Joint CC?

[winnied]

H and I don't have a joint cc. Should we get one so that when we want to buy a house (at least 5 years away) we'll have a report for our joint credit?

If so, do you have a suggestion for a cc you like? Each of us currently has one from our banks before we were married. 

[thedutchgirl]

I don't see a reason to have a joint credit card if you don't need/want one. When you buy a house, they'll still pull both of your credit reports. There is no such thing as a joint credit report that you'll both be on. A joint CC would just be listed on both your reports.

[ECB]

Mar 6, 2013 8:53:42 GMT -5 thedutchgirl said:

I don't see a reason to have a joint credit card if you don't need/want one. When you buy a house, they'll still pull both of your credit reports. There is no such thing as a joint credit report that you'll both be on. A joint CC would just be listed on both your reports.

This.  A joint card isn't going to do anything special. If you each have your own cards and use them exactly as you would a joint- it will affect your credit just the same.

[zacksbride]

All of our credit cards are joint because its easier for us. We charge everything on 1 card (utilities included) to get points and pay it off every month. We currently use capital one venture card cause you get 2 points per dollar spent on all purchases. There is an annual fee (waived first year I believe), but with the amount we charge it is worth it to pay a fee to get better benefits

[winnied]

Ah, ok. Thanks, ladies! I mentioned it b/c our friends met with their bank this week to get things in order so they can buy a house in a few years and they were instructed to get a joint cc. I'm glad I asked here before doing it.

[Mashara]

Your friends might not have much credit history. A joint card is an easy way to work on both at the same time.

[aspentosh]

Mar 6, 2013 9:20:29 GMT -5 Mashara said:

Your friends might not have much credit history. A joint card is an easy way to work on both at the same time.

This is what I was thinking. My credit history was much shorter than H's, so he put me on his CC. That helped my score a lot. 

But PP are right- you don't need one!

[Deleted]

Mar 6, 2013 9:04:58 GMT -5 zacksbride said:

All of our credit cards are joint because its easier for us. We charge everything on 1 card (utilities included) to get points and pay it off every month. 

This. We use one card to make sure we are getting the most out of our rewards.  But otherwise we wouldnt need a joint card since everything gets paid from one checking account. 

[sillygoosegirl]

There is no such thing as joint credit. If one of you had bad credit, it might be useful to add that spouse to a credit card the other spouse has had a long time and always paid on time. That should raise the credit score of the spouse with poor credit. Assuming the card keeps getting paid on time, it will not adversely affect the credit of the spouse with good credit.