Credit is built 2 a BUSINESS… - Posted by raelynn mitchell
Posted by raelynn mitchell on December 01, 1998 at 11:55:19:
which means a corporation should look, walk, talk, and smell like a business. This means a business phone line WITH A 411 listing. This means a business license. It also means a corporate/business bank account. Prior to applying for credit you should have these things, as most business credit applications will ask for these things. They don’t all ask for all of the above, just some, but it is best to have them beforehand.
Prior to having any of these, it is important to do the corporate “paperwork” that is needed in the beginning, which includes deciding who is president, secretary, treasurer, director, etc. It is also important to decide who will be signer on the corporate bank account, which should be opened prior to applying for credit. These are all reference points for potential creditors to “check you out” at the corporate level. There are several good books that explain the process of setting up shop in detail, up to and including the paperwork that should be done in establishing the corporation once it has been filed. Corporate resolutions are needed for almost everything, which can be found in a book/software called The Corporate Secretary. I found this at Office Depot and Office Max; costs about $20 for the book or the software. Has just about every resolution (permission slip) out there, and after a while you can figure out what to put into one if you need one slightly different from the ones they have created. (Another book I liked is Incorporating in Nevada, by Cort Christie. It also has resolutions in it, both as samples and as fill-in-the-blank forms for your use.) But keep in mind that I’m not a lawyer or CPA.
Step 1.
obtain a mailing address OTHER than your residence (mailbox etc. type okay 4 now).
Step 2.
obtain a business listing in 411 information (address not required, only city of same as mailing address) (hint: this can be a remote forwarded number, which can ring to an answering service or someone’s house, but the line must be a BUSINESS line to be listed in 411 that is answered in the company name, such as XYZ Incorporated)
Step 3.
after obtaining corporate tax ID/EIN (a step of incorporating) and filing officers list (part of inc’ing also), call Dun & Bradstreet 800-333-0505 and tell them you want to be listed. They will ask 5-6 questions.
Name of company, phone number, address of business
year started
president of corporation
number of employees
- they will try to sell you their “investigative service” listing, which entitles them to dig into your business’ affairs. Not needed, just get the listing. If you have to pay for it, you got the wrong one.
Step 4
apply for:
Target Stores Commercial Acct
Chevron
Office Depot
Office Max
Staples
Sam’s Club
Texaco
Home Depot
Home Base
JC Penneys Commercial
Kinko’s
CompUSA
You won’t get them all. Since you have no credit, they will probably ask 4 a personal guarantee. Give it when necessary (only one corporate officer required - pick the one with the best credit); you just want the accounts. Use them one time, pay the bill on time, and they will report your company’s credit history to D & B.
- Office Depot, Ofc Max, Staples = same bank. Don’t apply 2 all 3 in same week.
You want 5 accounts reporting 2 D & B, after which D & B will rate your company. It now has credit history. (Here’s the catch: they don’t ALL report to Dun & Bradstreet.)
Then go for Mastercard, Visa, and American Express, all of which will probably want personal info on at least one officer. Not all MC/Visa’s are created equal. Some just want to look at the officer’s credit, others want that officer to guarantee the account. Shop around.
This may take awhile, but Home Depot and Home Base are accounts you will probably need anyway if you ever end up doing rehabs.