Credit cards may make or break you, when it comes to your personal credit. Not only can you use them to help build up a great credit score and secure your future finances. You may also find that irresponsible use can bury you in debt and ruin you. Use this article for great credit card advice.
There are often great bonuses for accepting a new card. Read the fine print thoroughly, though, as the terms for qualifying for the bonus may be quite strict. The most common is that you have to spend a certain amount of money within a few months, so be sure that you will actually meet the qualifications before you are tempted by the bonus offer.
Take advantage of the fact that you can get a free credit report yearly from three separate agencies. Make sure to get all three of them, so that you can be sure there is nothing going on with your credit cards that you may have missed. There may be something reflected on one that was not on the others.
Set a budget and stick to it with regards to your credit spending. Budgeting your income is wise, and including your credit in said budget is even wiser. Do not consider your available credit as extra income. Set aside a specific amount that you can safely spend on a card every month. Remain committed, and repay that amount religiously every month.
An important aspect of smart credit card usage is to pay the entire outstanding balance, each and every month, whenever possible. By keeping your usage percentage low, you will help keep your overall credit score high, as well as, keep a substantial amount of available credit open for use in case of emergencies.
Purchases with credit cards should never be attempted from a public computer. Your information can be stored on public computers, like the ones in the library and coffee shops. If you put credit information into these computers, that is courting trouble. You should only shop online from a computer that you own.
It is best to stay away from charging holiday gifts and other holiday-related expenditures. If you can’t afford it, either save to buy what you want or just buy less-expensive gifts. Your best friends and relatives will understand that you are on a budget. You can always ask ahead of time for a limit on gift amounts or draw names. The bonus is that you won’t be spending the next year paying for this year’s Christmas!
Your natural inclination may be to pay down your credit card whenever you have the money to do so. This isn’t always the best move. Instead, wait until the card statement comes; then pay off the whole balance. Making this adjustment to your habits can provide you with a sound payment history and boost your credit score.
Try not to close your accounts. While it might seem like closing accounts would help improve your credit score, doing so can actually lower it. The reason behind this is that you will be reducing the total mount of credit you are given while still owing the same amount. The ratio between the two will look worse as a result.
Find out if the interest rate on a new card is the regular rate, or if it is offered as part of a promotion. Many people do not realize that the rate that they see at first is promotional, and that the real interest rate may be a significant amount more than that.
When using your credit card online, only use it at an address that begins with https:\. The “s” indicates that this is a secure connection that will encrypt your credit card information and keep it safe. If you use your card elsewhere, hackers could get hold of your information and use it for fraudulent activity.
Keep multiple credit card accounts open. Having multiple credit cards will keep your credit score healthy, as long as you pay on them consistently. The key to keeping a healthy credit score with multiple credit cards is to use them responsibly. If you do not, you could end up hurting your credit score.
Stay away from cards that have annual fees. Most no annual fee credit cards are presented to people with a good credit score. High fees will negate any benefits a card offers. Do your calculations. The majority of credit card companies will not announce their annual fees; rather, they will hide them deep in fine print. Place those reading glasses on. Check if the fees negate the benefits. More often than not, the fees lessen any rewards the card may carry.
Read all the fine print before applying for a credit card, to avoid getting hooked into paying excessively high interest rates. Many introductory offers are just ploys to get consumers to bite and later, the company will show their true colors and start charging interest rates that you never would have signed up for, had you known about them!
Be sure that you only apply for credit cards that you know that you will need now, as well as, in the future. This is important because having too many credit cards may lead to irresponsible spending and living outside your means. Doing so may very well cause you to become buried in debt and have a hard time paying it off.
Immediately call the credit card company if you card is lost or stolen. This can help prevent fraudulent charges on your card. Then, the company will send you a new card with a new number.
As mentioned earlier in this article, credit cards can make or break you and it is up to you to make sure that you are doing all that you can to be responsible with your credit. This article provided you with some great credit card advice and hopefully, it will help you make the best decisions now and in the future.
