Making the Most Out of Your Credit Cards

Rewards: Make them useful   Itis possible to get a credit card that rewards users for not using thecard at all actually. One actually offers enough gas rewards for a freeoil change every so often. Get the best rewards for your lifestyle. If you are not a traveler, do not get rewards thatare focused on hotel rates or airline fares. Find something like gas rewards or saving for college. Be smart when it comes to balances and rates Tryto haggle with the credit card company once you have built up a goodcustomer history with them. You can call them up to try and tonegotiate a lower interest rate, which has the possibility of savingyou hundreds over the course of time. Payoff the card that has the highest interest, even if it is the one withthe highest balance. Sometimes it may be more appealing to pay off thesmaller ones first but you want to save on interest too.     Be careful when signing up for “poor people” credit cards that are geared towards people with little to no credit .Often these cards have sky high interest rates or the amount of feesassociated with opening these accounts is so high that the entirecredit limit is used up by these fees. Donot carry a balance. Credit cards are meant to be used mainly for smallpurchases. If you want to finance, something like a car try and to geta loan that has a much lower interest rate instead. Extra tips and tricks with the cards Investin price protection. Many cards will give you the option to get arefund on a big purchase such as a computer if you can find it cheaperwithin 30/60/90 days. Cash back is usually a percentage of what you spend. Take advantage of the cashback and use that cash for whatever purchases you may want instead ofthe card. Getpurchase protection for the items you buy but do not get the extendedwarranty because usually buried in with that protection is a warrantyanyways. Investin the program that will cover your payments if you become unemployedor something happens .This will not only save you money in terms offees and over limits but it will keep your credit report clean and report you as up to date with your payments. Don’talways close old cards. This will lower your debt to credit ratio andcould potentially hurt your credit score. If you’re dead set on doingit go ahead but don’t do it for the purpose of increasing your scorebecause the opposite will be done. Keep it simple Don’t get in over your head with the credit cards that you have. Definitely don’t get more than 1 or 2 cards because thenthey may overwhelm you. Use them for their intended purpose and youwon’t find yourself in deep water.

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