I have a corporation since 1998. I have never borrowed any money for
the corporation. My view on borring money for business is very simple,
if I do not have money for something, I do not do it.

But, it so happens that from time to time, I need to establish an
account with a new vendor, they check my credit history and tell me
that I have no credit history.

I am loath to borrow money, but maybe I can borrow some small amount
for a few months just to establish some credit history? what is the
easiest way to acquire a credit history?

Thanks

i

Ignoramus12069 wrote:


I have a corporation since 1998. I have never borrowed any money for
the corporation. My view on borring money for business is very simple,
if I do not have money for something, I do not do it.

But, it so happens that from time to time, I need to establish an
account with a new vendor, they check my credit history and tell me
that I have no credit history.

I am loath to borrow money, but maybe I can borrow some small amount
for a few months just to establish some credit history? what is the
easiest way to acquire a credit history?

I buy several tens of K$ of electronic parts from the usual
distributors (Digi-Key, Mouser, Newark and Allied, mostly.)
I give them as trade references whenever applying for credit.
Only Avnet has ever turned me down, I guess I am too small
for them. So, for Avnet, I have to buy with a credit card.
For all others that I deal with a lot, I am on Net 30 terms.
I do not have a corporation, just a sole proprietorship.

Jon

I am loath to borrow money, but maybe I can borrow some small amount
for a few months just to establish some credit history? what is the
easiest way to acquire a credit history?

Thanks

i

HA, I haven't borrowed a nickel for 20 years. if you find out, let me
know. This is way less of an issue than it used to be, most places
just want your CC card number now. But, if you go to a new vendor with
a large order, expect resistance. I'm sure you have more trouble with
this because of our respective locations.

I bought a pickup and had cash, they almost wouldn't sell it, had to
take a loan out for 30 days. I changed banks a few years ago (dropped
Wells Fargo) and they almost didn't want me - no loan income.

Karl

On Thu, 04 Jul 2013 15:40:15 -0500, Ignoramus12069
wrote:


I have a corporation since 1998. I have never borrowed any money for
the corporation. My view on borring money for business is very simple,
if I do not have money for something, I do not do it.

But, it so happens that from time to time, I need to establish an
account with a new vendor, they check my credit history and tell me
that I have no credit history.

I am loath to borrow money, but maybe I can borrow some small amount
for a few months just to establish some credit history? what is the
easiest way to acquire a credit history?

Thanks

i

AFAIUI..

Ask for credit, get it, use it (ie. buy substantial quantities of
stuff and pay for it on time) and use that to get other accounts. It's
easy to get credit from vendors such as couriers to start with (and
you may need to back it up with a CC or something like that to start
with). If you want a bad credit history, just don't pay some stupid
rip-off bill.

The bank is only one source of credit information- potential creditors
are going to want to know whether you treat suppliers well too.

If you extend credit to customers, you've no doubt been asked to
provide credit references yourself so you know what they are looking
for (your credit limit extended, payment promptness etc.).

Typical credit application:
http://www.digikey.com/Web%20Export/Info/CreditUS.pdf

Then you can apply for a DUNS number and get D&B rated.

Note that credit ratings are not necessarily always used for things
you may entirely approve of. For example, before litigation the
plaintiff's law firm may run a credit check to see whether it will be
worth their while.

On Thu, 04 Jul 2013 15:40:15 -0500, Ignoramus12069
wrote:


I have a corporation since 1998. I have never borrowed any money for
the corporation. My view on borring money for business is very simple,
if I do not have money for something, I do not do it.

But, it so happens that from time to time, I need to establish an
account with a new vendor, they check my credit history and tell me
that I have no credit history.

I am loath to borrow money, but maybe I can borrow some small amount
for a few months just to establish some credit history? what is the
easiest way to acquire a credit history?

I was in the same boat when I wanted to buy my new truck. I hadn't
used a single credit card in ten or twelve years so I literally had
-no- current credit history.

I had to get a few credit cards from stores and credit card companies,
then build up some history of timely payments. I'd buy $100 items and
pay them off in 3 months, but no sooner. The credit rating companies
like to see steady payment streams.

My credit rating is 777 today, even on a _very_ modest income.

--
A sound mind in a sound body is a short but full description
of a happy state in this world.
-- John Locke

Ignoramus12069 wrote:

I have a corporation since 1998. I have never borrowed any money for
the corporation. My view on borring money for business is very simple,
if I do not have money for something, I do not do it.

But, it so happens that from time to time, I need to establish an
account with a new vendor, they check my credit history and tell me
that I have no credit history.

I am loath to borrow money, but maybe I can borrow some small amount
for a few months just to establish some credit history? what is the
easiest way to acquire a credit history?

It's going to be tough for a small business owner for a few reasons.

1) nobody wan't to take the first "move" if you have no credit history,
other than for something really token, like a phone company, a rubber
stamp and letterhead place and things like that. Even if they trust you
with $50, it's unlikely they will report this and nobody else will ever
know. See #3.

2) As the owner or officer, you will have to personally stand behind any
loans as well. This is easy enough for a credit card as there has to be
some name on it. In essence, it's your credit card of line of credit, that
happens to have a company name associated with it. If your company
defaults, you still have to pay.

3) Even if you do get a credit card, net 30 terms from some places, a line
of credit from the bank and you have real leases on things like equipment
it's possible (and more likely a fact) that none of these will be what's
called "reporting" - meaning if you're good and pay back that the lender
will write great things about you in your credit report, which for
businesses tends to be your D&B file. Your credit history with a corporate
card won't appear in your personal credit history either, it's as if it
never existed, good or bad, unless you default on it.

4) D&B sucks ass, and is a lousy place to deal with. They'll try to charge
you money to doctor your credit report, they beg for details of your
business and then I suspect, turn around and sell this data to junk
mailing lists. It does seem places like phone companies will somehow end
up in your paydex score, even if it's for totally silly amounts of money,
like $11/month for toll free numbers or something like that.

5) credit checks are pretty stupid anyways. I recall a pontential vendor
wanting to run a credit check on my company. Of course, they just exited
bankrupcy themselves, so it's not like I was the potential crook with
an accounting scandal and screwed over creditors, they were.

Your bank might be the best bet for any sort of line of credit or a loan
from your bank. If you can demonstrate you steady income, they may want to
listen.

You can easily get a credit card, but again, it's not going to establish a
credit history, and nobody else ouside that lender will know this ever
happened. They will lie to your face about it being a reporting card too,
trust me on this.

On 2013-07-04, Karl Townsend wrote:

I am loath to borrow money, but maybe I can borrow some small amount
for a few months just to establish some credit history? what is the
easiest way to acquire a credit history?

