Obtaining a Credit Card for Wife - Help needed

[True Blue]

How can I help my wife build good credit in the USA? I have applied for several credit cards for her and each has been denied (no USA credit history). In China, credit cards are rarely used.

 

The brain trust at (my soon to be former) bank told me to call Equifax the agency that denied her credit for help. Three hours after being on their web site and stuck in their automated phone tree produced no result. Lke USCIS it is IMPOSSIBLE to TALK TO A HUMAN BEING at Equifax. At one point I did get close to getting a copy of her credit report. Then I got to a screen that said if you lived at your current address for less than 6 months then input prior address. The thought that someone could have possibly lived OUTSIDE THE USA was apparently "inconceivable" to the Equifax programmers as it REQUIRES you to input a state and zip code on prior address or you cannot leave the screen.

 

In any event, we are stuck in the "she can't get a credit card because she has no credit history" and the "she has no credit history because she has no credit cards to establish a history" catch 22.

 

What is the way out? Thanks for any suggestions.

Edited December 23, 2009 by True Blue (see edit history)

[Sam and Fen]

How can I help my wife build good credit in the USA? I have applied for several credit cards for her and each has been denied (no USA credit history). In China, credit cards are rarely used.

 

The brain trust at (my soon to be former) bank told me to call Equifax the agency that denied her credit for help. Three hours after being on their web site and stuck in their automated phone tree produced no result. Lke USCIS it is IMPOSSIBLE to TALK TO A HUMAN BEING at Equifax. At one point I did get close to getting a copy of her credit report. Then I got to a screen that said if you lived at your current address for less than 6 months then input prior address. The thought that someone could have possibly lived OUTSIDE THE USA was apparently "inconceivable" to the Equifax programmers as it REQUIRES you to input a state and zip code on prior address or you cannot leave the screen.

 

In any event, we are stuck in the "she can't get a credit card because she has no credit history" and the "she has no credit history because she has no credit cards to establish a history" catch 22.

 

What is the way out? Thanks for any suggestions.

 

 

What you can do is get a secured credit card.

You give x amount of money to the card company and they will issue a card for her with x limit.

 

For credit reporting purposes it looks like any other card.

Once you have enough history you should be able to get a normal card.

[Randy W]

How can I help my wife build good credit in the USA? I have applied for several credit cards for her and each has been denied (no USA credit history). In China, credit cards are rarely used.

 

The brain trust at (my soon to be former) bank told me to call Equifax the agency that denied her credit for help. Three hours after being on their web site and stuck in their automated phone tree produced no result. Lke USCIS it is IMPOSSIBLE to TALK TO A HUMAN BEING at Equifax. At one point I did get close to getting a copy of her credit report. Then I got to a screen that said if you lived at your current address for less than 6 months then input prior address. The thought that someone could have possibly lived OUTSIDE THE USA was apparently "inconceivable" to the Equifax programmers as it REQUIRES you to input a state and zip code on prior address or you cannot leave the screen.

 

In any event, we are stuck in the "she can't get a credit card because she has no credit history" and the "she has no credit history because she has no credit cards to establish a history" catch 22.

 

What is the way out? Thanks for any suggestions.

 

Add her to your own credit card, and pay all bills on time. Then, when she gets an acceptable unsolicited, pre-approved offer, apply for that. This may be harder to do now, but it wasn't long at all before my wife got the offers in the mail

[True Blue]

How can I help my wife build good credit in the USA? I have applied for several credit cards for her and each has been denied (no USA credit history). In China, credit cards are rarely used.

 

The brain trust at (my soon to be former) bank told me to call Equifax the agency that denied her credit for help. Three hours after being on their web site and stuck in their automated phone tree produced no result. Lke USCIS it is IMPOSSIBLE to TALK TO A HUMAN BEING at Equifax. At one point I did get close to getting a copy of her credit report. Then I got to a screen that said if you lived at your current address for less than 6 months then input prior address. The thought that someone could have possibly lived OUTSIDE THE USA was apparently "inconceivable" to the Equifax programmers as it REQUIRES you to input a state and zip code on prior address or you cannot leave the screen.

 

In any event, we are stuck in the "she can't get a credit card because she has no credit history" and the "she has no credit history because she has no credit cards to establish a history" catch 22.

 

What is the way out? Thanks for any suggestions.

 

 

What you can do is get a secured credit card.

You give x amount of money to the card company and they will issue a card for her with x limit.

 

For credit reporting purposes it looks like any other card.

Once you have enough history you should be able to get a normal card.

 

Thanks - great idea! I will do it.

[b.c]

Had the same problem. My wife got here about the time the credit crunch hit. She even got denied for a damn Macy's card.

 

We did what Sam suggested. She has had it for about 6 months. We are gonna wait a bit longer and then she will apply for another card and maybe a small loan at some point.

 

Other than adding her to your own accounts like Randy said, there is not much else you can do.

Edited December 23, 2009 by bcco (see edit history)

[dnoblett]

I applied for a credit card in MY name and had them issue an additional card in her name.

 

This takes time to build credit history where my wife will be able to apply for one on her own.

 

A while back someone posted a story about shopping at a department store and the pushy clerk insisted that immigrant wife could apply for and have a department store account within minutes, US citizen husband warned the clerk that it WILL NOT FLY, but let the Clerk try and FAIL.

[credzba]

My wife arrived August, 2008.

