This is where I got my infor to get started as far as business cards go... might be useful to others here on FW finance as we turn to business credit:
http://consumers.creditnet.com/Discussions/credit-talk/t-business-credit-the-backdoor-appro-16341.html#post111392

If you are doing AORs and investing, this might give you a new line... that "investment" activity might be enough for you to form an LLC or corp doing AORs as a business, and perhaps more than doubling the money you get to play with!

opmnxtc said:that link is outdated with almost no activity for a year.

Most of the info is old, but still good. I'm not suggesting anyone post to it, but use it as a reference for our discussion here. As some people already posted, Business credit has not been explored much here on FW Finance and many people are eager to take their AORs to that level.

I'm just sharing my source of info, which as worked well for me.

ThornnSpear said:411 listing is important for getting some business credit... so if you have a registered business name, try this:
http://www.gaebler.com/How-to-Register-a-Business-with-411-Directory-Assistance.htm

First, go to the List Yourself website. This site bills itself as "The Listing Service for the Unlisted" and while it appears to be a very simple site, many small business owners have told us that it has worked for them. However, some have not been successful with this service and others have had to enter their information multiple times before it worked. Still, it's a free service so it's worth a try.

Second, go to SuperPages.com and register your business for a free listing. You will find the "FREE Listing" link on the left nav on the home page.

Third, you can contact Verizon Wireless at 1-800 722-0577 and ask for a "foreign listing" - you don't actually have to have a Verizon number to get into their wireless 411 directory. There is a one-time $9 fee and a $1.12 monthly charge.

Fourth, you can call your local 411, ask for your listing and then when you are told that there is no such business listing, tell them you are the owner of the business and ask them how to get listed. In the worst case, you can a new number with your local phone company and have it forward to your other numbers. It costs money but it might be worth it.

411 information tends to propagate so getting into one 411 directory may be sufficient. Have a 411 listing and being in the various online 411 directories (e.g. whitepages.com) doesn't ensure that you will be in the printed White Listings directory. For that, you will need to call the company that puts out the White Pages.

As you move forward to get a business number listed in the White Pages and 411 Directory Assistance, be careful what you wish for. Once you do get listed, you'll tend to get a lot of inquiry calls from people trying to sell you stuff.

Hopefully, the number of calls from prospective customers will far outweigh the calls from telemarketers. But, importantly, if you want to build up your business credit profile, getting listed is an absolute necessity.

I signed up for Skype in and out, and registered with List Yourself... previously I just got an 800 through ATT for about $18 a month and had it forward to my cell phone. The new way is cheaper, if List Yourself actually works. You can enter any name as the business name, so you could probably list a business with your own name.

Great ideas, thanks!

Another issue I want to add to the OP is how to handle the taxes resulting from profits on a business credit card AoR. I have read several different viewpoints and want to see if we can get to a consensus. Below is my current plan of action/theory when it comes to sole proprietorship credit card interest (please advise me with your viewpoints):

1) The credit cards are applied for as a sole proprietorship.

2) The BT money is deposited into a personal savings account. All interest is earned in a personal savings account and there are no earnings whatsoever in any business account.

3) You get a 1099 from the personal savings account at the end of the year showing all interest you have earned.

4) You simply include this income in your own personal tax filing and don't need to file any sort of business tax return as it is a sole proprietorship, and second, the interest was earned on the personal side of things with only the loan originating from this business side.

This is my ideal way to handle the tax situation. I realize I may be oversimplifying it, and if so, I want to hear your inputs. This info will be very helpful as an addition to this thead. Thanks to those who contribute.

I wish there was a way to vote for what becomes a sticky, rather than "just" green. Mike, this is tremendously helpful and a great resource. Had it not been for your commentary, I'd have missed out on at least 20k from my wife-o-rama (just got approved for BofA).

So far Cap One has given me a credit card with 0% for a year. They apparently don't report to anyone unless you are delinquent so also good for reporting purposes.

They are also relatively easy to get credit with.

ThornnSpear said:
If you are doing AORs and investing, this might give you a new line... that "investment" activity might be enough for you to form an LLC or corp doing AORs as a business, and perhaps more than doubling the money you get to play with!

Say you form an S corp, do an AOR, open a brokerage account in your company's name, do your homework /analysis and invest the BT money with the full intention of paying the AOR money back.

But say, your investments turn sour and you can not pay the BT money back.

In this case, as a C corp, are your own personal assets and your own credit still shielded?

(I am assuming no fraud is intended and this is a good faith investment gone wrong)

No matter what the structure, almost every credit card requires you to sign a personal guarantee. The only ones you might be able to not give a PG would be store cards which are pretty useless for AORs.

For those of you concerned about depositing sole proprietorship checks into your personal checking account:

1) File for a DBA or Fictious Name in your state... in NJ its ~$50
2) Open a free business checking account locally
3) Get a separate business savings or brokerage account. For the small players, Cap One has a Money Market fund that pays 4.5%, its higher if you are a costco executive member. ING just rolled out their business accounts (http://business.ingdirect.com/). NB: ING allows ACH transfers, Cap one makes you deal with checks and the USPS.

Just speaking from my experience, AOR vets might be able to steer you to higher yields.

ThornnSpear said:No matter what the structure, almost every credit card requires you to sign a personal guarantee. The only ones you might be able to not give a PG would be store cards which are pretty useless for AORs.

For those of you concerned about depositing sole proprietorship checks into your personal checking account:

1) File for a DBA or Fictious Name in your state... in NJ its ~$50
2) Open a free business checking account locally
3) Get a separate business savings or brokerage account. For the small players, Cap One has a Money Market fund that pays 4.5%, its higher if you are a costco executive member. ING just rolled out their business accounts (http://business.ingdirect.com/). NB: ING allows ACH transfers, Cap one makes you deal with checks and the USPS.

Just speaking from my experience, AOR vets might be able to steer you to higher yields.Why even mess with getting a business checking or savings? I have never had any problem depositing business credit card balance transfers into my personal checking account. So why the extra effort and complication? Not to mention by doing this, then you do have business profits and would possibly complicate tax filing.

theman2 said:I took advantage of this on my last AOR, getting a couple 0% Citi Business cards and getting them to cut me checks.

Even though I registered as a Sole Prop, they issued the checks under my 'business name' which was Lastname Ent.. I was a little concerned but I was able to deposit these into my Wamu checking account through the ATM machine. YMMV, obviously.

Ahhh. 0% loans that do not show up on my credit report! Remember, utilization % doesn't really matter as it never hits your credit report.

I took advantage of 0% deal on my Citi Professional Card, but the balance on the card shows up on my credit reports. Just be aware!