TwoEdgedSword Posted July 3, 2017 Share Posted July 3, 2017 What's a good credit card to start our freshman with? We want our freshman to have a very low limit and use it infrequently. Point accumulation would be nice. Anything else we should be considering? Thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MerryAtHope Posted July 3, 2017 Share Posted July 3, 2017 Do you want your student to actually have his/her own card, or to be added to your card? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juliegmom Posted July 3, 2017 Share Posted July 3, 2017 Does your child qualify for a credit card on his own? Our daughters wouldn't qualify because of their lack of employment and credit history. We live overseas so this would have been difficult. We have a credit union in the states that has a starter credit card. Our daughter took out a $500 loan which we consigned for and it allowed her to secure a low limit credit card. By making the payments she is also working to establish some credit. For emergencies only, we also added her to one of our cards. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pawz4me Posted July 3, 2017 Share Posted July 3, 2017 (edited) Our credit union said it's difficult for students under 21 to get a card in their own name unless they have a steady work history. We made our boys authorized users on one of our cards. We were told by our credit union (and have verified it by running their credit scores ourselves) that that will help them build a score. Our cards earn cash back rewards, so we have the boys use them for all expenses we cover (which is just about everything). Edited July 3, 2017 by Pawz4me 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2att Posted July 3, 2017 Share Posted July 3, 2017 Our oldest had her own checking account at our bank in high school. When she got to college, the credit card offers started. She now has a cc with this account, using it for monthly expenses and then paying it off each month. She earns points, she improves her credit history, it's money she was going to be spending anyway. I don't know what the credit limit is--I don't imagine it's very high. She also carries a cc in her name on one of our accounts for expenses we don't expect her to cover, like medical co-pays or car repairs. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gwen in VA Posted July 3, 2017 Share Posted July 3, 2017 My older two headed off to college BEFORE the financial meltdown and all the subsequent changes in the financial arena. They applied for a credit card in their own name, got it, and were on their merry way. My younger two headed off to college AFTER the financial meltdown, and WOW have things changed. Ds2 wanted a credit card in his own name, and despite having earned about twice what a normal summer job pays for each of the two prior years and a regular part-time job plus full-time student status, at age 19 he was turned down. He finally was able to get a credit card through his local bank. Apparently if you apply through the bank, they can "recommend" people and that goes a long way. Then when he turned 21 he was able to successfully apply for one in the open market that had the perks he wanted. Having learned from ds2, dd2 went through our local bank for her first credit card. She is now 21 with a regular job (plus full-time student status) and is about to apply for one on the open market. Do not apply for a credit card unless you are reasonably sure of getting it. Having a credit card application rejected is a huge black eye on the credit score. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G5052 Posted July 3, 2017 Share Posted July 3, 2017 DS and I shared a credit card his first two years of college. That's not hard to get if they are 18. After two years of that and working, he was able to get a credit card through the credit union where he has an account. We also had him open an IRA there. You can't start saving for retirement too early! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HomeAgain Posted July 3, 2017 Share Posted July 3, 2017 I'd suggest a secured card through your bank. You make the limit what you like and it helps build credit, but they're easier to get because the person is borrowing against what they already have. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted July 3, 2017 Share Posted July 3, 2017 We added our kids to our own credit card account to build credit. They have their own cards; they are supposed to use them for emergencies only, and we monitor the account. Once DD had a job, she got a Discover card; they market to students. They do, however, ask for information about income, so students without an income are no longer eligible. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bettyandbob Posted July 3, 2017 Share Posted July 3, 2017 Thanks to this thread I learned my credit union has something called a Visa starter credit card. With a limit of $1500. I am sending DD there this week to apply. She's had an account there for several years. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TwoEdgedSword Posted July 3, 2017 Author Share Posted July 3, 2017 MerryAtHope, we want freshman to have their own card. Our local bank may be a good source as they know us. While we really didn't want a card connected to ours, I can see it might be important, say with auto repairs or some large unforeseen expense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kassia Posted July 3, 2017 Share Posted July 3, 2017 Discover has always been the easiest card for my kids to get. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arch at Home Posted July 3, 2017 Share Posted July 3, 2017 When DD17 was away from home for 4 weeks last summer, we got her a card our account and she also had a debit card on her own account. She paid for the expense that she was responsible for with the debit card and those that we had agreed to pay on the credit card. This system worked so well that we intend to continue this arrangement next year at college. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retiredHSmom Posted July 4, 2017 Share Posted July 4, 2017 My oldest got her own credit card, A Costco American Express, about 18 months ago. She was 20.5 and they allowed her to count her monthly allowance from us as income. My middle daughter is on one of my accounts. She lives at home and it is very convenient for her to have a way to pay for things with my money (she grocery shops for me most weeks). She has a full time job as a graduate teaching assistant so I am sure that she could get her own card and she will when she decides it is important right now she just uses her debit card as she is financially independent 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bootsie Posted July 4, 2017 Share Posted July 4, 2017 MerryAtHope, we want freshman to have their own card. Our local bank may be a good source as they know us. While we really didn't want a card connected to ours, I can see it might be important, say with auto repairs or some large unforeseen expense. What do you see the student's card being used for? If you want to limit purchases but build up credit, sometimes college students can get a gas credit card in their own name. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pegasus Posted July 5, 2017 Share Posted July 5, 2017 DD20 has a Discover student card. It is her account but I did have to co-sign for it so I'm on the hook if she doesn't pay. Discover offers some perks on the student card that is good for new users. DD17 has an authorized user card on one of my credit card accounts. She traveled to a writer's workshop alone this summer and I wanted her to have a credit card for convenience and/or emergencies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tshirtyogapantmama Posted July 6, 2017 Share Posted July 6, 2017 Capital One Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gratia271 Posted July 6, 2017 Share Posted July 6, 2017 DD has a secured credit card in her own name as well as is an authorized user on one of our credit card accounts. This time next year we will be buying her a car to have on campus, and she will take out a secured loan she pays back from an investment account. She will also be title holder on the car, so that provides another asset in her own name. In essence, she uses her own money to pay back the debt on a monthly basis over a period of several years. Our financial adviser said that is among the best ways to establish credit. At least in her opinion, it is superior to co-signing loans because parent and child are both involved in credit as opposed to DD being the only one involved. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ann.without.an.e Posted July 6, 2017 Share Posted July 6, 2017 Our credit union said it's difficult for students under 21 to get a card in their own name unless they have a steady work history. We made our boys authorized users on one of our cards. We were told by our credit union (and have verified it by running their credit scores ourselves) that that will help them build a score. Our cards earn cash back rewards, so we have the boys use them for all expenses we cover (which is just about everything). I did this for dd when she was in high school. I like her to have it for emergencies too. We have a high limit though so I wouldn't recommend it for a kid with questionable ideas of what to spend it on. Does it work to help her with her credit at all? I am not sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ann.without.an.e Posted July 6, 2017 Share Posted July 6, 2017 When DD17 was away from home for 4 weeks last summer, we got her a card our account and she also had a debit card on her own account. She paid for the expense that she was responsible for with the debit card and those that we had agreed to pay on the credit card. This system worked so well that we intend to continue this arrangement next year at college. This is the exact system we use with dd18. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bootsie Posted July 6, 2017 Share Posted July 6, 2017 DD has a secured credit card in her own name as well as is an authorized user on one of our credit card accounts. This time next year we will be buying her a car to have on campus, and she will take out a secured loan she pays back from an investment account. She will also be title holder on the car, so that provides another asset in her own name. In essence, she uses her own money to pay back the debt on a monthly basis over a period of several years. Our financial adviser said that is among the best ways to establish credit. At least in her opinion, it is superior to co-signing loans because parent and child are both involved in credit as opposed to DD being the only one involved. We carefully studied whether it would be better to have car titles in our children's names or our names while they are at college. In our case, the insurance would have been much more expensive if the car was titled in the child's name. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gratia271 Posted July 7, 2017 Share Posted July 7, 2017 We carefully studied whether it would be better to have car titles in our children's names or our names while they are at college. In our case, the insurance would have been much more expensive if the car was titled in the child's name. Yes, that is true in some cases. It isn't in ours, so I forgot to mention that possibility. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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