Most people result to swiping their credit cards into various terminals on the checkout counters to try and build a good credit history. A credit score that is positive grants you the benefit of an increased chance of approved loan applications. Apart from that, a good credit score also opens you to higher loan amounts for a variety of purposes, such as to buy your own house, renovate the one you are currently living in, or to start a business. Whatever motivation you might have, building a good credit score is beneficial. But you don’t always have to rely on credit cards because there are alternatives that can help you earn that good credit score.

Start by getting smaller loans

If you want to start building a good credit history without too much reliance on credit cards, you can start applying for various fast cash loans that don’t require an existing credit line on your part. These are usually smaller loan types such as personal loans, payday loans, to name a few. To apply for these types of loans, the general requirements are usually your proof of income or latest salary slip and a valid ID or two. You might feel like you don’t need to apply for a loan since your personal finances are enough to sustain both of your needs and wants. But if you want to start building a good credit record, apply for any fast approval loan for that purpose. Just be sure to pay it back when they are due so that you wouldn’t hurt the credit score that you’re trying to build.

Pay your bills diligently

Bills for certain utilities such as your monthly rent, water consumption, electricity, and more, have an effect on your credit profile–if you tend to miss your due dates even just for a day, you better start changing that because if that goes on for any longer, you are going to have a bad payment history. But if you diligently settle your bills when they are due, you are on the right track because a positive history of payments made on time can increase your chances of being able to get a loan from licensed money lenders that use your paying history to determine your eligibility.

If you rely on timely remittance to help you settle your monthly financial dues, you can turn to vendors such as Rent Track, Level credit or Rental Kharma–they can do a report on your credit profile based on the bills that you will provide them with.

Conclusion

Getting a credit card, using it and paying it back diligently is only one of the ways that you can build a good credit history. A group of people who shy away from credit cards exist because they don’t trust the various methods and algorithms that banks use to determine the fees that the owner is charged with. If  you want to build your credit but feel strongly against the use of credit cards, you can turn to loans–start by applying for smaller loan types and if you make it a point to pay them back diligently, your credit score is improved. This is beneficial to help you be more eligible for bigger loan amounts should you need it. You should also look for approved debt consolidation companies if you have multiple loans.