|
Credit cards have increasingly become a necessity rather than a mere luxury. There are many services available to us now that require credit cards. There are also rate reductions given from various companies that want to bill you on a credit card to ensure they get their money promptly each month. Having a good credit card history is the best way to keep credit card interest down and credit limits high and available. First thing you must do in order to keep a good history is to not get a card you cannot afford to begin with. If you receive unsolicited offers or emails, read the fine print, as these offers are coming without your asking. Make sure you check with the Better Business Bureau to see if the lender is indeed a legitimate lender. There are often times people are taken advantage of because they gave their personal information to a "scammer" with no intention of giving you what they claim to be able to give. This fine print will include late fees, balance transfer fees, cash advance fees, interest rates initially and any program fees. If you cannot afford the fees, then this is not the company you should allow to run your credit report. Next, be sure to make the minimum payment each month at the very least and always on time! This is the most important part to keeping your credit card history good to begin with. Any amount you can make over the minimum is obviously a good thing as you will accrue less interest. Most credit card companies give a grace period. Make sure you are aware of the grace period, as a payment is still considered on time so long as they receive it within this period. However, if you foresee yourself being late one month, call the company and let them know. They have ways of working out arrangements for different situations. Now, assuming you've let it get too far out of hand for whatever reason, consider looking into a non-profit debt-consolidation company. These companies can communicate with the credit card companies in order to reduce or even eliminate the finance charges and late fees. Credit card companies are willing to use these types of agencies in order to collect their money because they ultimately save on the expense of using collection agencies and know they increase their chances of recovering most of the balance. Best advice of all? Be careful about what company you choose and do checks with the Better Business Bureau on the history of the companies you choose to deal with. It is not only a lenders responsibility to choose wisely and go based on an individual's credit report, but it is your responsibility to check on them as well and there are government regulated agencies that oversee consumer affairs. If you found yourself on the bottom end and had to close out cards based on non payments, work on re-establishing your credit card history by getting a secured card or a "starter card". These cost money up front, but will allow positive revolving credit reporting on your file. Pay rent and utilities on time, try to keep the same residence and job and maintain a checking and savings account. All of this will improve your credit history in time.
The author writes regularly about credit cards and runs a website offering a guaranteed credit card.
|
