How to Build Credit History to Get Higher Credit Card Limits

PersonalCredit
4 min read

The first rule in building consumer credit quickly is to make sure every purchase gets reported to the major credit bureaus. That means if you’re buying gas, office supplies, or paying the annual membership fees that some Tier 1 vendors require, make sure it gets reported to the major credit bureaus.

Open Sky

OpenSky
OpenSky
Secured Personal Credit Card

There are no application requirements to get approved for a secured Open Sky credit card other than a minimum security deposit of $200.

Anything you deposit is held and cannot be used for purchases, but the more you deposit, the higher your credit limit.

Here are six reasons to think about using a secured Open Sky credit card to build credit.

  1. No Credit Check — Just apply, make a minimum $200 security deposit, and get instantly approved.
  2. Deposit = Credit Limit — The bigger your security deposit, the higher your credit limit.
  3. Credit Reporting — They report all purchases to all three major personal credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion).
  4. Personal Purchases Allowed —When not making business purchases, you can still buy whatever you need for yourself to help build personal credit.
  5. Positive Credit History —Don’t buy anything you can’t pay in full by your due date, and you’ll be guaranteed a positive credit report that will increase your personal score.
  6. Tier 2 Approval — You can’t get Tier 2 credit approval without good business credit. Some will approve you though, with just a few reporting tradelines if you offer a PG and have a good personal credit score.

The Open Sky card has no annual fee, and everyone gets approved, even those who have filed for bankruptcy. The catch is that Open Sky does not report to business credit bureaus, just personal ones. Still, if you have a business credit card that does not report, or you carry a credit card balance to fund your business, that will not help you build credit while the Open Sky card will.

  • Annual Fee: $35
  • Security Deposit: $200 minimum
  • Interest Rate: 17.39%
  • Credit Check: No, not even a soft pull
  • PG: No, your security deposit is your guarantee
  • Approval Requirements: Security deposit
  • How to Apply: Online application
  • Approval Speed: Instant
  • Reports to: Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion (personal credit reporting only)

eCredable Lift

How to Build Credit History to Get Higher Credit Card Limits
eCredable Lift
Utility Payment Reporter

If you’re currently paying utility bills on time, you can use the eCredable Liftlocker service to boost your TransUnion credit score, which directly affects your Fico 8 and Vantagepoint 3.0 personal credit scores.

For $25 per year, you can add up to 24 months of payment history to your Transunion credit report from these eight different utility account types.

  • Electricity, water, and gas
  • Mobile and landline phones
  • Internet, cable, and satellite TV

By linking each utility account to eCredable they will automatically report your payment information each and every month to TransUnion. As long as you pay your annual fee each year, they will continue building your eCredable credit file, and subsequently, report it to participating National Consumer Reporting Agencies (NCRAs) twice a week.

  • How to Apply: Online application
  • Annual Fee: $25
  • Credit Check: No
  • Approval Speed: Instant
  • Requirements: Legal business name and address —> TIN —> Legal names, addresses, and SSNs for all business owners
  • Reports to: TransUnion

Fingerhut

Fingerhut
Fingerhut
Personal Credit Builder

While the 30-50 FICO score boosts associated with Fingerhut NET 30 accounts are related to your personal credit reports, it’s still worthwhile when trying to build your business credit.

New businesses who want to extend their reach into Tier 2 credit or higher might need to offer a personal guarantee (PG) for approval which is tied to their personal credit score. If you don’t have a good personal credit score, you’ll have to wait until your business is well established. The same holds true for many startup business loans where a good personal FICO score is the #1 factor for loan approval.

With Fingerhut’s extensive catalog, it’s like you’re shopping at Walmart with 30-day terms. Buying regular items for your home and garden, including small appliances, electronics, and tools, alongside clothing, jewelry, toys, books, and pet supplies. You name it, they probably sell it.

90% of those who fill out Fingerhut’s credit application are accepted with an instant decision. So, if you need a 30+ personal credit score boost, then paying a little extra for items you already use might be worth it so you can get that business loan or upgraded net 30 accounts you desire.