Credit Cards Taking A Nose Dive? Are the Rates Killing You? How to Take Matters Into Your Own Hands!
"Money Saving Tips & Advice, That Make the Debt Collector Run for the Hills"...
by Terry Clark
Table of Content
1. Cash It Back with Credit Cards
2. The Bad Credit Card That May Do Good
3. Options for the Best Credit Card
4. Know How to Get the Best Credit Card Deal
5. The Best Credit Card Reward: For Those Who Had Been Naughty and Nice
6. Reap More, Save More with The Best UK Credit Card
7. CHASE.COM Credit Card: An New Breed Of Cashless Shopping
8. 10 Cons of an International Credit Card
9. How Do You Know If Your Credit Card Agent Is the Best?
10. Consolidate, before it's too late
11. Credit card debt management
12. On Credit Card Instant Approval
13. Get a credit card with a low interest rate
14. Swipe Age: What is a credit card machine?
15. What Is A Credit Card Merchant Account: The Most Important Element Businesses Have to Know
16. Credit card services and why we need those little cards
17. Credit card debt: How to deal with it
18. How to Do a Credit Card Debt Consolidation
19. How to get a higher credit card limit
20. How Credit Card Points are Earned
21. How Do You Accept Credit Card: Let Me Count the Ways
22. How to Apply for a Credit Card Online
23. How to avail of Credit Card Point Redemption
24. How to avoid credit card pitfalls?
25. Settle Smart: How To Do Credit Card Payment
26. Best Strategies for Online Approval of Credit Card Application
27. What's the best credit card for me?
28. The war on Low APR credit
29. Things to Know About MasterCard
30. Perks of Citibank credit card
31. A Credit-free Card: What is a prepaid credit card?
32. The Travails Of The Pros and Cons Of A Business Credit Card
33. Small Business Credit Cards for More Successful Businesses
34. Successful Credit Cards For a Successful You
35. The Best credit card promotions available in the market
36. Tips for an easy card processing
37. Travel Rewards from using your credit card
38. Learning More about Visa Credit Card
39. Kill Your Credit Cards
40. What are credit card rates?
41. More Than Meets The Eye: What Is A Chase Credit Card?
42. HomeWork on College Credit Cards
43. For Reality: What Is A Low APR Credit Card
44. What Sets A Student Credit Card Apart from Other Credit Cards
45. The Card Apart
46. Low Interest Rates = Bigger Savings
47. No Fuss Credit Card Application
48. Preventing Credit Card Fraud - 12 Top Tips
49. 4 Things To Consider Before Getting That Credit Card
50. How to Deal with Bad Credit Reports
51. It Takes Credit To Build Credit
Resources
Cash It Back with Credit Cards
What is a cash back credit card?
A cash back credit card gives annual rebates or gives back money to the card holder based on how much have been purchased with it. This type of credit card is suitable for those who rarely use cash in their transactions. The rebate is computed as a percentage of the total amount charged to the credit card in a year. Usually, rebates are between 1-2%. Some can even go as high as 3%.
Are rebates always in the form of cash?
Strictly speaking, cash rebates should be in the form of cash. But now that card companies are diversifying, rebates may now come in the form of gift certificates and discount coupons. This somehow blurs the line between and among the different types of credit cards mentioned in the first paragraph of this article.
Some cash back credit cards offer upgrading of membership status which allow their members to more discounts and gifts during anniversaries and holidays like Christmas and birthdays. Moreover, some credit card companies also have partnerships with other consumer products that entitle their members to added product discounts in future purchases.
What banks offer cash back credit cards?
There are many banks that offer cash back credit cards in kind. They usually have a rewards program for members wherein card holders receive gifts and discounts courtesy of partner product companies; discount coupons to hotels, restaurants, specialty stores; and travel miles for non-travel purchases. Below are some banks that offer cash back benefits.
1. Citibank
2. Chevy Chase Bank
3. HSBC
4. Royal Bank Avion (Canada)
5. Standard Chartered Bank
Are cash back credit cards offered only by banks?
No. Since business establishments are innovating their services and benefits for their customers, some of them offer cash back to their loyal customers e.g. Discover Card (Discover Magazine). Aside from giving book and magazine discounts, airline miles are also offered by Discover Card. Big grocery stores such as Krogers, Wal Mart, and Bi-Lo offer cash back but in the form of cash certificates and discount coupons.
How does one get a cash back credit card?
Since almost all credit card companies (e.g. banks, stores, airlines) offer cash (or in kind) back benefits, all that has to be done is to file an application in any of their office or stores, or signup online by visiting their web sites. Just be a word of caution for online applications, make sure that the transaction is made through a secure internet connection since identity theft has become rampant with the advent of credit card use.
The Bad Credit Card That May Do Good
Millions of people use credit cards all around the world. A huge chunk of those users made mistakes when dealing with their credit cards. The consequence of the errors is costly.
A lot end up in debt and most of the time these are the people who rant about the credit card being the devil. But fact of the matter is, this is not the case. When used properly, credit cards are very good financial tools.
