Avoiding College Credit Card Traps

Congratulations college freshman! You’re about to embark on one of the most exciting times of your life. By now your parents, siblings, and friends have offered you all kinds of advice on how to make your transition to college smoother - how to get along with your roommate, what classes to take and which ones to avoid, where to find the best off-campus food, and how to stay safe on campus.

One thing they may have not warned you about is how quickly you’ll be bombarded with credit card offers. You’ll find them in your textbooks, in your mailbox, and on every campus bulletin board. You’ll be offered free DVD’s, t-shirts, music downloads, and more in return for completing an application for credit.

Why all this fuss over you for a stupid piece of plastic? Because they love to recruit new borrowers, especially in your age bracket. They know, from numerous studies, that college students tend to be impulse buyers. And even though your impulse purchases tend to be small - pizza, coffee, beer, CD’s, cigarettes, books, etc. - those small purchases can add up quickly.

Fifty-four percent of freshman students and 92 percent of sophomores have at least one credit card. A recent study shows the average college student graduates with between $1,500 - $3,000 in credit card debt.

Here are 7 tips to help you manage your college credit card needs:

1) Look for a card with the lowest fixed percentage rate and a low or no annual fee. Read the fine print carefully - many low or 0% introductory rate offers expire in 6-12 months.

2) NEVER use your credit card for a cash advance. The fees and repayment structure associated with a cash advance are outrageous.

3) Have a budget! Your credit card is not free money. Budget your money so that you can pay off your balance at the end of each month. If you can’t pay off the balance, always make more than just the minimum payment.

4) Pay your bills on time, otherwise you’ll pay a late fee between $25-40 every time your late with a payment. Late payments will also increase your chances of having your percentage rate raised on ALL your credit accounts.

5) Request a low credit limit somewhere between $700-$1,500. The object is to have credit available to meet some of your expenses and in case of an emergency.

6) Less is better. You don’t need more than one or two cards at the most. The more you have the more tempted you’ll be to use them or to “max” them out.

7) Consider using a debit card instead. A debit card is linked to your checking account and purchases are automatically deducted from your account balance. Of course, make sure you have money in your account to cover any purchases you make.

Using a credit card is a big responsibility whether you’re a college student or an adult. Managing your credit wisely establishes a positive credit history which will serve you now and well into the future.

Student Credit Cards Pros and Cons

Most people hold that learning to manage one’s personal finances at an early age is imperative. I certainly did not have got much counsel in this country when I was studying and between seeing my friends and cramming for examinations it did not rate as a high priority! Financial independency is something most human beingnesses endeavor for yet very small is taught on this topic at schools and universities alike. It is a shame that such as critical life accomplishments are rarely addressed in our young person unless our parents are particularly diligent in this area, as many of us have got to learn our lessons the hard way.

Whilst at university I observed many of my friends struggling with student credit card repayments. These cats had fallen into the easy trap of disbursement money they didn’t really have got and leaving the distressing for a rainy day. Well conjecture what? When it rained it poured! One peculiar friend of mine was disbursement a batch more on his credit card than he was able to earn each week. I’m certain it was nice purchasing all those misses those drinks but was it deserving the concern of insurmountable credit card interest repayments? This friend still pays to this twenty-four hours for his errors as his credit history will not measure up him for anymore credit of any kind. This is quite sad because credit actually can be good to those who manage it appropriately. In fact it could be argued that every human beingness will need or at least benefit from some type of credit in his or her lifetime. You may cognize that it is very rare for investors to utilize their ain money in business, instead they leverage the bank’s money to derive net income for themselves before paying the bank back. This an acquired accomplishment and a whole other topic.

So, the inquiry is; should students have got their ain student credit cards? Despite my rather black introduction to this article I would state absolutely yes. I state yes because as I said there are many benefits of having some credit. Also, learning how to manage credit from an early age will put you up to avoid some serious financial headaches in the future. Remember my friend? Trust me, you don’t desire to stop up like him.

Student credit cards are readily available these days. All major banks will actually have got a range of credit cards specifically suited to the needs of the student. Often this mightiness mean value reduced rates, student focused benefits, etc. Applying is made very simple by websites like http://www.uscreditcardguide.com where you are able to reexamine the best offers from different banks and also apply online for fast and easy approval. Just retrieve to have got got your personal financial information on manus so you can fill up out the word forms correctly.

There are a few grounds I believe it is of import for students to have their ain credit cards. Firstly Iodine urge every student have got an ‘advisor’. An advisor can be a professional, a parent or household member, or friend with accomplishments in this area. Most college campuses will offer free financial advice to its students as well. An advisor can assist you with budgets, apprehension interest rates and assist you understand your alone situation. It is of import to understand your earning capacity and cognize whether it will allow for credit card repayments.

