Credit cards are just so convenient, aren’t they? There’s no need to carry any money with you ever again: you can just take one with you to the shop and pay the exact amount just by handing it over. If you haven’t been paid yet, then you don’t need to worry, because the money will still be there.
When you shop on the Internet or over the phone, it’s the only good way to do it – what else are you going to do, post a cheque? Like anything convenient, though, credit cards have a flip side – in fact, they have lots.
Can You Keep Track?
When you walk into that shop and hand over the card, the money is taken from the card, and the card goes back into your wallet. You still have all the things you started with – there’s no less money in your purse or wallet to remind you of what you’ve spent.
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Make sure that you know the benefits of an Amex, before you be the owner of a credit card so prestigious. It is not a big deal, to hold any credit card. But yes, it is indeed something prestigious if you hold an Amex card. It shows your choice. Being the proud owner of an Amex card is really something that raises your esteem. An Amex card holder is looked up as some one highly respectable. If you want to raise your status, then owning an Amex card is definitely a great option! It is not everyone’s cup of tea, to be an Amex card owner. So I am sure you will love to use the top line credit, and see yourself one among the elite section of the society.
American Express is the world’s biggest and largest company issuing credit cards. Amex credit cards are globally acclaimed, worldwide. The past records of American Express credit cards are enough for you to be assured that you will get great services by being an Amex credit card holder. You will get various kinds of American Express credit cards. You just need to know the various benefits and features that the different types of Amex cards offer. This will help you choose the best credit card for yourself, suiting to your needs.
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There are so many credit cards out there to choose from that deciding which one to get can feel really daunting. What makes one offer better than the hundreds of others you’ve seen? Take this little quiz to find out what you should look for in a card.
First, Are You a Student?
If you are, then you’ll be best off with a student card – you’ll probably have trouble getting accepted for anything else. It would be best to contact the bank where you have your student account before you do anything else.
Do You Have a Balance to Transfer?
If you do, then you need to be looking for a card with a low APR on balance transfers – preferably one that stays low for more than a few months, unless you intend to switch often.
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Once you’ve got a credit card, you’ll find that you can do more with it than just pay for things with the card. You might be sent a credit card chequebook, for those times when you’re paying someone who can’t accept your card.
You might also be offered cash advances – a way of withdrawing cash directly from your credit card, either to your bank account or from a cash machine. This is designed for when you need cash in an emergency. You really shouldn’t overuse either of these features, and here’s why.
You Pay More Interest.
With most cards, cheques and advances are charged at a much higher rate of interest than normal spending. You often give up any interest-free period (which can be up to two months), meaning that you start paying interest on the money literally from the minute you spend the money. Not only that, but most cards will also charge a fee each time you use cash advances or credit card cheques – and using an ATM may increase the fee even further.
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When you’re looking at a credit card offer, take a look at the small print – it seems like a maze, but it’s vitally important. With the trend nowadays towards easier-to-read ‘summary boxes’, there aren’t as many excuses for ignoring the terms as there used to be. Anyway, credit card lenders are devious, and there are plenty of things there designed to catch you out – here’s what you should be on your guard against.
Annual Fees.
Even though you’re already paying them interest, many credit cards still charge you an annual fee. It’s not as common as it once was, but it’s still around. You should be especially careful to check for fees on Gold and Platinum cards – even though they’re not that hard to get any more, they still tend to charge much higher fees than normal cards.
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Do you have any idea just how common credit cards are? Let’s take a look at a few statistics from the USA.
The average family carries a balance of between $5,000 and $8,000 on all their credit cards, depending on which figures you believe. Over $1,000 per family goes on interest every year. And that’s just the average – some people owe much more! Overall, Americans spend over $1 trillion every year on their credit cards, and owe more than $500 billion of it.
If debt continues at the current rate, then one family in a hundred will be forced into bankruptcy. Over 90% of Americans’ disposable incomes are spent paying back debts. Whatever happened to saving?
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If you’ve got a really unmanageable amount of credit card debt, you might be considering a consolidation loan. A consolidation loan is a loan that you can use to pay off all your debts, meaning that you can pay them off for less money without having to worry about lots of different bills. Like anything, though, consolidation loans have their advantages and their disadvantages, and it pays to take a careful look at what they offer before you commit yourself.
The Interest Rate.
You should always shop around to get the best interest rate you can if you opt for debt consolidation. This interest rate is almost as important as the one on your mortgage, but much harder to change after you’ve signed on the dotted line. Don’t be fooled by any offers that give you a good rate for a limited time – you’re going to have this loan for quite a while.
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Credit cards are there to put you in debt and keep you in debt. When they do it, they have one tool at their disposal that is more effective than all the others. It’s called the minimum payment.
What’s a Minimum Payment?
Your minimum payment is the absolute minimum that you must pay off each month to avoid defaulting on the debt. If you don’t pay your minimum, they’ll come after you – but don’t make the mistake of thinking it’s just fine to only ever pay that much.
Why are Minimums Bad?
They never used to be. Minimum payments used to be set at relatively high percentages, anywhere from 5% to 10%. This meant that you paid more, but your debt would get paid back faster.
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You might not know it, but every time you take out any kind of loan or credit or pay something back, it gets counted on your credit rating. Who keeps a record on you will vary according to where you live, but the big three credit reference agencies are Experian, Equifax and Trans Union. They will provide your credit rating to any company that is thinking of lending you money.
What is Included in Your Credit Rating.
All the debts you currently have are included in your credit rating. There is a history of all the debts you’ve had in the past ten years or so, and special emphasis is put on anything that has gone wrong. Defaulting (never paying) on any debt will ruin your credit rating completely. Borrowing a lot before you start paying anything back will make you look like a very bad risk, and so will going all the way up to (or even over) your limit on a credit card.
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In the world of credit cards, there are plenty of people who are desperate to borrow money, and just as many people who are desperate to get back out of debt again. Given that, it’s not surprising that the industry is full of scams. Here are some to keep an eye out for.
The Debt Advisors.
Be very careful if you’re offered ‘free debt advice’. There are many government bodies, legitimate financial companies and charities that give good advice, but the ones who do a lot of advertising tend to be owned or partnered with people you don’t want to know. If the advice you get is to sign up for another loan from one company in particular, don’t believe it – the chances are that the person you’re talking to is just a salesman in disguise.
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