Thanks

i

HA, I haven't borrowed a nickel for 20 years. if you find out, let me
know. This is way less of an issue than it used to be, most places
just want your CC card number now. But, if you go to a new vendor with
a large order, expect resistance. I'm sure you have more trouble with
this because of our respective locations.

I bought a pickup and had cash, they almost wouldn't sell it, had to
take a loan out for 30 days. I changed banks a few years ago (dropped
Wells Fargo) and they almost didn't want me - no loan income.

What do you mean by saying "I bought a pickup and had cash, they
almost wouldn't sell it". A car dealer would not want your cash?????

Or was it a bank check?

????????????????

I have not bought a vehicle from car dealers in quite a while, but
I bought my wife's car for a check a few years ago without problems.

i

On 2013-07-04, Cydrome Leader wrote:
Ignoramus12069 wrote:

I have a corporation since 1998. I have never borrowed any money for
the corporation. My view on borring money for business is very simple,
if I do not have money for something, I do not do it.

But, it so happens that from time to time, I need to establish an
account with a new vendor, they check my credit history and tell me
that I have no credit history.

I am loath to borrow money, but maybe I can borrow some small amount
for a few months just to establish some credit history? what is the
easiest way to acquire a credit history?

It's going to be tough for a small business owner for a few reasons.

1) nobody wan't to take the first "move" if you have no credit history,
other than for something really token, like a phone company, a rubber
stamp and letterhead place and things like that. Even if they trust you
with $50, it's unlikely they will report this and nobody else will ever
know. See #3.

2) As the owner or officer, you will have to personally stand behind any
loans as well. This is easy enough for a credit card as there has to be
some name on it. In essence, it's your credit card of line of credit, that
happens to have a company name associated with it. If your company
defaults, you still have to pay.

3) Even if you do get a credit card, net 30 terms from some places, a line
of credit from the bank and you have real leases on things like equipment
it's possible (and more likely a fact) that none of these will be what's
called "reporting" - meaning if you're good and pay back that the lender
will write great things about you in your credit report, which for
businesses tends to be your D&B file. Your credit history with a corporate
card won't appear in your personal credit history either, it's as if it
never existed, good or bad, unless you default on it.

4) D&B sucks ass, and is a lousy place to deal with. They'll try to charge
you money to doctor your credit report, they beg for details of your
business and then I suspect, turn around and sell this data to junk
mailing lists. It does seem places like phone companies will somehow end
up in your paydex score, even if it's for totally silly amounts of money,
like $11/month for toll free numbers or something like that.

5) credit checks are pretty stupid anyways. I recall a pontential vendor
wanting to run a credit check on my company. Of course, they just exited
bankrupcy themselves, so it's not like I was the potential crook with
an accounting scandal and screwed over creditors, they were.

Your bank might be the best bet for any sort of line of credit or a loan
from your bank. If you can demonstrate you steady income, they may want to
listen.

You can easily get a credit card, but again, it's not going to establish a
credit history, and nobody else ouside that lender will know this ever
happened. They will lie to your face about it being a reporting card too,
trust me on this.


I may just borrow some token amount frmo the bank and pay it back. I
really do not need, nor use, credit, but some vendors require a credit
history, for example, if I want to rent a particular semi trailer for
a day.

i

On Thu, 04 Jul 2013 16:36:51 -0500, Karl Townsend
wrote:


I am loath to borrow money, but maybe I can borrow some small amount
for a few months just to establish some credit history? what is the
easiest way to acquire a credit history?

Thanks

i

HA, I haven't borrowed a nickel for 20 years. if you find out, let me
know. This is way less of an issue than it used to be, most places
just want your CC card number now. But, if you go to a new vendor with
a large order, expect resistance. I'm sure you have more trouble with
this because of our respective locations.

I bought a pickup and had cash, they almost wouldn't sell it, had to
take a loan out for 30 days. I changed banks a few years ago (dropped
Wells Fargo) and they almost didn't want me - no loan income.

Karl


If they wouldnt sell it to you and you had the cash...a quick lawsuit
against them would get you your truck for free.

Seriously.

Gunner

--
""Almost all liberal behavioral tropes track the impotent rage of small
children. Thus, for example, there is also the popular tactic of
repeating some stupid, meaningless phrase a billion times" Arms for
hostages, arms for hostages, arms for hostages, it's just about sex, just
about sex, just about sex, dumb,dumb, money in politics,money in
politics, Enron, Enron, Enron. Nothing repeated with mind-numbing
frequency in all major news outlets will not be believed by some members
of the populace. It is the permanence of evil; you can't stop it." (Ann
Coulter)

On Thu, 04 Jul 2013 17:28:37 -0500, Ignoramus12069 wrote:

On 2013-07-04, Karl Townsend wrote:

I am loath to borrow money, but maybe I can borrow some small amount
for a few months just to establish some credit history? what is the
easiest way to acquire a credit history?

Thanks

i

HA, I haven't borrowed a nickel for 20 years. if you find out, let me
know. This is way less of an issue than it used to be, most places just
want your CC card number now. But, if you go to a new vendor with a
large order, expect resistance. I'm sure you have more trouble with
this because of our respective locations.

I bought a pickup and had cash, they almost wouldn't sell it, had to
take a loan out for 30 days. I changed banks a few years ago (dropped
Wells Fargo) and they almost didn't want me - no loan income.

What do you mean by saying "I bought a pickup and had cash, they almost
wouldn't sell it". A car dealer would not want your cash?????

Or was it a bank check?

????????????????

I have not bought a vehicle from car dealers in quite a while, but I
bought my wife's car for a check a few years ago without problems.

i

I had the same problem the last time I bought a car. I had the money in
my checking account, but they wanted me to get a loan -- through them, of
course.

I finally had to look the guy in the eye and say, pleasantly, "if you
really don't want to sell to me today, I'll take my business somewhere
else".

They took my check, and sold me the car.

--

Tim Wescott
Wescott Design Services
http://www.wescottdesign.com

On Thu, 04 Jul 2013 15:40:15 -0500, Ignoramus12069 wrote:

I have a corporation since 1998. I have never borrowed any money for the
corporation. My view on borring money for business is very simple,
if I do not have money for something, I do not do it.

But, it so happens that from time to time, I need to establish an
account with a new vendor, they check my credit history and tell me that
I have no credit history.

I am loath to borrow money, but maybe I can borrow some small amount for
a few months just to establish some credit history? what is the easiest
way to acquire a credit history?

Thanks

i

Well, if you don't run your business on credit, you're obviously a wacko,
right?

And you can never tell what a wacko is going to do next...