It is very good to anyone to set up a credit history which banks utilize to measure additional loan and credit applications. If you wish to have got got got your ain home you will have to travel through this 1 twenty-four hours and the longer you can demo have adequately maintained a credit card and its payments the better opportunities you will have.

Financial emergencies, which all of us can associate to, will also come up up and a credit card can really do things easier to manage these small crises. Often a low bounds of $500 to $1000 is all you need to cover some unexpected expense. It is a great feeling knowing you can manage these states of affairs without having to phone home or borrow from a friend.

Simply using credit cards to pay for things and then transferring money from your nest egg account to cover the costs on your credit card is a good manner of earning benefits from your credit card supplier. These benefits will range from frequent circular points to shopping credits. Check some really cool student cards including the extremely popular MTV Card.

What You Need to Know About Secured Credit Cards

There’s so much to learn about the different credit cards made available to the public today. First of all, it’s important to choose a credit card that aims to work for you and your lifestyle. Make it easy on yourself. If you do the research before committing and establish what you want to use a credit card for, the rest is easy.

Secured credit cards are used in a number of ways. They’re convenient because they are used like a regular credit card. However, there is a difference between these credit cards and regular credit cards. These credit cards are secured. If you want a secured credit card, you’ll need to put down cash as collateral in order to secure one. It’s like making a personal deposit. That deposit becomes your line of credit, available to use when you need it the most. Credit cards that are secured, often times, contain limits as to how much you can deposit on the card at any given time. Most cards will hold up to $500.00. Depending on the credit card company, they may allow you to deposit more. In the end, the bank will reward you for making payments on your credit card – payments which have already been established because it’s coming from you in advance as a requirement of using the card. Therefore, owning a secured card will actually help you to establish a good credit rating. In fact, it is the perfect way to get your credit back on track if you’re suffering with poor, bad or no credit.

Make sure to shop around for your secured card. Every company offers different perks and services, which get attached to your card. That is why it is important to do your research first. Establish what’s important. How do you plan to use your credit card? Where will you make the majority of your purchases? Most importantly, you’ll decide how best this card will work for you and your current situation. Make sure that whatever card you choose, that the supplier reports your history to credit bureaus. Otherwise, your card isn’t helping you build credit, and that is one of the most important factors in using a secured credit card. You will establish good credit and improve your credit rating considerably. You also avoid the risk of running into debt again, because you control what you spend.

No-one will ever know that your credit card is prepaid. You can use it in your favorite restaurant and it will look just like any other card. Prepaid credit cards are one of the best ways to make your purchases without the risk of spending more than you can afford. You are completely in the driver’s seat.

Why Do We Need Credit Cards?

In the world today a credit card has become very valuable, and for many different reasons. More buying power, isn’t that what we all want? With a credit card that is exactly what you get. How often is it that your finances just won’t allow for a big purchase or you experience financial hardship? Credit Cards provide you with an alternative method of payment.

It can also be used as a way for secure traveling. For instance say you are traveling or on vacation and your wallet is stolen, if you were to be carrying a large amount of cash it would be gone forever. With a credit card in your wallet all you need to do is notify the issuer of the credit card and they can instantly cancel the credit cards and issue you a new one.

Would you like an interest free loan? Here is how to get one. Simply charge your credit card the amount needed. Then pay off the entire balance before the due date, or before the interest is applied.

Security of credit cards have become state of the art with today’s encryption technology companies are going to great lengths to protect and ensure your privacy. So that someone cannot simply steal your personal identity and credit card information. This is allowing us to use the internet for one of its main purposes, shopping and making our lives just a little more convenient. Also, if you have a credit card it gives you the choice to carry less cash on hand but still have the ability to afford those little or sometimes not so little unexpected expenditures.

However the largest benefit of having a credit card is all building your credit score, repairing your credit, or getting your credit in the best state possible. This is another way to prepare yourself and your credit score for future purchases such as a home, car etc.

Great Credit Cards for People with not so Great Credit

Everyone cognizes you can get a credit card with not so perfect credit, but you will be paying high interest. I have got got establish that is just not the lawsuit anymore.

You can now have the option of obtaining a Pre-paid card which gives you the simplicity and convenience you need to manage your finances easily. Some characteristics of this card are free direct deposit, which do payday faster safer and more than convenient. Integrated measure payment, wage your measures online or even over the phone. Access to checks; direct a check to anyone directly from your account. Access to cash, retreat money at billions of standard atmosphere machines worldwide.

Other types of credit cards are also available for those with bad or no credit and they are unsecured. Approval is guaranteed when makings are met. You can be approved for up to $7,500 of credit regardless of your credit history. Monthly credit bounds additions are available to those that qualify.

Many companies are now offering other types of credit cards for those trying to reconstruct or construct there credit. Sometimes they begin out at a lower bounds and if you do your monthly payments on clip they will gradually increase your limit. You may desire to compare all these different types of credit cards and see which one plant best for you. Now you can do your bad credit bend into great credit to fit the cards in your wallet.