 TITLE: How to Get a Small Loan With No Credit CONTENT: How to Establish Credit if You Have No Credit History\n-----------------------------------------------------\nEven if you are able to secure a small loan with no credit, it's extremely important to establish and build a credit history. Down the road, you'll likely want to apply for more credit to accomplish other life goals, such as buying a car or a house. Having a credit history will make it easier to get approved for these loans. Try these tips to establish credit for the first time.\n*   **Apply for a secured credit card.** A secured credit card is \"secured\" by a refundable security deposit. You can make charges up to the amount of your deposit (minus any fees). Secured credit cards are designed to help people establish or improve their credit. Because the credit card issuer can tap into your deposit if you can't pay your balance, they will feel confident extending credit even if you don't have a credit history. Before applying for a secured credit card, make sure it will report your payments to the national credit bureaus. Build your credit by using the card sparingly each month, paying your bill on time and making sure your credit utilization doesn't climb too high (aim to keep it below 30%, but lower is better).\n*   **Become an authorized user.** Another option is to get added to a family member's credit card account as an authorized user. The account holder is ultimately responsible for the charges, but by using the credit card for small purchases and paying it off each month, you can improve your credit score. For best results, make sure the primary cardholder always makes on-time payments, has had the account open for a long time and doesn't carry a high balance.\n*   **Monitor your credit score and report.** To see if your credit-building efforts are working, get a free credit report and watch as your on-time payments start to flesh out your file. It takes about six months for your FICO® Score☉ to be calculated; at that point, check your credit score to see where it stands. END