--

Tim Wescott
Wescott Design Services
http://www.wescottdesign.com

On Thu, 04 Jul 2013 17:46:49 -0500, the renowned Tim Wescott
wrote:



I had the same problem the last time I bought a car. I had the money in
my checking account, but they wanted me to get a loan -- through them, of
course.

I finally had to look the guy in the eye and say, pleasantly, "if you
really don't want to sell to me today, I'll take my business somewhere
else".

They took my check, and sold me the car.


They make a bit of money from the loan- it's better to negotiate the
price before you discuss terms.

I've only ever paid by check for cars.. like y'all weirdos.


Best regards,
Spehro Pefhany
--
"it's the network..." "The Journey is the reward"
Info for manufacturers: http://www.trexon.com
Embedded software/hardware/analog Info for designers: http://www.speff.com

On 7/4/2013 1:40 PM, Ignoramus12069 wrote:

I have a corporation since 1998. I have never borrowed any money for
the corporation. My view on borring money for business is very simple,
if I do not have money for something, I do not do it.

But, it so happens that from time to time, I need to establish an
account with a new vendor, they check my credit history and tell me
that I have no credit history.

I am loath to borrow money, but maybe I can borrow some small amount
for a few months just to establish some credit history? what is the
easiest way to acquire a credit history?

Thanks

i
No one has really answered your question, Iggy.

You need to establish a credit line with a business bank in your area
and tie it to your business bank account. It will cost you a bit each
year and you will have to supply a bunch of documentation. But once
done, you are good for probably two years.

Our credit line started at $50,000. A few years we upped it to $75k. the
bank wants more! It got us through the great recession.

Let you business checking balance run down to negative so your checks
draw on the credit line. Pay a few hundred on the credit line, but don't
pay it off right away. Do this for a few months. Deposit your checks to
a business account in a credit union savings account.

Do this for a few months and you can then pay off the credit line. You
will still have the backup, but you have now established a good credit
record.

Cycle the credit line every six months or so to keep the bank happy.

Now you are running with the big dealers and can buy way more than you
have cash for.

Paul

On Thu, 04 Jul 2013 15:40:15 -0500, Ignoramus12069
wrote:


I have a corporation since 1998. I have never borrowed any money for
the corporation. My view on borring money for business is very simple,
if I do not have money for something, I do not do it.

But, it so happens that from time to time, I need to establish an
account with a new vendor, they check my credit history and tell me
that I have no credit history.

I am loath to borrow money, but maybe I can borrow some small amount
for a few months just to establish some credit history? what is the
easiest way to acquire a credit history?

Thanks

i


Hey Iggy,

Have you tried going to a bank, preferably one you already deal with,
and establishing a "Line of Credit", or a "Demand Payment Loan"? You
can then get a "Letter of Credit" from the bank which most businesses
will take as proof.

Brian Lawson.

On 7/4/2013 5:50 PM, Spehro Pefhany wrote:
On Thu, 04 Jul 2013 15:40:15 -0500, Ignoramus12069
wrote:


I have a corporation since 1998. I have never borrowed any money for
the corporation. My view on borring money for business is very simple,
if I do not have money for something, I do not do it.

But, it so happens that from time to time, I need to establish an
account with a new vendor, they check my credit history and tell me
that I have no credit history.

I am loath to borrow money, but maybe I can borrow some small amount
for a few months just to establish some credit history? what is the
easiest way to acquire a credit history?

Thanks

i

AFAIUI..

Ask for credit, get it, use it (ie. buy substantial quantities of
stuff and pay for it on time) and use that to get other accounts. It's
easy to get credit from vendors such as couriers to start with (and
you may need to back it up with a CC or something like that to start
with). If you want a bad credit history, just don't pay some stupid
rip-off bill.

The bank is only one source of credit information- potential creditors
are going to want to know whether you treat suppliers well too.

If you extend credit to customers, you've no doubt been asked to
provide credit references yourself so you know what they are looking
for (your credit limit extended, payment promptness etc.).

Typical credit application:
http://www.digikey.com/Web%20Export/Info/CreditUS.pdf

Then you can apply for a DUNS number and get D&B rated.

Note that credit ratings are not necessarily always used for things
you may entirely approve of. For example, before litigation the
plaintiff's law firm may run a credit check to see whether it will be
worth their while.


Well stated!

On 7/4/2013 7:44 PM, Brian Lawson wrote:
....

Have you tried going to a bank, preferably one you already deal with,
and establishing a "Line of Credit", or a "Demand Payment Loan"? You
can then get a "Letter of Credit" from the bank which most businesses
will take as proof.

Brian Lawson.

FINALLY!!!!

+1

Do NOT do the stuff about letting a credit line start drawing owing to
overdrafts, etc., etc., etc., ... that will _NOT_ lead to positive
credit ratings, only overdraft fees and the like.

The one thing I would suggest that can help is to get a corporate credit
card from one of the majors and use it for routine expenses just as you
would a debit card except you're paying the bill when due at end of
month instead of it being drafted at the POS. No extra fees, no
interest, no actual out of pocket cost, but it does develop the credit
history by the record of payment.

I've used credit cards routinely both personal and business since uni
days simply to not need to carry any significant cash nor worry about
having the checkbook or, more recently, a check refused when not at
home. I've not paid a single interest payment other than once or twice
when out of town before telephone payment days and the check didn't get
there quite on time. A single payment of that type w/ an extended
period of on-time payment will have no negative impact on a score.

It's possible to get into trouble w/ CC's, sure, but if one is
disciplined in using them and doesn't use them just for whim purchases
just because can, they're no different than any other form of payment.
The problem isn't the CC; it's the person using it, Dave Ramsey
notwithstanding. And, since I rambled onto that already, there's
nothing wrong w/ using credit in business for cash flow or expansion or
whatever again as long as one has a solid business plan and the
discipline to follow through. This idea of never doing anything until
cash is at hand may work for low-capital-intensive operations but it
will not work very successfully in many other situations. If we didn't
have a substantial LOC we'd never get a crop planted or upgrade
machinery or many other things that are mandatory to operate the farm
profitably.

--

On 2013-07-05, dpb wrote:
On 7/4/2013 7:44 PM, Brian Lawson wrote:
...

Have you tried going to a bank, preferably one you already deal with,
and establishing a "Line of Credit", or a "Demand Payment Loan"? You
can then get a "Letter of Credit" from the bank which most businesses
will take as proof.

Brian Lawson.

FINALLY!!!!

+1

Do NOT do the stuff about letting a credit line start drawing owing to
overdrafts, etc., etc., etc., ... that will _NOT_ lead to positive
credit ratings, only overdraft fees and the like.

