I have no debt and one debit card. I own no property or cars and have no plans to. Is there any reason I should try to get my credit score higher or I should try to get a credit card? |
That's not a great score, but if you have no debt it's because you haven't actually established that you are truly creditworthy yet.
You should absolutely get 1-2 more cards, and within the first few months incur a balance (make minimum payments!) then pay that balance off in full. Do this a few times. Use the cards on occasion. Your score will shoot up. |
I find life easier with a credit card. Just get one and pay it off each month. |
But do I have any need to have a higher credit score? |
Yes, you will need to be at 700 if you want to get a mortgage. |
I’ve done this and my credit score hasn’t shot up |
I don’t have any plans to buy. I’m a renter. |
Some employers do credit checks. Some landlords do. A low score may be a problem. We advised both our kids to get credit cards, and use them responsibly, to get their score up. There are other benefits to credit cards over debit cards. |
I called this morning to turn on electric in a new home. The electric company did a credit check to see if they would need a deposit from me. Not a big deal, but you never know when it might be useful to have a good score. |
I moved a few months ago and didn't have to pay a security deposit because my credit score was over 700. There are advantages to getting it up even for renters. |
Get your score up. Right now you score like people who buy household appliances from Rent-a-Center.
You never know what could happen in life. You may decide to stop throwing money down the toilet on rent. You may have an emergency where an easy $40k line of credit is helpful. If you’re as comfortable as you suggest and it’s really just a question of whether it’s worthwhile to get some credit and pay it off, the answer is obviously yes. But this question is so juvenile I assume it’s a troll. |
My credit score is in the mid 800s. I have no debt whatsoever. It's because I paid it all off. I have about five credit cards with about $30,000 worth of available credit.
I don't make a lot of money and I'm about to retire and have even less income. I figure a high credit score will really help me out when I have to move (in a few months) and need to qualify for an amount of rent that I wouldn't qualify for if I had some debt. I may not qualify under their income formula but with that credit score and zero debt I might. Also, if my car craps out on me I could go get another one in an hour. |
I’m not a troll. But I’ll always rent because I’ll never have enough money to buy. |
OK I’ll accept you’re not a troll, but this is why your post is aggravating. If you have the discipline to live without incurring any debt, then you are ahead of most people. It also means you have the discipline to save a little. If you take some relatively easy steps to establish a real credit score and maintain that discipline, your financial health will drastically improve. You will not fatalistically assume you’ll never have money to buy. With a good enough credit score and the right tricks you really don’t need an insane amount of cash to get in a starter home and begin accumulating equity. |
Car insurance even checked my score. |