Paper or plastic has long been more than just a supermarket mantra.  While nearly half of Americans suffer from credit card debt, their use ceases to dwindle.  Two cycle billing and jacked up interest rates don’t scare most people away from charging more than they can afford, and why would it?  Even though most people don’t even understand their own credit card agreements, the “I’ll pay for it later” mindset is not an easy one to... more

Ahhhh, the sweet smell of cash! If you aren’t nodding your head in approval then you haven’t tasted the sweetness of a cash rewards credit card. Cash rewards credit cards offer you cash rewards points every time you charge a purchase to your credit card. Every time you reach a certain balance on your credit card (this varies per cash reward program, but typically you receive $25 for every $2,500 balance you reach), you will receive a check in the mail. With other cash rewards... more

Bankruptcy is a tough decision for any individual and even tougher to recover from in regards to financial standing for the first few years afterwards. This article takes a look at the effects a bankruptcy can have on your credit, including your ability to obtain credit cards and find the best credit card offers for someone with damaged credit while attempting to re-build your credit score. Learn how you can utilize secured credit cards to help re-establish yourself to lenders and how to compare credit cards to find the one that is best in this rough credit situation.more

The first piece of advice that some counselors will give you when you have too much credit card debt, is to cut up all of your credit cards. In fact, while sometimes this may be a wise strategy, it’s not always a good idea. To be sure, if you’re addicted to spending, have no control, and are using one credit card to pay off another, then it may be a good idea to just get rid of all of them. But not everybody is in that boat, and not everybody has that sort of addictive... more

If you’re a college or university student, chances are you were greeted by a credit card company on your first day of school, before you met your residence advisor. However before you decide that you will never get a personal credit card, you should know that college-aged students with zero or little credit history were unable to rent apartments, get car loans, personal lines of credit or even rent a hotel online, without financial backing from mom and dad. Signing up for your first... more

Basically your credit card score, or your credit card history, is a grade that sends a message to potential lenders about your spending behaviors. Think of a credit card score as your reputation in high school. If you spent your time at the mall giving into each and every purchase that caught your eye, you wouldn’t have a very good reputation, and word would get around about your behavior. Just like a bad social reputation, a financial reputation can follow you around for a very long... more

Why is it that people with the worst credit ratings always seem to be the ones with multiple credit cards? They tell you they have bad credit as they’re pulling out the plastic to pay for unneeded purchases. That’s enough to turn anyone off getting a credit card – ever! However you can't avoid using credit cards forever and its pure necessity to build up your credit rating in order to: Purchase a house Rent an apartment Lease a car Buy a car To... more

Credit cards open the doors to many financial purchases that one would not afford through pure savings alone. Vacations, concert tickets, hotel accommodations, electronics, entertainment and dinners at classy restaurants – the ability to charge these purchases to credit cards makes them possible for many of us. However, someone with bad credit may have trouble getting their hands on a credit card because of poor credit behavior in the past – perhaps the missed payments on other... more

You can’t get through a day without a credit card company calling to tell you about their “newest rewards program”! Rewards credit cards offer points towards certain perks for using the credit card. For instance travel rewards credit cards, or air miles, give a consumer one travel mile for every $1 spent at participating retailers. You might not believe offers of fee travel, gas, money towards cars, shopping and cold hard cash could sway someone to sign with a certain... more

Affinity Credit Card – These credit cards are offered by a credit card company in conjunction with a professional organization – for example a college, airline, automobile manufacturer or retail store. Affinity cards often offer rewards type programs to their clients. Amortization – You will often hear this term used when you are approved for a loan, for example a mortgage. The amortization period is the timeframe you have to pay you’re your debt and interest off... more

With the prevalence of credit card debt and the average APR being around 16%, it is great to have the option of a balance transfer. A balance transfer is exactly what it sounds like; moving your debt from one credit card to another. So what’s the big deal? For one thing, you can consolidate all of your debt onto one card, making it more manageable. Also, you can save money because balance transfers usually offer little to no APR on the balance for up to a year. Certain factors... more

There are many different kinds of rewards programs associated with credit cards where you can earn points whenever you charge something to the cards. One of the most popular rewards systems is the travel rewards program. Travel rewards credit cards let you accumulate points and redeem them for things like airplane tickets, hotel rooms, rental cars and events. Just like any other credit card, there are several different options and plans to choose from. Most people don’t do their... more

Are hoping to get your hands on your very first credit card? Does your credit rating happen to be less than stellar? Well then a secured credit card might be your golden opportunity for establishing, or re-establishing, a squeaky clean credit rating. A secured credit card may be your only credit option if you have filed for bankruptcy in the past, or if your poor spending habits ruined your hopes for ever getting a regular credit card, personal line of credit or a loan. Now let’s... more

Do you carry a bright plastic promise of free travel in your wallet? I’m talking about a travel rewards credit card. I find it completely ironic how most people respond to the offer of a travel rewards card with the same 3 words – “Sign me up!” Yet these same folks never actually ever redeem their points. To the average Jane and Joe, how could the offer of free travel be a bad thing? Especially when the majority of North American’s find themselves scrounging... more

Using or not using credit cards sparks much debate among credit counselors. But sometimes getting out of debt isn’t a matter of eliminating them entirely, but just using them more wisely. Credit cards can be quite useful at times, such as when renting a car, or buying something online. Having one good, low interest credit card is a good strategy—having a dozen credit cards is probably not. It’s easy to get into too much debt with credit cards when you use them to buy... more

A while back we ran an article about novelty credit cards and how they use gimmicks to lure you into spending more money so you can get some free junk. All of these cards are designed so you think you are being loyal to your favorite brands and make you feel like you belong to an exclusive club. Now, there's nothing wrong with wanting to fit and be part of a club but sadly most of these cards don't offer any really cool rewards for your blind loyalty. What you need is a card that rewards you... more