My Credit Confession

I have a rather controversial confession to make. Ready? I don't have a credit card. I never have. Well, kind of....

My mom has had credit cards (and racked up a lot of pesky debt because of it -- any wonder I'm gun-shy?), and at one time I was the "authorized user" on them. For some internet transactions, this was a necessity. However, I've mostly just gotten by with debit. But then recently I thought maybe I'd try to establish some credit of my own. I didn't want to carry a balance or anything, just create a credit history. So my first step was to look up my credit report. Was I in for a shock! Not only did it list all the cards I had ever been an authorized user for, but I discovered one of those sneaky companies had made me a joint account holder without my permission! I was able to get myself removed from the cards where I was an "authorized user," but that one -- which I always assumed I was just an authorized user for -- remains. No matter how many calls I've made, how much I've protested that they did it without my permission, they refuse to let me out of it. I am not happy about it.

So, even if you're just someone's "authorized user," I strongly suggest you check your own credit report. Make sure there's nothing there that shouldn't be! If I had stayed on top of mine, I might not be in this mess.

That said, I still have an interest in establishing my own credit. But this situation has made me ultra cautious about it.


I was recently made aware of CardHub.com, which is a credit card index site. I've been to sites like this before, but I honestly really like CardHub the best. They help you filter cards based on your credit standing, and then you can filter further by multiple factors, like intro rates, annual fees, etc., all of which are plainly listed with each card. The cards they feature are all pretty well known -- no shady underground companies you've never heard of. But best of all is their education center. I've learned a lot from the few articles I've read (I'll be reading more later). They really take you by the hand to teach you all the ins and outs of how credit cards work and how to be a savvy applicant.

I'd love to find something that I didn't like about my experience at CardHub, just so I could make this a balanced review, but I can't find anything that I feel needs improvement!

Thanks to what I learned at CardHub, I'm definitely going to be paying that little extra to get my actual FICO score, so I know exactly what my credit standing is. That way, I know CH will be able to help me find my perfect card.