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November 6, 2009

Are Credit Cards So Bad? How Smart People Use Them Wisely

Filed under: Uncategorized — admin @ 1:30 pm

Credit card companies constantly bombard you with advertisements. You can’t open your mail box with out finding applications from Visa Black Card, Discover Credit Card, HSBC Direct, and all the others, at least a few times a month. With catchy commercials and phrases like; “what’s in your wallet,” and “get cash back on every purchase,” they are hard to resist. The problem is not getting the credit cards, but what you do with them.

Credit is a double edged sword. You need good credit for so many things, getting a loan, buying a car or house, and even getting a job in some cases. However, credit is using money you don’t have, and many people every year get into so much debt over credit cards that counseling companies have sprung up all over the place to help people.

Here are some valuable tips to help you keep from getting over your head, and manage your credit cards wisely. One of them is to pay of your cards completely every month. This means that you should only make purchases from the card you know you will be able to cover, otherwise you have to pay interest every month. Make sure that you make your payment on time, every time. If not, late fees can be applied, which can be more than thirty dollars. This also causes your credit score to drop, and your interest rates higher.

You may want to consider instead a prepaid credit card like the Account Now Prepaid Visa or the Rush Card. These will give you the same spending options that credit cards give you and they can help you to boost your credit as well. The only difference is that you are spending real money, not borrowed funds.

Look, realistically, not everyone can pay off the whole thing every month, it’s understandable. If you have to just pay your minimum balance, make sure that you add at least five to ten dollars to it, even if you have to split it up over the month. When you are paying minimums, part of this money goes to interest. Paying a little extra a month goes directly to the principle.

Just because you have a credit card, doesn’t mean you have to use it all the time. A credit card purchase should be well thought out, and not used frivolously. You shouldn’t take yourself on a shopping spree, but you should use it to purchase that refrigerator your family has been needing, but just don’t have the cash on hand. Stick it in your wallet and think of it as an emergency ‘get out of jail free’ card, one that you will only use it when you are broke down on the side of the road and need a tow, or have to pay for some part in the middle of nowhere.

Remember that getting in over your head with a credit card can be bad for you in the long run. You don’t want to spend more than you can pay back and you never want to visit Equifax.com and realize that your MyFico credit score is low because you haven’t been meeting your obigations.

You can find out more information online about a variety of credit card topics. If you are interested in building your credit using credit cards, it is a good idea to shop around and really look at what each card offers in the way of benefits. You need to make sure that you get the lowest interest rates, and read all the fine print about over limit fees, late charges, and financing fees. You need to be clear about everything you are getting into, because you can’t use the excuse that you didn’t know. Make sure that you also have Life Lock in case of identity theft and always use Xoom to wire money to people.

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