Credit cards can be a wonderful convenience but they can also be destroyer of our future if we use them with complete unconcern. You probably think you use credit cards wisely. But the facts suggest otherwise. Credit card companies are very lucrative, and their profits come from costumers’ purses. The principal moment is to understand how not to lose money with credit cards. Using your credit cards sensibly will help you avoid financial problems and help you to build a good credit history.
Credit cards are designed for buying things now and paying later. But don't forget that every time you use your credit card you are borrowing money. Therefore pay your credit card bills on time. This is the single most important thing you can do to improve your credit score. One late fee can really get down your credit rating and increase the rates on your other cards. Do not pay only the minimum of your monthly bill as it may evoke a suspicion on your credit worthiness. If possible, pay off your balance in full each month. If this is not possible, then make as large a payment as you can comfortably afford. If you don’t want
special rewards such as hotel rewards, gas rebate etc, if you expect to always pay your monthly bill in full your best choice can be a credit card with no annual fee and longer grace period.
Never transcend the credit limit on your credit card. Ideally keep your balance about 25 % of your credit limit.
If you have a good credit history, you are a valuable to negotiate with your credit company. Call them and ask about and ask about lowering your interest rate. Undoubtedly, they want to keep you as a customer. This is often possible, but never advertised.
Check your statement carefully each month. Do all the charges look correct? Have any required credits been applied? Besides regularly check you credit report to make sure the information is accurate, complete, and up-to-date. Your credit report contains information that determines whether you can get new credit card or a loan and how much you will have to pay to borrow money. If you find errors on your credit report write a letter to the reporting agency. Explain each dispute and request an inquest to resolve the issues.
How do you decide
how many credit cards to own? There are reasons to have more credit cards, and reasons to have fewer cards. Here are reasons to own few credit cards:
1. Each time you open a credit card, 20 points are taken off your credit score.
2. It is easier to manage your finance if you use only one or two credit cards. The more credit cards you have, the bigger risk of damaging your credit you carry.
3. If you have more credit cards, you should check more credit statements for errors.
Here are some reasons to use more than one card:
1. The first reason is credit card acceptance. May be
American Express Blue credit card satisfies your requirements. But many merchants don't accept this card, so you'll probably want a Visa or MasterCard as well.
2. Different cards offer higher rewards on different types of purchase, for example, some credit cards offer higher rewards on gasoline. So if you have several credit cards you can make the most of rewards you get.
So how many credit cards should you hold? Most experts say there is no magic number. It depends on the amount of effort and time you are going to devote to saving money. Never use more
credit cards than you can manage.
Sticking to the rules can help you to avoid the expensive mistakes that most credit card users make.
