit and credit history!

lazza

Hi I've been looking into the AIG International Services programme, and I can't find any information about it.

Does anyone know if the programme is still running? If you've used it, please could you test the link you used and see if it still works, then post it if so?

Thank you!

Englishtart

Have you tried looking in the Wiki? might be some info in there

lazza

Please ignore the last post - after more searching I found the link

http://www.aig-is.com/html/inbound_main.html

While I'm posting though, I have a question...

I have a social security number from when I worked in the US on a J1 in 2000. From reading the wiki about credit rating, I can see that one of the issues with getting credit is not having a ssn or having a new one - does the fact that I already have one get me any further on? Or does the fact that nothing has been recorded against it mean that it's just the same situation as having a brand spanking new ssn? I'm looking into seeing whether I have any credit history (or lack of) listed against my ssn at the moment...