Make Your Credit Card Work for You

Credit cards are seen as evil plastic things that can get you into a world of debt. To a certain degree this is true. If a credit card is used in the wrong manner you can soon be in debt that you can’t get out of. Surprisingly only 40 percent of Ireland are credit card holders.

Experts are trying to educate the general public regarding credit cards and ways to make them work for you. These same experts have either been in a debt situation or are financially savvy. So how can a consumer make their card work for them over the credit card company?

• The first thing that can be done is to stop using the card as a crutch. If the money is not in the account then you don’t need the item you are wishing to purchase.
• Consumers that understand themselves will have a better handle on their credit card use. For example some consumers panic when they hear credit crunch, debt, and other issues that might constrain their income. Instead of taking the correct action they head out and spend more on their cards. By getting financial advice or help to curb spending they can stop using their cards. In some cases it is best to just cut up the card.
• A consumer doesn’t have to close the account, but cutting up the card so they can’t use it anymore is a good option. The alternative to this is locking the card in a safe where it can’t be used.
• Once the spending has been stopped, action can be taken to lower the balance on the card. We have all heard of balance transfer cards. They can be a good option, but not the best. There are only a few cards in Ireland that offer the life of the balance credit card. This is a credit card that when a transfer occurs the deal is for a certain interest rate for the life of the balance. Barclay had a rate not too long ago for 1.9 percent interest on balance transfers. Once the balance transfer has been paid off the interest rate reverts back to the standard APR. Consumers have a longer time to pay the card balance off than the zero percent options.
• By comparing cards these deals can be found. The terms and conditions must be followed in order to keep the card’s special interest rate. Like other deals a failure to pay or paying late can negate the special option.

If you need a purchase card and want it to work for you then your only option is to purchase what you can afford to pay off during the month in order to reap the reward benefits. Again comparing the rewards can help a person find the best card that will work for them. Flight miles, if you don’t fly but once every two years, is not a really great card to have. Something that saves fuel costs might be though.

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, September 2nd, 2008 at 9:04 am and is filed under Credit Card Advice. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.