rancid240

I remember my older sisters telling me that credit cards were the devil. But I have heard from some people that getting a card, making small purchases and paying them off asap will help me build credit. Good idea? Also what kind of terms should i look for in a card i.e. annual fee, apr etc.

bobmeindertsma

id say phone your bank and ask those questions

rancid240

Thats stupid. They would give me a totally one-sided view of it, since it is in their best interests for me to get a card...

bobmeindertsma

well is sounds like you want a card anyways.
so just ask them what kind of different types there
are what they all involve.
Just ask the right questions and you'll be fine.

balmo

id say less that 10% apr is ok, less than 8% is even better. spending habits is the key but usually, you only realize that when you already got like 6k in debt.

R K e 1 C A

Getting a Credit Card can build your credit and increase your credit rating if used wisely. And this is very important when making big purchases under your own name. Car, Home, etc. etc.

Most common things to look out for are APR, Annual Fee, Incentives i.e. Rebate, Cash Back, Airline Miles etc. etc.

A great place to start is:

http://www.bankrate.com/brm/rate/cc_home.asp?link=5

There's a lot of information about Credit Cards as well as other things

Good Luck

Got Sileighty?

dont get a cc with an annual fee, its stupid. youre paying them a fee in addition to the interest theyre already making off you? wtf! yea so get a card with no annual fees, theres a ton of them out there.

try to pay off your entire month's balance all the time, if not, then pay double or triple the minimum monthly payments.

dont be late on making payments.

then watch your credit limit rise slowly after every few months.

DRFT

just out of curiousity, can you build credit by using your ATM card alot w/the visa symbol on? i ask this because im afraid of getting a CC, and i dont want to fall back on payments. and plus i just got my atm card not too long ago, so im not too clear on how these stuff work.

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ApexNetwork.Net
Sacramento & Norcal Forum

Bliss

I was afraid of getting a CC, I thought they could fuck me over no matter what. At the advice of my parents, my credit card only gets used online, which consists of monthly plane tickets ($150-200) and the occasional online purchase, rarely over $100. This way I don't get myself into debt, and my credit will be good. Good luck.

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-Ben

R K e 1 C A

I wouldn’t look at a Credit Card as a negative. Don’t be afraid to get one as C.C.’s are very flexible and the majority of well-known cards will bend over backwards for those who stay in Good Standing.

There will be times where paying a C.C. may be the last thing thought of…then you could

1. Put a Spending limit on it (most cards start out at $500)
2. If in good standing for a few months, when the limit goes up, simply call and it will be taken care of
3. Since you have a ATM, I’m assuming you have checking or savings. Certain cards can deduct from either one of these for ease and convenience

Just remember, if used wisely, a C.C. can have many positives

aznpoopy

credit cards are a tool like anything else. there's nothing inherently evil about them. they're good to ahve in case of emergencies too. car broke down and flat broke? at least you have your credit card. otherwise you'd be fukked with no money to tow or repair and keep going to work.

if u're young and dont really have a bank account or fixed income, you're not gonig to be able to get a low fixed APR card. however it doesn't really matter if you plan on paying in full every month. definitely DON'T get a card with an annual fee... those cards are BS. some tips with the company... make sure u get paper statements as well as online. chase is notorious for NOT sending you your statements on time so you get charged a finance fee. always pay manually... they have a habit of screwing shit up. if you want them to like you more don't pay totally in full every single month. don't get in debt, but a keep a little balance there and pay a little interest. the cc company makes the most money off ppl who keep paying but always keep a balance, so they treat you better. doing this i got my limit raised from $1500 to $9000 over 3 months. so greed rules all.

sykikchimp

spending money on an ATM card with a VISA logo does nothing for your credit rating.

I got a cc in college from citi, and I've had it ever since. I buy real small things like gas, and online stuff b/c it has a good warranty service on it. Keep my balance under $500, and pay at least 3 times the minimum when I pay. I have an 820 beacon score. anything over 700 is considered high.

But don't expect CC credit to be very good towards purchasing a car. Every car company I go to says.. oh.. good credit score, but you don't have any "Big ticket" credit history.. bla bla bla..

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aznpoopy

really? i bought my 240sx on a fleet and basically maxed it out on the card ... $4500 dollars of s14 in one day... i felt good driving it back home, but i felt poor too. that was my first big purchase too.

sykikchimp

let me clarify.. I meant the credit record you build from using a credit card will only help so much on a Car Loan..

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Heartwork

a hint when making purchases:
when theres something you know you want and you have the cash, run the credit card, then pay some of it off during the next billing cycle, then right after that, pay that entire purchase off, more if you want....

also, watch out for anything that you owe money on....i.e. one time i refused to pay a shipment of car stuff i sold to some person in Canada, but he refused to pay Duty charges, so i got stuck with the charge...i refused it for almost a year, then damn collections was after me....taht fucked up my credit rating for a while...

dont ask for a limit all the time, dont acquire a card just to see how much your limit will be then cancel (that will act as a inquiry), dont swear at customer service ( i did this once, and the person put me down as a rude customer, etc... hahha), only spend as much as you can afford!

it's hard as fuck to not spend, but i would start out making purchases on gas, and food only