The Culture Of Having Cash Is difficult to shake Off For The Immigrant, But Credit is King In America

 If you have been used to living a lifestyle where whatever you needed, you would have to pay for it from the cash in your pocket; there is a tendency to feel like a lack of money will spell big trouble. When I lived in Nigeria, I had read many financial books, but one of the things that made most of these books challenging to relate with was when they would describe how to leverage credit. Some readers had valuable tips on positioning yourself for wealth, like Robert Kiyosaki's The Cashflow Quadrant. Still, others would explain a complicated credit system that seems foreign to the average person living in Nigeria who must have the cash available if they must own anything. 

 The Nigerian banking system is far from what is obtainable in the US, where one could quickly request a credit card, and it will be speedily available to you based on trust. You are only required to maintain what is known as a credit score, and as long as you can keep a good credit score, you will continue to have access to more credit. Scores range from 300 to 850, and anything above 700 can be considered good credit. If you are planning to migrate and have been used to paying for things with cash your whole life, this link provides an excellent resource for maintaining a good credit score when you settle down.

There are those that the fact that they have a credit card was what led to their financial demise. If you lack discipline with money, you will need to be careful with the credit cards you acquire because many banks will flood your mailbox, offering you credit cards with amounts that will make you buy things that you ordinarily cannot afford. A good rule of thumb would be to buy something you can afford and only use a credit card for emergencies, but some would consider paying $500 a month for an exquisite spa treatment, an emergency when they only take home about $1500 in income. 

A credit score above 700 can grant you access to essential things; it reduces the interest rates that banks will lend money to you. It can also be necessary for acquiring items that an average middle-class earner will need forever to save for, like buying a car or owning a house. If you were to own a home in Nigeria, you must have the cash in your bank account, and society sees this as a monumental achievement. When you buy your house for money, you do not need to pay anything compared to the American bound to a mortgage for years. House owners in America who find it difficult to pay the mortgage will lose their house and all the money they have put down. 

Most of the banking apps that you will have on your mobile phone may not show you your credit score; instead, they will show you something called a FICO score. I will detail what a fico score is in another post, but you will be able to access your score via apps speedily as per the credit score. Credit Karma is the most popular one, which will show you your score as computed by the main credit bureaus like Equifax and Transunion. The credit Karma app can capture all the loans you have taken, including your mortgage and student loans, and its periodic updates act as a helpful guide to how you handle your spending. 

Some Nigerian Immigrants believe that credit cards are the devil, and I have heard someone say that he had to cut up his credit cards at some point and vowed never to own one again due to his uncontrolled spending. A decision to stay off the credit grid might not be a good one because your credit rating is the only data banks use to measure your creditworthiness. Even the super-rich don't pay cash for the things they want to possess, so why should you? Unless you have no plans of buying a car or owning a house, you probably don't have to bother about this if you have 300 to 400 thousand dollars in cash to pay for a home, and even if you do, be ready to explain where you got the money. 

Discipline is vital, and if you can follow these simple tips on keeping your credit score in good shape, you should be good. People have different stories, and some immigrants had such a hard time in their home country. In contrast, others had a soft landing and easy pathway to documentation when they got to the US, but no matter how it was for you before you migrated, it is not the money in your bank account that will save you on an evil day, it will be your credit score.