Credit cards are not necessarily just for people who have large sums of money to use. There are some cards even for the financially challenged, and these are called the: “Bad Credit Cards.”
A bad credit card is just precisely that: a card with a very bad or low credit limit.
There are two types of credit cards: there is the secured and the unsecured credit cards.
Unsecured credit cards are the accounts that are free from the limits of a bank account. The limit of credit is up to the bank’s discretion and not up to the size of the bank account. If the bank thinks that a person is deserving of a bigger credit, then it will be given.
This is the usual type of credit cards in the market and is fairly popular among the card shopping people. These are also the cards known to be more respected by other companies. These are also the cards known to send people to a very deep debt.
This is the type of credit card that should be avoided if the applicant is already in a financial mess.
The secured credit cards are the bad credit cards. These cards are grounded on the size of the account a person has. For example, if a person has a $1,000 balance, then that is all the credit a person is going to get. If there is a point where the balance reaches $0, then the person should go and “re-fill” the account.
The bank limits the credit to the money already present to avoid overspending, thus preventing even deeper debt. This will monitor the expenses of the person and will help the development of a financial recovery for some.
These credit cards are also known as “pre-paid credit cards” for there is only a fixed amount that can be used and the holder is the one who puts it there.
Options for the Best Credit Card
Consumers who want to maximize their options on a credit card should first find out all the terms and related costs associated with a particular card. For those who feel that the best credit card is one that is low-rate and no-frills, they should determine if the card has annual charges, as no-frills users do not need to pay such fees. Some upscale prestige cards, air-mile credit cards and similar rewards packages collect annual fees in exchange for perks, services and other rewards.
The definition of a best credit card varies depending on personal preference. Individuals currently have many options available in the market, including instant approval cards, cash back credit cards, low-interest credit cards and prepaid debit cards.
The percentage rate (APR) is another crucial element users must weigh before signing up for what they feel is the best credit card in the market, particularly those with balances, as lower interest rates mean lower payments for carriage and substantial savings.
For fixed-rate cards, owners can expect interest rates to be more stable – a credit card on 12.99% interest is likely to remain at that level for a relatively longer period of time compared to a variable card. However, holders decided on securing the best credit card should be aware that even fixed-rate terms could change, although card companies are required by law to issue a written notice for any rate adjustment at least 15 days prior to their affectivity.
Variable-card customers need to know if their plans feature minimum APRs, or ‘floors’ – the lowest-possible levels that interest rates could fall to, inclusive of any adjustment by the US Federal Reserve. A Bankrate.com poll indicated floors for 24% of variable-rate issuers surveyed, with 75% of that group already at minimum APRs through October 2001. This means that the interest rate on these cards will only go up in the future.
How long or short a grace period is for settling balances is another factor that customers seeking the best credit card should consider. Since interest charges kick in when the grace period lapses, a company offering longer grace periods means a more extended time for users to settle outstanding obligations without paying interest before their next card purchases are penalized.
Individuals seeking the best credit card deal should also be aware of all penalty policies covering missed payments, purchases exceeding the limit or balance transfers. First USA and other providers have a $35 ceiling for such transfers, while Citibank has a $50 cap.
Know How to Get the Best Credit Card Deal
Getting your own credit card is not as easy as you may think. Applying for a credit card account needs a lot of thinking.
Before marching down to your credit card agent, ask yourself some questions like do you want to pay for the credit every month or carry a balance instead? The type of credit line limit is also to be taken into consideration. Credit cards offer a lot of benefit packages, think of the package that would suit your needs.
If you want to carry on a balance, look for the credit card that offers the best interest rate or the annual fee offer. However, if you intend to pay for the credit every month, then look on the one that offers the lowest interest rate.
Credit limit determines how far you can go with your card. Think of the lowest limit that would fit your needs, not your lifestyle. Remember it’s supposed to be for necessity and not for luxury. Adding 30% to the limit you agreed on. This will maximize the value of the card. Meaning, you can use the card on a normal basis and still have enough value if an emergency arises.
Credit card companies offer tremendous bonuses on their cards. If you wanted to sign up for these packages, think, think, and think! Will they really be of help to you or are they just there to make your credit life miserable?
Of course the table is laden with different courses. You are only to get one so don’t rush into one that looks good. You always have the liberty of comparing one credit card to another.
Always choose the credit card that offers the lowest annual percentage rate (APR). APR’s could either be a “fixed” or a “variable” rate. Fixed rates do not change as the name implies but is higher. Variable rates changes depending on the economic trends. This is to be taken into consideration if you’re deciding on carrying a balance.
Some credit cards offer a grace period of 25 days before they charge the interest on the purchase. But some may not have. Look for those that have one and the longer the grace period, the better the deal.
You also have to check on other fees attached to the credit card. These are the penalty rates as well as other charges like over the limit charges and late payment charges.
When choosing a card, always remember to get the one that would best fit your needs and at the same time the best deal you could get out of it.
The Best Credit Card Reward: For Those Who Had Been Naughty and Nice
Think about it. If people would normally pay all their credit card balances in time, then what is the purpose of interest rates?