Credit Card ’s Talk

While credit cards can be extremely useful, you have to be careful. It’s not hard to run up a balance, and there can be hidden fees you won’t find out about until it’s too late. This section will show you what to look out for.

If you use your card responsibly and read the fine print, everything should be fine.

It’s Easy to Get Carried Away
If you are just getting your first credit card, it will be tempting to spend more than you can afford. Actually, it will be very tempting! Credit card companies know this, which is why most student cards have low initial credit limits of $200-600.

Some students get into serious debt problems before they even graduate. The best way to avoid this is to never get in the habit of buying things you can’t afford.

Remember, using a credit card is like spending cash, you are just paying the cash at a later date.

High Interest Rates
Your first credit card will likely have an interest rate above 20%. Without a credit history, you are considered high-risk by the credit card company, so you’re stuck with a high rate to start. Just don’t miss a payment or screw up - the rate will jump up even more!

Think about this: If you put $500 worth of books on a credit card at 18% interest, made monthly payments of $20, and charged nothing else to that card, it would take 2 years and 7 months to pay off that debt. Those $500 of books would end up costing you $619.50!

To sum it up, you really don’t want to carry a balance at 20% interest!

Low Introductory Rates
Sometimes, card companies will try to disguise the high interest rate by offering a low introductory rate. This will eventually (sometimes quickly) switch to your normal, high rate. You need to watch out because the company could end the introductory rate without you even knowing.

Unsolicited Offers
If you’re a student, remember how you got tons of college brochures in the mail? Well, now those will be replaced with credit card offers. You’ll also get them via e-mail.

If you’re looking at an online application, be sure that is isn’t a fake. Lots of scam artists are setting up fake applications that will allow them access to all of your personal data. Make sure that there is contact information provided and that the website is secure.

Hidden Fees
It’s pretty obvious that there will be a late payment fee on your card, but there are other fees you don’t even think of. You can get charged for charging over your limit, which will usually be $20-$35, similar to the late payment fee.

Any cash advances will have extra fees, too. That, or they will be subject to a higher interest rate than you normally pay. If you ever get a check in with your credit card invoice, it’s usually for a cash advance and has extra fees. Be warned!

Some cards give you the option to pay straight from your bank account. This makes it easier for everyone. However, some card companies will actually charge you $3-$9 for this. That’s absurd! You are paying extra to make it more convenient for them.

In The End
A credit card can be a great way to get started building your credit history. However, if you screw-up, it could have lasting affects. Just make sure that you are ready for the responsibility!

Ray Barbone is a writer on many subject matters. Find out more information about credit management at New2Credit.

In 1950, the first credit card that could be used at more than one, specific merchant emerged on the market. The Diner?s Card, started by Frank McNamara, was an invention that got its start when Frank was having a business meeting over dinner, and realized he had forgotten his wallet at home. Of course, the man was extremely embarrassed, and had to call his wife and ask her to bring him his wallet so he could pay for the bill. Then the light bulb over his head turned on, and he thought it would be incredible to have a way to purchase things wherever people shopped, and pay for them later. The Diner?s Card started with 200 card holders, and within a few years- banks and private companies began offering credit cards.

Eventually there were so many credit cards to choose from that the credit lenders had to come up with new ways to stand out from the competition and entice people to select their card over another. Credit card reward programs were born sometime around 1986. Discover card began offering cash back based on the amount of money you spent on your credit card, and the first ?frequent flier miles? for credit card users was with Continental Airlines. The frequent flier miles were such a hit that now every airline has joined in the rewards programs, offering discounted trips, free complimentary airfare, travel accident insurance- all based on the amount of spending you do using your credit card.

Now that just about every credit card has some sort of rewards program in place, once again card companies are finding themselves looking for new ways to entice more customers to slide their credit card into their already overflowing card holders in their wallets. Rewards programs have to be turned up a notch, and become so amazing, so absolutely unforgettable that consumers can?t forget them and will apply for and use their card more than the other seven in their wallets when they go shopping!

Currently, the trend in credit card rewards programs appears to be creating cards that offer very specific rewards to cater to what people are doing with their lives. Michelle Shepherd, of MBNA Corp (one of the largest credit card lenders) says the rewards programs are developed with real people in mind, offering something for everyone ??whatever stage in life a person is in, whether it?s someone who?s trying to reduce a mortgage or someone dreaming of going to the Super Bowl?. This is seen in credit cards MBNA offers with rewards programs related to NASCAR and GMAC. Also, Visa offers several credit cards with Disney rewards programs- your spending earns you points towards travel to Disney theme parks and on the Disney cruise line.