The one thing I would suggest that can help is to get a corporate credit
card from one of the majors and use it for routine expenses just as you
would a debit card except you're paying the bill when due at end of
month instead of it being drafted at the POS. No extra fees, no
interest, no actual out of pocket cost, but it does develop the credit
history by the record of payment.

I've used credit cards routinely both personal and business since uni
days simply to not need to carry any significant cash nor worry about
having the checkbook or, more recently, a check refused when not at
home. I've not paid a single interest payment other than once or twice
when out of town before telephone payment days and the check didn't get
there quite on time. A single payment of that type w/ an extended
period of on-time payment will have no negative impact on a score.

It's possible to get into trouble w/ CC's, sure, but if one is
disciplined in using them and doesn't use them just for whim purchases
just because can, they're no different than any other form of payment.
The problem isn't the CC; it's the person using it, Dave Ramsey
notwithstanding. And, since I rambled onto that already, there's
nothing wrong w/ using credit in business for cash flow or expansion or
whatever again as long as one has a solid business plan and the
discipline to follow through. This idea of never doing anything until
cash is at hand may work for low-capital-intensive operations but it
will not work very successfully in many other situations. If we didn't
have a substantial LOC we'd never get a crop planted or upgrade
machinery or many other things that are mandatory to operate the farm
profitably.

--

Thanks.

I use credit cards all the time, I simply pay them off at the end of
the month.

i

Brian, drawing down corporate checking for any reason would take a
tremendous effort and would disturb me deeply.

I can see if I can just borrow $1,000 for a month.

i

On 2013-07-05, Brian Lawson wrote:
On Thu, 04 Jul 2013 15:40:15 -0500, Ignoramus12069
wrote:


I have a corporation since 1998. I have never borrowed any money for
the corporation. My view on borring money for business is very simple,
if I do not have money for something, I do not do it.

But, it so happens that from time to time, I need to establish an
account with a new vendor, they check my credit history and tell me
that I have no credit history.

I am loath to borrow money, but maybe I can borrow some small amount
for a few months just to establish some credit history? what is the
easiest way to acquire a credit history?

Thanks

i


Hey Iggy,

Have you tried going to a bank, preferably one you already deal with,
and establishing a "Line of Credit", or a "Demand Payment Loan"? You
can then get a "Letter of Credit" from the bank which most businesses
will take as proof.

Brian Lawson.

On 7/5/2013 8:33 AM, Ignoramus14754 wrote:
On 2013-07-05, wrote:
On 7/4/2013 7:44 PM, Brian Lawson wrote:
...

Have you tried going to a bank, preferably one you already deal with,
and establishing a "Line of Credit", or a "Demand Payment Loan"? You
can then get a "Letter of Credit" from the bank which most businesses
will take as proof.

Brian Lawson.

FINALLY!!!!

+1

Do NOT do the stuff about letting a credit line start drawing owing to
overdrafts, etc., etc., etc., ... that will _NOT_ lead to positive
credit ratings, only overdraft fees and the like.

The one thing I would suggest that can help is to get a corporate credit
card from one of the majors and use it for routine expenses just as you
would a debit card except you're paying the bill when due at end of
month instead of it being drafted at the POS. No extra fees, no
interest, no actual out of pocket cost, but it does develop the credit
history by the record of payment.

....[big snip for brevity]...

I use credit cards all the time, I simply pay them off at the end of
the month.

That's the thing to do for the most part...interest rates are generally
far too high to use them for anything else other than, perhaps, a one or
two month float at most, occasionally, simply for the convenience of not
using some other more formal means.

But, if they're personal (and you've no other "issues" counterbalancing)
then your personal rating should be quite fine. Problem would be that
if they're not related to the business that you still have no business
credit history I presume?

But, if you have that personally and this is a single-person LLC or the
like, that should be sufficient w/ your banker to get you the credit
memorandum/guarantee. You might start by asking for just one for a
particular vendor/purchase/lease/whatever of a set amount--the lender
may be more comfortable w/ a fixed single transaction first time until
you build up a track record. If nothing else that way you could even
collateralize it w/ onhand deposits or the like if necessary to get the
ball rolling.

--

On 7/5/2013 8:35 AM, Ignoramus14754 wrote:
Brian, drawing down corporate checking for any reason would take a
tremendous effort and would disturb me deeply.

I can see if I can just borrow $1,000 for a month.
....

I wouldn't do that (see other response/followup)

You can probably accomplish the same goal w/o actually borrowing the
money w/ the credit memo.

And, when you talk to the banker, tell him what you're doing, have a
summary of your business account cash flow, net worth, etc., etc., in
hand and ask if they will respond favorably to request from vendors w/
credit memo/guarantee letter.

Presuming a positive response, then, when asked, you simply refer the
vendor to the bank or have the bank provide you the letter and submit it.

When returned to farm from the previous consulting life, had a few
consulting jobs left in place subcontracted from previous employer thru
which had been running them. Those required purchases of various
hardware, instrumentation, machine shop support work, etc., etc., ...,
of roughly $25k for some vendors. Worked it as outlined above w/ no
real problems. All the bank needed was proof of the contract and that
held professional liability insurance, etc.

But, generally it helps if there's a smaller local bank that knows you
well to start with; it's a lot tougher to walk into BOA or the like cold
off the street.

HTH...

--

On 7/5/2013 10:01 AM, dpb wrote:
....

Presuming a positive response, then, when asked, you simply refer the
vendor to the bank or have the bank provide you the letter and submit it.

When returned to farm from the previous consulting life, had a few
consulting jobs left in place subcontracted from previous employer thru
which had been running them. Those required purchases of various
hardware, instrumentation, machine shop support work, etc., etc., ...,
of roughly $25k for some vendors. Worked it as outlined above w/ no real
problems. All the bank needed was proof of the contract and that held
professional liability insurance, etc.
....

I'll add that in my case operated as sole proprietorship 'cuz knew
wasn't going to keep that going past the expiration of the existing
contracts of only a couple years' additional duration as the farm would
be far too labor-intensive to keep up both.

But, I did open an AmEx credit card in the dba name to have it for
travel and other miscellaneous small stuff and to have that billed to
the consulting firm name and that also was then another reference to give.

I was fortunate in one way that the farm had/has numerous open accounts
locally w/ all the ag suppliers, equipment dealerships, etc., and they
were also useful for putting on credit applications to show payment
history (if the vendors did ever both to actually check rather than just
have forms on file; I've no idea if they did or not). So, if you have
any of those, don't forget about them as references that can carry over
to add credibility to the applications to bank for the business.

--

On 7/5/2013 10:16 AM, dpb wrote:
....

