How To Repair Credit With Secured Credit Cards

However, these cards can be a safe alternative for you to build credit for your child, if they are used wisely. The trick is, to get the card and never use it. Credit cards only have to be used once to begin reporting to the bureau. After that, you can tear the card up and never use it again. Most people mistakenly believe that the card has to be used regularly to build credit, this simply isn’t true. Credit bureaus only report, how long you have had the card, what your limit is and if you have been late on your payments.

So what exactly are secured credit cards and how can they help repair credit?

Secured Credit Cards are different from debit cards and prepaid cards in one area, they build credit by reporting to the credit bureaus. The only reason to use this card is to help your child build credit. This is because they require you to pay your credit limit up front, and then they charge you interest to use it. No really, think about it, you give the bank $500, and when you need to "borrow" some of your money, they charge you interest. Kind of sounds silly when you say it out loud, doesn’t it?