| Credit Card Listing
Type of Credit Cards
College Student Credit Cards
Women Credit Cards
Credit Card Registration
Personal Loans
Education Online |
|
KINDS OF CREDIT CARDS
- Store Cards:
Department stores, gasoline companies, chain stores, computer stores, appliance stores and many more are aiming to enhance shopper’s purchasing power by offering new credit cards bearing their names. By issuing credit cards help sales. Many studies have shown that people spend more money at stores where they have store-issued cards. They are easy credit cards to get. Even the cards of the prestige stores are not so hard to come by. Many department stores provide instant credit right at the register. Stores make good money by financing their customers’ purchases at high interest rate.
The gasoline company cards are the easiest of all cards to get. By having the card, you are more likely to buy gasoline with them than other companies. Usually, gasoline company cards charge interest rate around 18% and with a low credit limit. Today, some new fanged oil cards can be charge like any other bankcards.
Department stores or any other stores that issue their own cards often send out special catalogs or
Early notices of sales to attract more sales. They often provide extra discounts, free items, or a
special bonus for purchases if you use the store card. One disadvantage of store cards is that if you co not pay off your balance in full each month, the interest rate that they charged may be even higher than they would have been if you had used
a bankcard. Consumer Action said it surveyed sixty-two department and chain stores nationwide and found the annual percentage rates on store cards are as high as 22.9%. With the “zero interest” routine, if you missed the payment as scheduled, interest rate is building up every day on the balance.
- Bank Cards:
To apply for a preferred credit card, you simply fill out an application with the desired credit card company. The company will issue a card to you once the application is reviewed, a credit check is completed and you meet all the criteria. Usually, the company will set a limit on your credit card. The referred card is unsecured; it does not require you to put a deposit of money to secure it.
With the referred credit card, you must paid monthly according to the terms of the contract. A good payment pattern for at least three to six months will lend you for an increase in credit limit. Some companies offer gold cards to cardholders which mean the card have a higher credit limit but with
a higher annual fees. You can contact Bankcard Holders of America to receive a list of companies to see which one is more suitable for you.
- Secured Credit Card: If you have no credit, bad credit or had filed bankruptcies, the secured credit may be an answer for you. To qualify for a secured credit card, you must open a savings account with a designated bank. The bank will indicate how much you need to make the deposit, which could range from $500 to $5,000. In return, the bank will issue you the credit card with the full amount or a percentage of the deposit that you made. The money that you deposit does receive interest pay by the bank, but they also charge interest on the use of your card with the purchases you made. Most banks offer secured credit card charge a setup fee that is required with the initial application. The fees could range from $30 to $65. The secured credit card does not look different from the preferred card. Many people apply for the secured card is approved. The payment made on the credit card could establish new credit. It is a way to establish a good credit background for those who have had credit problems.
- The followings are the most common and useful credit cards:
- Visa and MasterCard: Visa and Master Card are the two most common bankcards. Banks or other financial institutions such as saving banks, credit unions and several other sorts of organizations issue these cards. Visa and Master Card are two large associations that do not issue card, but instead they provide the system and support to thousands of individual banks across the country that do issue cards. Each financial institution is free to set its own credit limits, prices, credit standards for the cards they issue. Two Master Cards may look alike, but be different in cost and in the benefits that come with them. The Master Card from Bank X may have a $45 annual fee, 21% annual interest rate and a 2% cash advance fee, and have a grace period of 15 days after you are billed for making payments before you have to pay interest. With a card form Bank Z might have no annual fee, 13% annual interest rate, no cash advance fee and having a grace period of 25 days. They both have Master Card in big letters printed on the card, but the card from Bank Z is a better deal. One card might offer benefits such as merchandise protection, and another card may offer insurance for car rentals while a card from another bank may have no such offers at all. To get the best card, best advice is to shop and decide which card is best for you.
- Discover Card: Discover was introduced in the mid 1980’s. It is a bankcard put out by Dean Witter, Discover & Company (founder Sears and sold out years ago). Discover Card was designed to compete with Visa and Master Card. You can use a Discover Card at Sears and many other stores, but not quite so many as Visa or Master Card. Discover Card has being as widely accepted as the other cards. As today, Discover Card has no annual fee and it is not accepted overseas.
- American Express: American Express is considered in a different category than other credit cards. It offers a variety of financial service gears especially toward business travelers and executives. More than often, it is called a travel and entertainment card, or charge card, because it requires you to pay off the full amount each month. Many people think of American Express Card may not be the service that provides but prestige. Since the cardholders do not pay interest (because full payments required each month), the green and gold cards carry high annual fees. You might find that not all places accept American Express charge cards. In any event, with this card, it really delivers their promise- excellent service. It will cash checks, hold mail, and replace lost or stolen cards fast. Many cardholders prefer American Express because it features a "no preset spending limit". Now, notice that no preset spending limit does mean no limit on your spending. They monitor your charging pattern. If your charge go higher than regular, they might freeze your card or decline some of your purchases.
- Gold Cards and Platinum Cards: It used to be very difficult to get Gold or Platinum cards. Today, these cards are available to almost anyone with credit limits at least $5,000. These cards do charge a
high annual fee which range from $30 to $300. Many people choose these cards because they do provide special features that other cards are not available and they are as followings:
- Rental Car Insurance: If you charge the car rental on these cards, it covers you the collision damage.
For example: the Diners Card will pay the rental company for the damage without first making
you to make the claim to your own insurance company. Most other card companies cover what your
insurer won't pay. Many card companies has eliminated coverage for some countries because
they say it is too expensive.
- Lower Interest Rates: Some Gold or Platinum Card companies do carry an interest rates lower than
other normal card from the same issuer.
- Referrals: Such as American Express and Diners, they provide free referrals for medical and legal
Services most places in the world.
- American Express Platinum Card offer special opera tickets. They also offer two-for-one deals on
business flight to Europe and also on the supersonic Concorde.
- Affinity Cards: These Visa and Master Card usually have a charity or association or logo of the sponsoring groups' name on the card. These special cards promise that part of the annual fee or portion of the purchase will be donated to the sponsoring organization. Many cardholders like the idea of donating to their favorite charity through the card. These cards do charge a standard fee and the interest rate is pretty high: usually news from 17% and above, but it may waive for the first six months or the first year.
- Debit Card: Debit Cards are not credit card at all. It is more like plastic transaction cards that have access through your bank account or brokerage account. The amount that you spend will be drawn directly from your checking account. Another way to describe these cards is electronic checks. Using Debit Cards are like writing a check. There is a float of about one to three days before the transaction slip reaches your bank and the money comes out of your account. Most financial institutions or banks do not issue the cards to those who have poor credit histories. Your bank may do a basic credit check to make sure you are not a habitual check bouncer. For those people don't want a major credit card, a debit card can be a good substitute. The debit card has the Visa or Master Card logo, which provide the cardholders the same convenience as regular credit cards. There is a per-transaction fee and sometimes these fees are more expensive than writing a check. One point to keep in mind is that a debit card does not build a credit reference on your credit file. Also, this is important, if you lose your debit card and someone is using it, you could lose all the money in your account plus your overdraft line of credit.
|
|