I was fortunate in one way that the farm had/has numerous open accounts
locally w/ all the ag suppliers, equipment dealerships, etc., and they
were also useful for putting on credit applications to show payment
history (if the vendors did ever both to actually check rather than just
have forms on file; I've no idea if they did or not). So, if you have
any of those, don't forget about them as references that can carry over
to add credibility to the applications to bank for the business.

One last point...if you _don't_ have open accounts w/ your local
distributors of whatever "stuff" you routinely use, consider doing
so...whether it's the fuel supplier, the tire shop, a general
parts/tooling house, even the local Ace Hardware you use regularly will
take business credit app's...use whoever/whatever are your local
suppliers to help (again, of course, assuming you have such, and if you
don't consider cultivating same).

--

On 7/5/2013 8:33 AM, Ignoramus14754 wrote:
On 2013-07-05, dpb wrote:

I use credit cards all the time, I simply pay them off at the end of
the month.

i

I pay them off monthly, too. I even have my checking account set up to
automatically make a monthly payment of the minimum +$10 on the first of
the month, to avoid a fee if I forget which I did once many years ago.

One month a year, I pay slightly less than the balance so some carries
over to the next month. VISA gets a pittance in interest and doesn't
increase my fees because they aren't making anything off me. It hasn't
affected my credit rating.

David

On 7/5/2013 10:38 AM, dpb wrote:
On 7/5/2013 10:16 AM, dpb wrote:
...
....

One last point...if you _don't_ have open accounts w/ your local
distributors of whatever "stuff" you routinely use, consider doing
so...whether it's the fuel supplier, the tire shop, a general
parts/tooling house, even the local Ace Hardware you use regularly will
take business credit app's...use whoever/whatever are your local
suppliers to help (again, of course, assuming you have such, and if you
don't consider cultivating same).

OK, so I thought of one more nit...

If you do this, then be certain to use those accounts _only_ for
business stuff--you don't want to be mixing up personal and business
accounts and have to then justify stuff as business expense on taxes if
there's obviously some stuff that isn't mixed in.

--

In article ,
Ignoramus14754 wrote:

On 2013-07-05, dpb wrote:
On 7/4/2013 7:44 PM, Brian Lawson wrote:
...

Have you tried going to a bank, preferably one you already deal with,
and establishing a "Line of Credit", or a "Demand Payment Loan"? You
can then get a "Letter of Credit" from the bank which most businesses
will take as proof.

Brian Lawson.

FINALLY!!!!

+1

Do NOT do the stuff about letting a credit line start drawing owing to
overdrafts, etc., etc., etc., ... that will _NOT_ lead to positive
credit ratings, only overdraft fees and the like.

The one thing I would suggest that can help is to get a corporate credit
card from one of the majors and use it for routine expenses just as you
would a debit card except you're paying the bill when due at end of
month instead of it being drafted at the POS. No extra fees, no
interest, no actual out of pocket cost, but it does develop the credit
history by the record of payment.

I've used credit cards routinely both personal and business since uni
days simply to not need to carry any significant cash nor worry about
having the checkbook or, more recently, a check refused when not at
home. I've not paid a single interest payment other than once or twice
when out of town before telephone payment days and the check didn't get
there quite on time. A single payment of that type w/ an extended
period of on-time payment will have no negative impact on a score.

It's possible to get into trouble w/ CC's, sure, but if one is
disciplined in using them and doesn't use them just for whim purchases
just because can, they're no different than any other form of payment.
The problem isn't the CC; it's the person using it, Dave Ramsey
notwithstanding. And, since I rambled onto that already, there's
nothing wrong w/ using credit in business for cash flow or expansion or
whatever again as long as one has a solid business plan and the
discipline to follow through. This idea of never doing anything until
cash is at hand may work for low-capital-intensive operations but it
will not work very successfully in many other situations. If we didn't
have a substantial LOC we'd never get a crop planted or upgrade
machinery or many other things that are mandatory to operate the farm
profitably.

--

Thanks.

I use credit cards all the time, I simply pay them off at the end of
the month.

There is one thing to beware of: Business credit cards are not covered
under the lability limitation of personal cards, so if someone steals
the card or the number, you may be liable for the total. Unlike
personal cards. There was an article in The Wall Street Journal about
this some years ago. I would ask some pointed questions.

Joe Gwinn

On Thursday, July 4, 2013 8:44:28 PM UTC-4, Brian Lawson wrote:
On Thu, 04 Jul 2013 15:40:15 -0500, Ignoramus12069

wrote:





I have a corporation since 1998. I have never borrowed any money for

the corporation. My view on borring money for business is very simple,

if I do not have money for something, I do not do it.



But, it so happens that from time to time, I need to establish an

account with a new vendor, they check my credit history and tell me

that I have no credit history.



I am loath to borrow money, but maybe I can borrow some small amount

for a few months just to establish some credit history? what is the

easiest way to acquire a credit history?



Thanks



i





Hey Iggy,



Have you tried going to a bank, preferably one you already deal with,

and establishing a "Line of Credit", or a "Demand Payment Loan"? You

can then get a "Letter of Credit" from the bank which most businesses

will take as proof.



Brian Lawson.

Further to that, if the bank is even a little bit hesitant, offer to secure the loan by placing a sum equal to the size of the loan into a CD which they use as collateral. I did that in 1984 to establish credit for my new corporation. I think it was about $5K. That was enough to bring a flood of credit applications from my vendors. Getting net 30 terms just hasn't been a problem since then, though I prefer to use the credit card, just for the convenience of having to pay only a single bill at the end of the month.

On the other hand, in the 29+ years of being in business, I have NEVER bought anything that I couldn't pay cash for. I pay off the credit card in full every month, and don't owe anybody a nickel.

I had a conversation a couple of weeks ago (and I've had several such conversations over the years) with a banker who wanted to sell me some rather large loan. I told him of my cash policy, and he very indignantly asked me, "How do you ever expect to get ahead in the world if you won't take a risk?" I explained to him that my mortgaged is paid off, I have no debt, and comfortable savings, and that I doubted that he could say the same for himself. And, by the way, I expect to get ahead by not wasting my time talking to people who are trying to insist that I'll never get ahead without buying something I don't need from someone I don't know or like.

On 7/5/2013 11:19 AM, Joe Gwinn wrote:
....

There is one thing to beware of: Business credit cards are not covered
under the lability limitation of personal cards, so if someone steals
the card or the number, you may be liable for the total. Unlike
personal cards. There was an article in The Wall Street Journal about
this some years ago. I would ask some pointed questions.

If one is terribly concerned, one can get a separate personal CC and use
that strictly for business. The problem is then twofold--

1) have to remember to segregate usage religiously for it really help
any accounting-wise, and

2) more pertinent to Iggy's problem it won't do anything to aid the
credit rating of the business entity which is the present issue...

