We live in a world where credit scores rule. This single number can drastically change your life’s outcomes.

1. When my parents bought their first car in America, they had no credit history, and spent as much on interest as they did on the actual car.
2. When applying for apartments to rent, credit scores are commonly one of the main decision criteria in choosing a tenant. No credit = worse odds of getting approved in a rental application.
3. When buying a house, a small interest rate difference can have such a large impact that people go to extreme lengths to increase their credit score prior to applying for the mortgage.

In this world, three of my friends found themselves exiled from the realm of financial freedom. Desert Duck, Josh, and Sam. Though they had dreams as big as anyone’s, their blank credit histories were holding them back.

Desert Duck’s Dilemma

Desert Duck has had a big impact in my life: he helped me and my friends start our first Burning Man camp and pulled us out of a tough situation several times through sheer kindness and generosity. His challenges were many though, mainly battling cancer and dealing with high costs and low income. Specifically, I learned that he was drowning in several high-interest loan payments. I saw an opportunity to help.

Josh’s Journey

Josh, one of my best friends from college, had his eyes on the skies to travel the world, but a light budget to work with. Fortunately I’ve been taught how to buy all my flights for free for the past decade through travel hacking, opening credit cards. But Josh had no credit history to apply for a travel credit card, and his dreams were grounded, his passport untouched. I saw an opportunity to help.

Sam’s Financial Fiasco

Sam was a friend of a friend who came to visit my roommate. His financial life was a puzzle, selling cars for a living, but without credit history, unable to get a car loan himself. When visiting, he mentioned the struggle of having no credit history, and I saw an opportunity to help.

In their quest for financial salvation, I thought of the idea to give them a gift, not of money or gold, but of credit history and opportunity. I made them authorized users on my longest-standing credit card, letting them stand on the shoulders of my own financial history. Like magic, my credit history became theirs, opening up their worlds to new paths and opportunities.

How does this magic work?

By adding someone as an authorized user on your credit card, you lend them that card’s credit history. It’s that simple.

Is it Legal?

Yep. It’s legal to add people as AUs that are unrelated to you. I just call them all family friends if the bank asks. Never been asked a follow up question. 

Can an Authorized User affect my own credit score?

No, your own credit score remains untouched, a castle’s walls un-breached, as long as the credit card that is made for the new authorized user stays in your keep. The bank only mails it to you, so just don’t give it to them. With that, they can’t spend on the account, and have no other way of impacting your credit history or score.

Desert Duck’s Oasis

For Desert Duck, the transformation was swift. His auto payments plummeted by $600 monthly and was able to afford more of his treatments without having to sell his car.

Josh’s Global Gateway

For Josh, he was able to get approved for a premium travel credit card and embarked on a world tour, buying his flights for free using the credit card’s sign-up bonus, a once-grounded dream now taking flight.

Sam’s Turnaround

For Sam, his financial life, once a jumbled script, now reads like a tale of triumph. Shifting from no credit to credit-worthiness, he’s been able to use lower interest-rate debt to scale his car business and change his financial future.

Details of the Magic

• Credit history transfer happens on the statement date
• You can view your credit history and see the impact using creditkarma.com for free
• You want to add people on a card that has been open for a long time (at least 1 year), and one that has a low credit utilization rate (less than 30% of the available credit is currently owed)
• When adding someone, make sure to add them with their social security number to ensure the credit history transfer happens correctly

Making Money

But the tale doesn’t end with just aiding friends. Just like my friends, there are many people in need of a credit history, like immigrants and low-income dreamers. I now work with a company that connects these people in need of a credit history with people like me who have credit histories to share. The company tells me who to add as authorized users on my account for 1 month.

By lending my credit history to them, they save hundreds or thousands of dollars in their interest payments, and I am paid several hundred dollars per month: a profitable side quest in my own financial adventure. I’ve onboarded my mom to this program as well, and was recommended this program by the person who taught me how to travel hack. Reach out to me if you think lending our your credit history in this way is of interest to you as well, I highly recommend it.

Now you know how you can help a friend in need of credit history, a little bit more about how credit works, and of an opportunity to increase your monthly side-income. Reach out with any questions or if you’re interested in the side-hustle. To all of our financial health and prosperities, and to a rising tide lifting all of our boats.