Do’s and don’t of credit card game
Do’s and don’t of the credit card game
Credit card companies are open to make money from the service they are rendering to their customers, and they are always will be happy if their clients have good credit rating, but they are not always happy when you pay off their credit card balance each month. Their wish is that you always carry balance every month. That way, they can charge interest on your account. Because of this reason, they are responding by becoming more creative at finding ways to make money off you.
Consequently, there is a need for you to be a smart customer, so that you did not fall victim as it can end up affecting your credit rating. In this article we will look at few ways you can escape their financial trap.
Make sure you read the information you get from your card issuing company. Read every form you get from potential card companies. Also, make sure you study the bill and every other information you get from your credit card company over time, because they can change their terms of your card agreement with as little as 15 days in advance. And if you are careless to take note of this, it may end up affecting your credit.
Make sure you avoid late payment of your fees. If you make late payment you can be subjected to larger balance on your account and your card issuing company may hike your interest rate as a result of this.
Avoid carrying balance every month because you will end up paying far more than you should for everything you charge to your card. Make sure you pay for everything you charged within the grace period, doing that, you will not fall victim of high interest rate. Failure to do this will lead to accumulation of debt, which will end up spoiling your credit report if you are not careful.
If you are not feeling comfortable with the service you are getting from your issuing company or any of their terms – make sure you complaint. Don’t die in silence. Because of the competition that most of this companies are facing, they are forced to answer your complaints, and as a matter of fact make adjustments where possible. For example, if you’ve been getting high interest fee you can have it lowered by just making your request to your issuing company.
You are free to shop around when you are thinking of getting a new card. Why should you be forced to one company you don’t feel you are comfortable with when there are lots of them out there?. Shop around – you can get whatever you want. You can get the interest rate you want, grace period or even a card without annual fee charge. So go out there, compare the rates, and terms of several cards before you make your choice. The choice you make today will surely determine your credit report tomorrow somehow.
Most card holders are careless when it comes to checking their credit report with the credit bureau or agencies involved. If you pay your balance on time and don’t carry balance often, you have to make sure that your card issuing company reports your performance to the different bureaus on time. You may possibly want to get a loan in a near future and your present credit performance will help you a lot in getting approval on time.
Bad spending habits are one of the viruses that have infected most of card users in recent years. As a matter of fact, use of internet has even made it easy for every card user to get anything they want within minutes. So they may find almost impossible to control their spending. Most of the websites make to buy so easy that you will not even know when you are giving them your card information.
There is a way out – make sure that you keep your card away most of the time. Especially when you are accessing internet and when you are going out. If you are facing an emergency, take only one along.
However, you can reduce or even stop the bad spending virus if you stop buying things on impulse. If you are to buy anything , make plan in advance in order to pay it back, as soon as possible.
