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Be Careful When Choosing Your Student Credit Card
by Melissa Burton Before you earn any college credits, you get bombarded with credit offers. You are their ideal cardholder: you are getting an education, which will more than likely ensure a better paying job that could even be lined up for you before you graduate; you are probably getting financial assistance from your family; and most important of all, you are, like nearly all college students, desperately in need of cash.When you’re away from home, having credit is very important for basic living expenses as well as traveling from home to campus, depending on how far away you move. What are basic living expenses? Ask any student: mandatory living expenses constitute whatever it takes to make a student feel less homesick and to make their dorm room more accurately reflect your personal style.
Getting the credit you want starts with completing an application. You’ll find banks and credit card companies vying for your business all over campus. Some leave leaflets in the lobby of dorms or have it stuffed into the bad from the bookstore. Some offer food like free pizza or subs, or give away magazine subscriptions. Others toss trendy tee shirts at you if you sign on the dotted line, or offer cash incentives for referrals to other students who may be interested in obtaining a credit card.
But none of those so-called “gifts†are the reason you should choose a credit card. Every college student likes free stuff, but this is just one of those times when you could find out that free stuff could end up costing you a fortune in the long run.
Don’t rush to complete the first credit card application that’s thrust into your hands. Every time a potential creditor runs your credit report, it shows up as an “inquiry†on your credit history. You could be denied a credit card for just this reason: the creditor may be concerned that you are applying for too much credit, or too many different cards, at once, and may get yourself in to trouble by going too far in debt too fast.
Get at least three applications and compare the deals offered to you – or better yet – shop online and compare benefits. These companies are all willing to give you credit, perhaps the same initial amount of credit. So what features matter most?
First, you need to know what the credit card will cost you. One cost is the annual fee and the other is the interest rate on your balance. Your best choice is a credit card with no annual fee. Shopping for a credit card is just like shopping for a bank account: taking time to compare offers will turn up a card that charges no fees and may even offer some type of “reward†points for such things as airline miles, gifts, or even cash back. You earn these points by paying at least the minimum required payment by the due date and by keeping within your credit limit.
While many institutions may offer low or even zero rates initially or on balances you are willing to transfer from other credit cards, typical interest rates range from 12 percent to 18 percent on your outstanding, or unpaid, balance. The term APR refers to “annual percentage rate.â€
There are more features that can attract you to a specific credit card company. You may be able to get an affinity card, which is a credit card with your college or university logo. Other groups also have affinity cards as well, including political, environmental or social causes. Just be sure you are not sacrificing other important benefits in order to show your school spirit!
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About Melissa Burton 
101 connections, 0 recommendations, 224 honor points.Joined APSense since, May 29th, 2007, From United States.
Created on Dec 31st 1969 18:00. Viewed 0 times.
