Simple way to build credit
Using a credit card responsibly over time can improve credit. But if you have bad credit or no credit history, you can't get a card. Enter the secured credit card. With a secured card, you make a deposit to the credit card company and that deposit becomes your credit line. Then, you can use the card to buy an item every month and then pay off the item each month. This way, you build a history of paying for what you buy. That's good credit. In some cases, credit card companies will eventually upgrade a secured card to an unsecured card.
Secured cards are different from pre-paid debit cards. Debit cards are not reported to the credit bureaus, so they do nothing for your credit.
Rick Good spent ten years in the newspaper business, including with The News & Observer (Raleigh, NC) and The Greenville News (Greenville, SC). He co-wrote, with Melinda Coleman, Rutledge to Riley: Governors of South Carolina, 1776–Present (Published by The Greenville News), and is the author of Mind Games Trivia #1 (Amazon). He has recently spent 15 years creating original trivia content through Sounds Good Mobile Entertainment and continues that with his new company, SGME Software. He edits The Smart Reader’s money, real estate, and business coverage.