Credit card interest rates have begun to rise overall, which is another reason why lenders are trying to entice new customers with their fabulous rewards programs. It would be hard for a card to sell itself to new customers with a high, unattractive interest rate- so lenders have learned to sell the idea of the rewards programs, hoping to gain your interest from that and divert your attention from the not-so-glamorous interest rates.

Keep in mind that while rewards programs can seem very rewarding when you are considering a credit card offer, there is often a lot of information you won?t find out until after you apply for and receive the card. Rewards programs often have limitations, meaning once you reach the ceiling you are no longer eligible for the rewards program benefits- information they don?t normally disclose in the credit card offers you receive in the mail. Also, for rewards programs that allow you to purchase items with points earned based on the spending you do using your credit card, keep in mind you will probably be charged additional money for shipping and handling of those items. For cards that offer travel discounts and airline tickets, many rewards programs require you to then pay transaction fees to redeem them.

This article has been provided courtesy of Creditor Web. Creditor Web offers great credit card articles available for reprint and other tools to help you search and compare credit card offers.

The vast majority of credit card offers you receive are fair and ethical. But there are two things to look out for that some credit card companies have been known to pull on unwary customers. These tactics are perfectly legal, so your only recourse to preventing them is to be alert.

The old bait and switch. You apply for a great credit card that gives you tons of frequent-flier miles, hoping to put all of your shopping on it, and then head to the Bahamas in February. When and if you get that card, study the terms carefully. If you don’t qualify for the great card, the credit card company can send you a completely different card with different terms–without telling you.

Cash advance fees and rates. Read the fine print on your statement and you’ll see it’s a very bad idea to take cash out on your credit card. Your card might have a really low rate for purchases, but the rate for cash advances is much higher. And there is no grace period–you start paying interest right away.

Aside from paying a high rate on the cash you take out, you’re going to pay a fee, usually 2 percent to 4 percent of the amount advanced. And your payments will be applied to the lower-interest balance before they are applied to your cash advance. Don’t get yourself into trouble with either of these two mistakes … read the terms of your credit card offers carefully before you activate them.

Note: This article may be freely reproduced as long as the authors bio paragraph at the bottom of this article is included, the article is published ?as is? (unedited) and all URL?s are made active hyperlinks with no syntax changes.

About The Author

This article was written by Beth Pardue who has over 10 years of experience in the financial industry assisting clients with assorted financial needs. To learn more about credit cards or to apply for a credit card online please visit: Visit http://www.amex-visa-mastercard.com

The Discover Platinum Wildlife Card will provide for some extra perks that may just appeal to you. To obtain this line of credit, you will need to have very good credit and be looking to obtain benefits in cash back rewards. Although the rewards may seem limited, there is no limit on how much you can earn using this credit line issued by Morgan Stanley. You may find that the cash back is just one of the benefits as this credit card also offers an affordable interest rate.

The Discover Platinum Wildlife Card provides for 12 months of benefits with an introductory rate of 0% on all of your purchases and balance transfers during this time. You should check out the details for this offer to determine the exact dates of benefits. But, after this introductory period has expired, you still get some pretty significant benefits. You have a variable APR at just 10.99% on purchase and a very low 20.99 fixed APR on cash advances. This credit card does use the two cycle average daily balance which may offset these benefits just a bit with a higher interest payment if you carry a balance on your credit card. There is no annual fee on this credit card and the minimum credit limit is $5000 up to $50,000.

For those benefits also comes a reward. The Discover Platinum Wildlife Card offers a cash back reward of .25% to 5% at participating retailers. You will earn .25% at warehouse clubs as well as discount stores. You get double rewards for Discover Card Partners. You will earn .25% for purchases totaling up to $1500, .5% for purchases up to $3000 and 1% for purchases over $3000.

The Discover Platinum Wildlife card offers many benefits to those that deserve it and have excellent credit. These large credit limit accounts offer the benefits of cash back rewards but also feature very low interest rates, something that everyone should take into consideration.

For more information or to apply for the Discover Platinum Wildlife Card, Beth Derkowitz recommends Find Credit Cards.

It is so easy now with the use of the internet to apply for an instant credit card approval. Just about anyone that has good credit can get instant credit approval in just a matter of a few seconds. However, if you do not read the fine print from these credit card companies offering instant credit cards you may find that you are paying high annual fees, interest rates, balance transfers and many more fees according to which type of instant credit approval you receive.

The very first thing you should do before applying for instant credit approval is to learn and understand all the different fees that can be tacked on to your credit card.

Many credit card companies have annual fees that are applied after you apply for instant credit approval, sometimes they will waive the annual fee, however if you do not read the terms and conditions and all other information before you apply you may be stuck paying rather high annual fees.