 

We went to Costco in November 2008, and applied for her an amex card in her own name, and got an additional card issued for me.

 

They issued her the card on the spot (with the costco membership) and we have been using it since.

 

I don't think costco/amex refuses for no credit, perhaps they do for bad credit I don't know.

[xiaofeizhu]

I believe this happens to most everyone.

 

My hubby arrived in late July 2007. In August, I had him added to my one credit card. He tried to apply for other cards and was denied 3 times. As others have said, yes, even for Macys!!

 

I had him on my card for over a year now, and because of his job, we have had a credit increase and things like that.

 

Just a few weeks ago, he applied for a Macys card and was approved!!

 

Now, he can start building credit on his own.

 

It takes time though. I tried to apply, jointly, for a new card with a higher limit. We were denied. I went back and processed the same application for just myself, and was approved.

 

Another word of caution is applying for a lot of credit cards. It does impact your history, just to apply and stays on your record. I would add her to your cards, pay them off on time, and then wait for at least 6 months of doing this.

 

PS, all of the credit bureaus are like this. I could not get my husband's credit report no matter what I tried. I will be trying again next month, hopefully now that he has been here for a while it will show me his report. I was also on the phone for over an hour, but they just did not get it that he was an immigrant and that his social was just issued to him, yes he is over 18, I know that, but how can his social be so new if he is over 18, blah blah blah. OMG!

[Sam and Fen]

I could not get my husband's credit report no matter what I tried

 

The law is that you are allowed to look at your credit history once a year for free. It will not tell you the score but you can look at everything else from the 3 big credit reporting companies.

[mmpv]

I could not get my husband's credit report no matter what I tried

 

The law is that you are allowed to look at your credit history once a year for free. It will not tell you the score but you can look at everything else from the 3 big credit reporting companies.

 

That's true.

https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp

One per credit agency every 12 months. <-- Note not annual, some (transunion I think) actually track it down to the last minute and won't give you a freebie until you passed 12 months.

 

The law also allows you to receive a free report if you are denied credit, employment, etc., provided that the info in the credit report contributed to the denial.

 

Also, if you read their faq.

"In addition to consumers who are eligible for a free credit report through the Annual Credit Report Request Service; consumers in some states are eligible for a free credit report under state law. The following states have laws that make free credit reports available to consumers: Colorado, Georgia, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Vermont."

[mmpv]

How can I help my wife build good credit in the USA? I have applied for several credit cards for her and each has been denied (no USA credit history). In China, credit cards are rarely used.

 

The brain trust at (my soon to be former) bank told me to call Equifax the agency that denied her credit for help. Three hours after being on their web site and stuck in their automated phone tree produced no result. Lke USCIS it is IMPOSSIBLE to TALK TO A HUMAN BEING at Equifax. At one point I did get close to getting a copy of her credit report. Then I got to a screen that said if you lived at your current address for less than 6 months then input prior address. The thought that someone could have possibly lived OUTSIDE THE USA was apparently "inconceivable" to the Equifax programmers as it REQUIRES you to input a state and zip code on prior address or you cannot leave the screen.

 

In any event, we are stuck in the "she can't get a credit card because she has no credit history" and the "she has no credit history because she has no credit cards to establish a history" catch 22.

 

What is the way out? Thanks for any suggestions.

 

Provided that your wife has a SS#, you can start with opening a bank account. Most banks will run a credit check when you do that and it will start the balls rolling with the credit bureaus, i.e., if she didn't have a record, she will. Then do things that others have said, like adding her to your credit card. Although I think that this trick is getting old because it's a trick people with very bad credit used to do to get their credit scores up, so your mileage will vary, but it couldn't hurt.

Add your wife's name and SS# to things like utilities if they report to and check on credit. Take out a small loan at a bank and have her repay it, though you might need to co-sign the loan since she has no credit. The point is to build the credit up slowly and patiently.

Also, I wouldn't constantly apply to everything in sight because every

credit check that a potential creditor runs is a ding on your credit score and it will make you look very desperate in the eyes of creditors.

[Denny&yan]

Yes, add her to your credit cards. I added my wife last year even before she has had her inteview. Add to all your cc's if you trust her, but make sure you trust totally before you give her the cards! then those cc's will add to her credit history.

 

Denny

[xiaofeizhu]

I could not get my husband's credit report no matter what I tried

 

The law is that you are allowed to look at your credit history once a year for free. It will not tell you the score but you can look at everything else from the 3 big credit reporting companies.

 

I know this, but the companies refused. Hubby was by the phone so it is not like they denied me because I wasn't my husband. This ever happen to anyone else? It was about 6 months after coming to America so he should have had some kind of report since he had a social and was on my card for 6 months. Oh well, maybe he can get his report this year lol.

[Sam and Fen]

I could not get my husband's credit report no matter what I tried

 

The law is that you are allowed to look at your credit history once a year for free. It will not tell you the score but you can look at everything else from the 3 big credit reporting companies.

 

I know this, but the companies refused. Hubby was by the phone so it is not like they denied me because I wasn't my husband. This ever happen to anyone else? It was about 6 months after coming to America so he should have had some kind of report since he had a social and was on my card for 6 months. Oh well, maybe he can get his report this year lol.

 

 

I have been able to get mine online from all the 3 companies.

[RobertH]

the free reports are annoying because you have to sign up for accounts with 2 of the 3 credit places before they will show you the reports.