Is opening a credit card and not using it good for building credit history?
I applied for a credit card with low limit (my mother cosigned it with me). Although I’ve started a part time job, I won’t have too much money to spend with my new card.
Having second thoughts with this idea – is having a credit card and not using it good for building credit history or am I doing damage to myself?
Opening a card and not using it is not a good credit building tactic, because the card will be reported on your credit report as inactive.
It is true that it will at least get on your credit report and show as a loan, but it will not help in building credit history and inactive cards may even hurt your credit score (though not nearly as much as a missed payment or maxed credit cards).
Since you’ve already opened the card – don’t close it. Instead, try to keep a very small balance and use it for a few small payments(it doesn’t matter how small).
As far as building credit history goes, small or large payments make no difference. Large payments will NOT help you build credit any faster.