--

On 7/5/2013 10:51 AM, David R. Birch wrote:
....

One month a year, I pay slightly less than the balance so some carries
over to the next month. VISA gets a pittance in interest and doesn't
increase my fees because they aren't making anything off me. It hasn't
affected my credit rating.
....

I've never done that (pay interest, even a pittance, by deliberately
underpaying a total due that is) and have never had any charges/fees
increased owing to not paying interest (altho none of the cards other
than the AmEx have any annual fees, anyway, and there's very little
reason to have one that does--I've kept the AmEx solely because it
accumulates frequent flier miles at a fast enough clip that it has
effectively paid the annual fee through using them).

--

On Fri, 05 Jul 2013 08:33:56 -0500, Ignoramus14754
wrote:

On 2013-07-05, dpb wrote:
On 7/4/2013 7:44 PM, Brian Lawson wrote:
...

Have you tried going to a bank, preferably one you already deal with,
and establishing a "Line of Credit", or a "Demand Payment Loan"? You
can then get a "Letter of Credit" from the bank which most businesses
will take as proof.

Brian Lawson.

FINALLY!!!!

+1

Do NOT do the stuff about letting a credit line start drawing owing to
overdrafts, etc., etc., etc., ... that will _NOT_ lead to positive
credit ratings, only overdraft fees and the like.

The one thing I would suggest that can help is to get a corporate credit
card from one of the majors and use it for routine expenses just as you
would a debit card except you're paying the bill when due at end of
month instead of it being drafted at the POS. No extra fees, no
interest, no actual out of pocket cost, but it does develop the credit
history by the record of payment.

I've used credit cards routinely both personal and business since uni
days simply to not need to carry any significant cash nor worry about
having the checkbook or, more recently, a check refused when not at
home. I've not paid a single interest payment other than once or twice
when out of town before telephone payment days and the check didn't get
there quite on time. A single payment of that type w/ an extended
period of on-time payment will have no negative impact on a score.

It's possible to get into trouble w/ CC's, sure, but if one is
disciplined in using them and doesn't use them just for whim purchases
just because can, they're no different than any other form of payment.
The problem isn't the CC; it's the person using it, Dave Ramsey
notwithstanding. And, since I rambled onto that already, there's
nothing wrong w/ using credit in business for cash flow or expansion or
whatever again as long as one has a solid business plan and the
discipline to follow through. This idea of never doing anything until
cash is at hand may work for low-capital-intensive operations but it
will not work very successfully in many other situations. If we didn't
have a substantial LOC we'd never get a crop planted or upgrade
machinery or many other things that are mandatory to operate the farm
profitably.

--

Thanks.

I use credit cards all the time, I simply pay them off at the end of
the month.

To build up credit scores, you need to pay some interest. Sucks,
doesn't it? Paying off a $100 purchase at $10 for 11 or so months
builds up better credit than paying off $3k worth of purchases in the
same month. Go figure...

--
A sound mind in a sound body is a short but full description
of a happy state in this world.
-- John Locke

On 7/5/2013 1:45 PM, Larry Jaques wrote:
....

To build up credit scores, you need to pay some interest. Sucks,
doesn't it? Paying off a $100 purchase at $10 for 11 or so months
builds up better credit than paying off $3k worth of purchases in the
same month. Go figure...
....

While that's said a lot, based on my experience I don't think it makes
that much difference--pay off the $3k (or whatever) monthly bill for the
same year and you'll have no trouble getting whatever you want approved...

Get 90 days or more behind in the same period and you're toast, however...

I'll bet Iggy's _personal_ score is just fine(+); his problem is he has
no record of payment for the corporation to reference.

(+) Again, presuming there's not some other problem to negate the CC
current payment history...

--

Gunner Asch on Thu, 04 Jul 2013 15:43:06 -0700
typed in rec.crafts.metalworking the following:
On Thu, 04 Jul 2013 16:36:51 -0500, Karl Townsend
wrote:


I am loath to borrow money, but maybe I can borrow some small amount
for a few months just to establish some credit history? what is the
easiest way to acquire a credit history?

Thanks

i

HA, I haven't borrowed a nickel for 20 years. if you find out, let me
know. This is way less of an issue than it used to be, most places
just want your CC card number now. But, if you go to a new vendor with
a large order, expect resistance. I'm sure you have more trouble with
this because of our respective locations.

I bought a pickup and had cash, they almost wouldn't sell it, had to
take a loan out for 30 days. I changed banks a few years ago (dropped
Wells Fargo) and they almost didn't want me - no loan income.


If they wouldnt sell it to you and you had the cash...a quick lawsuit
against them would get you your truck for free.

When I found out I had the wrong checkbook with me - couldn't
change to a "finance deal" because the paperwork had already gone
through. Family friend, so no big deal.
--
pyotr filipivich
"With Age comes Wisdom. Although more often, Age travels alone."

Ignoramus12069 wrote:

I have a corporation since 1998. I have never borrowed any money for
the corporation. My view on borring money for business is very simple,
if I do not have money for something, I do not do it.

But, it so happens that from time to time, I need to establish an
account with a new vendor, they check my credit history and tell me
that I have no credit history.

I am loath to borrow money, but maybe I can borrow some small amount
for a few months just to establish some credit history? what is the
easiest way to acquire a credit history?

I looked into a line of credit with our
merchant bank and it took an inch thick
stack of paperwork and something like $100
in service charges.

Wells Fargo sent me a no-yearly-fee
credit card with a $100,000 credit line
for free. Never used it, but it's there
if I need it and the form was about 1/3
page.

On Fri, 05 Jul 2013 11:00:02 -0500, dpb wrote:

On 7/5/2013 10:38 AM, dpb wrote:
On 7/5/2013 10:16 AM, dpb wrote:
...
...

One last point...if you _don't_ have open accounts w/ your local
distributors of whatever "stuff" you routinely use, consider doing
so...whether it's the fuel supplier, the tire shop, a general
parts/tooling house, even the local Ace Hardware you use regularly will
take business credit app's...use whoever/whatever are your local
suppliers to help (again, of course, assuming you have such, and if you
don't consider cultivating same).

OK, so I thought of one more nit...

If you do this, then be certain to use those accounts _only_ for
business stuff--you don't want to be mixing up personal and business
accounts and have to then justify stuff as business expense on taxes if
there's obviously some stuff that isn't mixed in.

Most of this stuff has been mentioned, but here's what's worked for me
over the past 30+ years and 4 business entities, both proprietorships
and S corps.

-Set up a line of credit. The fact that it exists is more important
than how you use it. It demonstrates that your bank is comfortable
extending credit, i.e., they've done some of the work that a
prospective vendor would need to do, especially for business with no
credit history. Make sure to include in your credit references the
contact info of the bank officer you'd like to respond to inquiries.
Let it lapse after you have a couple years history, if you don't need
the financing.

