Hi all, new to posting on MMM but have been reading for a while. My wife and I are moving to the US (Western Mass) from London, UK. I'm early 30s, she's late 20s. I will be working and she won't because of our visa set up. We've also lived in South Africa and Italy.
We hope to buy a house in the next couple of years, but plan to rent first while we build up our credit scores to get a better mortgage deal and to build up the capital for our down payment.
But, as a consequence of not having lived in the US, neither of us has a credit score. Any advice on building that up, or suggestions of sites to refer to would be useful (I've already seen creditkarma.com suggested and will use it once we're settled). I have the cash to buy a 2nd-hand car, but plan to get a loan to start building our credit score. Also, as far as I understand, I will not be able to get a normal credit card, but will be able to get a secured credit card. I'm totally happy with this.
A friend of mine who moved to the US a couple of years ago suggested getting a bunch of store cards, buying small things and paying them off quickly. I'm not sure how wise that is, or whether it is actually worthwhile. Any advice appreciated.
Also, in considering the above information note the following. Though I've recently finished a PhD (and my wife also recently finished studying, with intermittent work), we have no student debt, no credit card debt, and some savings (hence being able to buy a car for cash). Anyway, feel free to unleash badass advice.