How I Destroyed My Credit Score And Built It From the Ground Up
300. That is the lowest score you can get if you are bad at money. To be more specific, if you are bad at credit cards. That was me.
When you have no prior experience nor knowledge on how to handle credit cards, you are likely to fall into the trap of credit card debt. When you get yourself into the vicious cycle of minimum payments, you will drown. I was drowning in debt, until I decided to end it.
The Story
I was in my 20s when it all happened. I got my first credit card offer from Capital One through a “secured” credit card. Basically, with a secured credit card, you put your money into it (say $500) and you use that money to start improving your credit score. It’s a “safe” way for these banks to test out your creditworthiness. Depending on how you do, they might offer you one of their credit cards.
At first, I was doing great. Then, I got another offer — this time from Discover Card. After which, the offers just kept coming in the mail like spam. If you’ve gotten these too, you’d have to admit that they’re pretty enticing. They come in different presentations — silver foils, embossed gloss, felt-coated paper. They make you feel special.
8 credit cards later, I was hit. I have spent too much money than what I could afford and…
