Matching Your Credit Card with your Lifestyle

Finance

  • Author Liz Roberts
  • Published March 23, 2010
  • Word count 510

It can be both an exciting, and confusing experience when you’re looking for a new credit card. Judging as to which credit card to choose can be difficult since all the credit card companies all promise a great deal.

The key here is to decide which credit card suits your lifestyle. Here, we will be focusing on how to choose the ideal credit card based on your lifestyle.

Secured or Unsecured. If you have an excellent credit score, you’ll surely not have any problems in choosing the best unsecured credit cards in the market. However, if you have some issues with your credit score, it would be a safe option to go for a secured credit card.

An unsecured credit card requires a security deposit. Although it imposes more restrictions, the limits can actually help you with building up your credit rating.

Variable or Fixed rate. Credit cards with variable rates offer low, fixed interest rate at first and later on, may vary depending on the index rate in the market. It is always ideal to go for credit cards with low fixed-rate interest rate, so you’ll know how much without having worrying about unexpected changes on yourrates.

Cash Back or Travel Rewards. Consider your lifestyle carefully in terms of credit card privileges. Some people love traveling for free with the use of travel reward credit card. However before signing up, get to know these important information:

• Do you have the freedom to choose your destination?

• What is the yearly fee for the Frequent Flyer credit card and what’s the guarantee that you can get the reward points in time?

• Is there a limit for the period of collecting points?

• Will the gathered points expire after one or two year/s?

• How many points do you have to collect before qualifying for the free travel?

These are just some points that you have to consider before getting a Travel Rewards Credit Card. However, if you are not a frequent traveler, this may not be an ideal option for you. Possibly, a cash back reward credit card would be more advantageous because it allows you to collect "cash points" and exchange them for merchandise or new purchase.

APR vs. Other charges and rates. Sometimes credit cards offer a very low Annual Percentage Rate (APR). Nevertheless, there are other fees that come with your credit card aside from the interest rate. Here are some of the extra charges that you have to know:

• How much is the penalty for late payments and for exceeding your credit limit?

• How much is the annual charge that you have to submit every year to keep the membership activated?

Clearly, comparing the APR with other credit card charges is a must. You have to make sure that you are aware of the exact costs before signing up your application. If you are looking for a reward credit card, check the fine print and be sure that you can abide by the rules of the rewards program without going beyond your spending limit.

Liz Roberts is a freelance writer and loan consultant. The website BadCreditResources.com offers resources that specialize in providing bad credit loans and credit cards for bad credit.

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