Most credit card companies that offer instant credit approval have their interest rates posted on their website. However, these interest rates can change once the introductory special is over. Some of the companies offer what is called revolving lines of credit. This is normally 2% of the interest is imposed while the rest of the balance is repaid monthly. This can become quite a hefty amount yearly up to around 24% or more if you roll over payments.

The APR that you see all the time is an abbreviation for annual percentage rate. This rate can be fixed or variable. Fixed means that it does not change and variable means that it fluctuates.

Know what the grace period is for the company that you are applying for to receive instant credit approval. This so-called grace period decides the fees and the interest that is to be paid on the instant credit cards. This in essence means that when you purchase an item with your credit card you will not have to pay any type of interest if you pay off your balance in full before the grace period ends. If you do not pay until after the grace period, you will more than likely be paying higher interest rates and even late fees.

Some of the other fees that you may run into when you are searching for instant credit approval are fees on balance transfers, fees on cash advances, and more. Remember to always read all the terms and conditions including all fine print, stipulations, clauses and anything else on the website or application.

There are three types? major types of credit cards, which have instant credit approval, and they include house cards, travel and entertainment cards and bankcards. House cards are from companies such as JC Penny, Sears and other stores. Bankcards are those issued by banks or other lending companies and you will normally receive a MasterCard or Visa. In addition, travel and entertainment cards are ones such as Diners Club and American Express. You can, however, apply for travel and entertainment cards most of the time through banks and other lending companies.

For more discussion about instant credit approval, Robert Alan recommends that you visit CreditCardAssist.com.

It’s not as hard as you think to raise credit score. It’s a well known fact that lenders will give people with higher credit scores lower interest rates on mortgages, car loans and credit cards. If your credit score falls under 620 just getting loans and credit cards with reasonable terms is difficult.

There are more than 30 million people in the United States that have credit scores under 620 and if you?re probably wondering what you can do to raise credit score for you.

Here are five simple tips that you can use to raise credit score.

1. Get a copy of your credit report

Obtaining a copy of your credit report is a good idea because if there is something on your report that is incorrect, you will raise credit score once it is removed. Make sure you contact the bureau immediately to remove any incorrect information.

Your credit report should come from the three major bureaus: Experian, Trans Union and Equifax. It’s important to know that each service will give you a different credit score.

2. Pay Your Bills On Time

Your payment history makes up 35% of your total credit score. Your recent payment history will carry much more weight than what happened five years ago.

Missing just one months payment on anything can knock 50 to 100 points off of your credit score.

Paying your bills on time is a single best way to start rebuilding your credit rating and raise credit score for you.

3. Pay Down Your Debt

Your credit card issuer reports your outstanding balance once a month to the credit bureaus. It doesn’t matter whether you pay off that balance a few days later or whether you carry it from month to month.

Most people don?t realize that credit bureaus don?t distinguish between those who carry a balance on their cards and those who don?t. So by charging less you can raise credit score even if you pay off your credit cards every month.

Lenders also like to see a lot of of room between the amount of debt on your credit cards and your total credit limits. So the more debt you pay off, the wider that gap and the better your credit score.

4. Don?t Close Old Accounts

In the past people were told to close old accounts they weren?t using. But with today’s current scoring methods that could actually hurt your credit score.

Closing old or paid off credit accounts lowers the total credit available to you and makes any balances you have appear larger in credit score calculations. Closing your oldest accounts can actually shorten the length of your credit history and to a lender it makes you less credit worthy.

If you are trying to minimize identity theft and it’s worth the peace of mind for you to close your old or paid off accounts, the good news is it will only lower you score a minimal amount. But just by keeping those old accounts open you can raise credit score for you.

5. Stay Out Of Bankruptcy

Bankruptcy is the single worst thing that will destroy your credit score. Bankruptcy will lower your credit score by 200 points or more and is very difficult to come back from.

Once your credit score falls below 620, any loan you get will be far more expensive. A bankruptcy on your credit record is reported for up to 10 years.

The reality of a bankruptcy is it will limit you to high-interest lenders that will squeeze out high interest rate payments from you for years.

It is better to get credit counseling to help you with your bills and avoid bankruptcy at all costs. By getting credit counseling instead of declaring bankruptcy you can raise credit score over a much shorter period of time.

Copyright ? 2005 Credit Repair Facts.com All Rights Reserved.

Gary Gresham is a mortgage loan officer and the webmaster for http://www.credit-repair-facts.com He offers you credit information, debt elimination programs and informative facts that give you the knowledge to correct your own credit and credit report. For more credit related articles go to: http://www.credit-repair-facts.com/articles1.html