-Prepare a pdf of credit references that you can email or hand to
vendors. Very few places will require you to fill out their form if
you supply the info they request on your form. Four vendor references,
bank info, EIN, and resale certificate, if applicable, will satisfy
most businesses.

-Establish open accounts with the places you're currently paying cash,
especially those who know you personally. Use them as references.

-D&B is a waste of time and money for most small businesses. The
number of annoying calls I've received from D&B far exceeds the
requests from vendors for a DUNS number.

-When processing a credit app, most vendors seem to call only a couple
of the references listed. I have 4 references on my standard form,
including McMaster-Carr. I only learned recently, from someone who
actually insisted on checking all 4, that McMaster does not respond to
credit checks.

-As far as I know, your credit score is irrelevant. As I said above,
it seems most checks involve a call to a couple references about how
much credit they've extended to you and what your repayment pattern
has been.

-When selecting your references, pick those that offer early payment
discounts, and take advantage of it. New vendors like to hear that you
pay "on discount." And where else are you going to get 1% or 2% per
month on your money these days?

-Twenty years ago few of the sort of vendors I deal with accepted
credit cards, now the opposite is true. When dealing with a new vendor
I'll usually ask whether they prefer to spend the time processing a
credit app, or pay the couple percent vig to the CC company.

-Last I knew, the advice given by someone else that business CCs don't
offer the same protections as consumer CCs is accurate. Same holds for
debit cards. So while a debit card on my corporate acount would be
convenient, I'm reluctant to use one. (My personal debit card has been
compromised twice in the past 5 years.)

--
Ned Simmons

On 7/5/2013 4:43 PM, Ned Simmons wrote:
On Fri, 05 Jul 2013 11:00:02 -0500, wrote:

On 7/5/2013 10:38 AM, dpb wrote:
On 7/5/2013 10:16 AM, dpb wrote:
...
...

One last point...if you _don't_ have open accounts w/ your local
distributors of whatever "stuff" you routinely use, consider doing
so...whether it's the fuel supplier, the tire shop, a general
parts/tooling house, even the local Ace Hardware you use regularly will
take business credit app's...use whoever/whatever are your local
suppliers to help (again, of course, assuming you have such, and if you
don't consider cultivating same).

OK, so I thought of one more nit...

If you do this, then be certain to use those accounts _only_ for
business stuff--you don't want to be mixing up personal and business
accounts and have to then justify stuff as business expense on taxes if
there's obviously some stuff that isn't mixed in.

Most of this stuff has been mentioned, but here's what's worked for me
over the past 30+ years and 4 business entities, both proprietorships
and S corps.

-Set up a line of credit. The fact that it exists is more important
than how you use it. It demonstrates that your bank is comfortable
extending credit, i.e., they've done some of the work that a
prospective vendor would need to do, especially for business with no
credit history. Make sure to include in your credit references the
contact info of the bank officer you'd like to respond to inquiries.
Let it lapse after you have a couple years history, if you don't need
the financing.

-Prepare a pdf of credit references that you can email or hand to
vendors. Very few places will require you to fill out their form if
you supply the info they request on your form. Four vendor references,
bank info, EIN, and resale certificate, if applicable, will satisfy
most businesses.

-Establish open accounts with the places you're currently paying cash,
especially those who know you personally. Use them as references.

-D&B is a waste of time and money for most small businesses. The
number of annoying calls I've received from D&B far exceeds the
requests from vendors for a DUNS number.

-When processing a credit app, most vendors seem to call only a couple
of the references listed. I have 4 references on my standard form,
including McMaster-Carr. I only learned recently, from someone who
actually insisted on checking all 4, that McMaster does not respond to
credit checks.

-As far as I know, your credit score is irrelevant. As I said above,
it seems most checks involve a call to a couple references about how
much credit they've extended to you and what your repayment pattern
has been.

-When selecting your references, pick those that offer early payment
discounts, and take advantage of it. New vendors like to hear that you
pay "on discount." And where else are you going to get 1% or 2% per
month on your money these days?

-Twenty years ago few of the sort of vendors I deal with accepted
credit cards, now the opposite is true. When dealing with a new vendor
I'll usually ask whether they prefer to spend the time processing a
credit app, or pay the couple percent vig to the CC company.

-Last I knew, the advice given by someone else that business CCs don't
offer the same protections as consumer CCs is accurate. Same holds for
debit cards. So while a debit card on my corporate acount would be
convenient, I'm reluctant to use one. (My personal debit card has been
compromised twice in the past 5 years.)


+1

Very good synopsis...agree and coincides w/ my experience when setting
up the consulting as new entity almost entirely having the bank
reference and other vendor open accounts.

I don't use the debit card part because it doesn't have the protection
so while one of the cards is combo by what the bank put in their side
I've never activated the PIN from my side.

I agree there's not the consumer protection on business credit
cards--one has to judge on what points one wants the convenience and
weigh the risks. AmEx Small Business was pretty vigilant in their
monitoring and gave heads-up on out-of-ordinary activity. Of course,
again, one doesn't have the $50 limit protection, granted.

Perhaps the better solution is to retain a personal card that is only
used for business--don't know if comes to audit what IRS will do about
questioning such expenses; never had to deal with that side of a
potential "gotcha'!". I suppose I'd just sick the CPA on it and let him
sort it out...

--

Ignoramus12069 wrote:
On 2013-07-04, Cydrome Leader wrote:
Ignoramus12069 wrote:

I have a corporation since 1998. I have never borrowed any money for
the corporation. My view on borring money for business is very simple,
if I do not have money for something, I do not do it.

But, it so happens that from time to time, I need to establish an
account with a new vendor, they check my credit history and tell me
that I have no credit history.

I am loath to borrow money, but maybe I can borrow some small amount
for a few months just to establish some credit history? what is the
easiest way to acquire a credit history?

It's going to be tough for a small business owner for a few reasons.

1) nobody wan't to take the first "move" if you have no credit history,
other than for something really token, like a phone company, a rubber
stamp and letterhead place and things like that. Even if they trust you
with $50, it's unlikely they will report this and nobody else will ever
know. See #3.

2) As the owner or officer, you will have to personally stand behind any
loans as well. This is easy enough for a credit card as there has to be
some name on it. In essence, it's your credit card of line of credit, that
happens to have a company name associated with it. If your company
defaults, you still have to pay.

