A Unique Way to Build Credit Without Going Into Debt

As someone who recently busted my butt and got completely out of debt, I’m a bit of rebel when it comes to the “normal” methods of building credit.

Mostly because many of them are all about using credit cards or some form of debt, to increase your score and build a solid history.

You’ll often hear advice like “open a credit card and pay the balance off at the end of the month” or “take out a personal loan and pay it back within 12 months”.

I don’t agree with this because you’re using debt products to build credit. It’s essentially like the financial system is rewarding you for being in debt. Crazy right?!

Enter WilliamPaid

A few months ago, after I moved to my new apartment, I signed up for WilliamPaid.com (long name for Bill Pay) to pay my rent online automatically, every month.

Besides the fact that it saves you time and money (since you don’t have to buy checks to pay the landord) it’s also totally free.

And now, they offer the ability for renters to build credit while paying their rent – no credit card or debt required. Pretty cool! Here’s how it works:

Pay your rent online and build credit

Every time you pay your rent on time using WilliamPaid, you build credit. They verify your payments and report them to a credit bureau to help build your FICO score.

When you log in, you have the option to upgrade and enroll in the credit monitoring plan.

They offer two types of plans:

• The Studio – Free
• The Duplex – $5

When you enroll in the credit program or the Duplex plan, it will cost $5 per month, since it’s an additional feature to paying your rent online (which is completely free).

But I think it’s worth it because you can build credit without having to use credit cards (or secured cards) which could put you thousands of dollars in debt. I’d much rather pay the 5 bucks than go into debt again!

Track and monitor your credit score

Once you enroll, you can keep track of your credit score as it progresses. WilliamPaid reports your monthly rent payment and updates your credit score onto your dashboard. Here’s how it will look using a month-to-month comparison.

And it gets even more awesome. You don’t need to be on the lease to build your credit history!

WilliamPaid offers a feature where you can split the rent with your roommate and pay them using WP. So whether you’re on the lease or not, they report your share of the rent to the credit bureau.

Your information is secure

If you’re concerned about WilliamPaid not keeping your information secure or not forwarding your payment on time, there’s no need to worry. Like I said, I’ve been using this service for quite a few months now and I’ve never had any problems.

As an FCRA-certified data furnisher, when you make payments through WilliamPaid, it’s completely secure and paid on-time, directly to the landlord.

Plus their customer service has been outstanding and I enjoy interacting with them on Twitter and Facebook. If you’re not satisfied with the service, there’s no commitments. You can cancel at any time.

Special $10 bonus

Just for being a Careful Cents reader, you will get a $10 bonus if you sign up for WilliamPaid and use their service to pay your rent.

You don’t even have to upgrade to the $5 plan to get the $10 bonus. Feel free to test out the free plan, and save time, money and avoid late fees.

Then if you want to build credit while paying rent, try out the upgraded plan. I promise it’s much smarter than going into debt to build credit!

 

[Disclosure: if you sign up, you will get $10 and I will get a commission, but it won't cost you anything extra. I only recommend services I use personally and the opinions expressed here are my own.]