3) Even if you do get a credit card, net 30 terms from some places, a line
of credit from the bank and you have real leases on things like equipment
it's possible (and more likely a fact) that none of these will be what's
called "reporting" - meaning if you're good and pay back that the lender
will write great things about you in your credit report, which for
businesses tends to be your D&B file. Your credit history with a corporate
card won't appear in your personal credit history either, it's as if it
never existed, good or bad, unless you default on it.

4) D&B sucks ass, and is a lousy place to deal with. They'll try to charge
you money to doctor your credit report, they beg for details of your
business and then I suspect, turn around and sell this data to junk
mailing lists. It does seem places like phone companies will somehow end
up in your paydex score, even if it's for totally silly amounts of money,
like $11/month for toll free numbers or something like that.

5) credit checks are pretty stupid anyways. I recall a pontential vendor
wanting to run a credit check on my company. Of course, they just exited
bankrupcy themselves, so it's not like I was the potential crook with
an accounting scandal and screwed over creditors, they were.

Your bank might be the best bet for any sort of line of credit or a loan
from your bank. If you can demonstrate you steady income, they may want to
listen.

You can easily get a credit card, but again, it's not going to establish a
credit history, and nobody else ouside that lender will know this ever
happened. They will lie to your face about it being a reporting card too,
trust me on this.


I may just borrow some token amount frmo the bank and pay it back. I
really do not need, nor use, credit, but some vendors require a credit
history, for example, if I want to rent a particular semi trailer for
a day.

i

On 7/5/2013 6:01 PM, dpb wrote:
....

Perhaps the better solution is to retain a personal card that is only
used for business--don't know if comes to audit what IRS will do about
questioning such expenses; never had to deal with that side of a
potential "gotcha'!". I suppose I'd just sick the CPA on it and let him
sort it out...

The bad part of that is that if something were to happen to the business
the credit card debt would still be personal even though purchases were
for the purpose of the business...

Was just thinking of that when somebody called in to Dave Ramsey in the
last couple of minutes before the local summer-league baseball game
pregame broadcast w/ a mother in precisely that predicament...how
coincidental is that????

--

On 7/5/2013 5:20 PM, Cydrome Leader wrote:
Ignoramus12069 wrote:
On 2013-07-04, Cydrome Leader wrote:
Ignoramus12069 wrote:

I have a corporation since 1998. I have never borrowed any money for
the corporation. My view on borring money for business is very simple,
if I do not have money for something, I do not do it.

But, it so happens that from time to time, I need to establish an
account with a new vendor, they check my credit history and tell me
that I have no credit history.

I am loath to borrow money, but maybe I can borrow some small amount
for a few months just to establish some credit history? what is the
easiest way to acquire a credit history?

It's going to be tough for a small business owner for a few reasons.

1) nobody wan't to take the first "move" if you have no credit history,
other than for something really token, like a phone company, a rubber
stamp and letterhead place and things like that. Even if they trust you
with $50, it's unlikely they will report this and nobody else will ever
know. See #3.

2) As the owner or officer, you will have to personally stand behind any
loans as well. This is easy enough for a credit card as there has to be
some name on it. In essence, it's your credit card of line of credit, that
happens to have a company name associated with it. If your company
defaults, you still have to pay.

3) Even if you do get a credit card, net 30 terms from some places, a line
of credit from the bank and you have real leases on things like equipment
it's possible (and more likely a fact) that none of these will be what's
called "reporting" - meaning if you're good and pay back that the lender
will write great things about you in your credit report, which for
businesses tends to be your D&B file. Your credit history with a corporate
card won't appear in your personal credit history either, it's as if it
never existed, good or bad, unless you default on it.

4) D&B sucks ass, and is a lousy place to deal with. They'll try to charge
you money to doctor your credit report, they beg for details of your
business and then I suspect, turn around and sell this data to junk
mailing lists. It does seem places like phone companies will somehow end
up in your paydex score, even if it's for totally silly amounts of money,
like $11/month for toll free numbers or something like that.

5) credit checks are pretty stupid anyways. I recall a pontential vendor
wanting to run a credit check on my company. Of course, they just exited
bankrupcy themselves, so it's not like I was the potential crook with
an accounting scandal and screwed over creditors, they were.

Your bank might be the best bet for any sort of line of credit or a loan
from your bank. If you can demonstrate you steady income, they may want to
listen.

You can easily get a credit card, but again, it's not going to establish a
credit history, and nobody else ouside that lender will know this ever
happened. They will lie to your face about it being a reporting card too,
trust me on this.


I may just borrow some token amount frmo the bank and pay it back. I
really do not need, nor use, credit, but some vendors require a credit
history, for example, if I want to rent a particular semi trailer for
a day.

i


look, it's simple. Put $10,000 on deposit in the bank in the name of
your business. Borrow $5,000 using the $10,000 as security. Pay it
back. you will get a very low interest rate and it's reportable. Or
buy something else for your business on credit, using cash in the bank
to securitize the loan.

dpb wrote:
On 7/5/2013 6:01 PM, dpb wrote:
...

Perhaps the better solution is to retain a personal card that is only
used for business--don't know if comes to audit what IRS will do about
questioning such expenses; never had to deal with that side of a
potential "gotcha'!". I suppose I'd just sick the CPA on it and let him
sort it out...

The bad part of that is that if something were to happen to the business
the credit card debt would still be personal even though purchases were
for the purpose of the business...

That's just how it works these days. Sucks doesn't it?

On 7/6/2013 4:45 PM, Cydrome Leader wrote:
wrote:
....

The bad part of that is that if something were to happen to the business
the credit card debt would still be personal even though purchases were
for the purpose of the business...

That's just how it works these days. Sucks doesn't it?

Well, that's how it's always been. What would you expect it to be? If
you mix personal debt into business, that's your bad.

--

On Fri, 05 Jul 2013 22:30:53 -0500, dpb wrote:

On 7/5/2013 6:01 PM, dpb wrote:
...

Perhaps the better solution is to retain a personal card that is only
used for business--don't know if comes to audit what IRS will do about
questioning such expenses; never had to deal with that side of a
potential "gotcha'!". I suppose I'd just sick the CPA on it and let him
sort it out...

I used to maintain a separate personal card for business expenses, but
got tired of the shrinking grace period and increasing late fees.
Debit card only now. I keep careful track of the business expenses and
periodically write myself a reimbursement check.


The bad part of that is that if something were to happen to the business
the credit card debt would still be personal even though purchases were
for the purpose of the business...

Was just thinking of that when somebody called in to Dave Ramsey in the
last couple of minutes before the local summer-league baseball game
pregame broadcast w/ a mother in precisely that predicament...how
coincidental is that????

That never occurred to me. I guess the lesson is to never let the
amount due for reimbursement get too large, regardless of whether the
expenditures are made by cash, credit card, or debit card.

--
Ned Simmons