I need to get a credit card, any suggestions?

by EntirelyPossible 25 Replies latest social current

• 

  thetrueone

  Good credit is established by not so much of the amount you are in debit but by the length of the indebtedness to a creditor and how many late

  payments you have accumulated from the very start of the loan.

  Get a $1000.00 Visa or something similar, maybe even two and make sure you pay the minimum amount every month.

  Every time you are late on a payment that knocks you down a few points on your score.

  Have numerous debts that are listed upon you and make the occasional late payment on any of them and it becomes difficult to regain your total score.

  Anther way they calculate your score is how much of the available credit do you use on a given card or line of credit, this is something that I just recently

  learned myself.

  They say to keep your score high one should only use less than half of the available credit given to you.
• 

  Anony Mous

  Yes, any revolving credit you should pay on time and quickly and your credit score will go through the roof (that could be store credit or credit cards). Not paying or paying late on any debt lowers your score. If you have made mistakes in the past, well, revolving credit fixes them the fastest although mortgages and investments also help as they stabilize your numbers. It also depends on how long your credit lines have been open, the longer they remain open the better so it doesn't help when you close your accounts as soon as the benefits are done.

  As far as a specific card: I have one where there is 0% interest charged for the first 3 months of a purchase so that if I charge the card then I don't have to pay interest on it right away. There are no other benefits (besides some point system that is exchangeable for gift cards). If you travel a LOT, then miles can be useful but generally they are useless, they expire, they have blackout dates. Chargeback works well too but it's usually little return and requires you to shop at the more expensive or specific stores and generally also charge you a yearly fee.

  As far as the question about China heard earlier: Some parts of China have only gotten worse as far as air quality and definitely don't travel if you're sickly, their hospitals suck for non-business foreigners (you usually end up spending $10k at a private hospital for something like a broken bone). Their food is likewise not for the faint of heart or the faint of intestinal powers although in the bigger cities you usually can find decent quality food. Most street foods are also safe to eat while restaurants catering specifically to tourists should probably be shunned. China is a combination of a 3rd world country and a 1st world country and it's very dependent on who you know, where you go and what you want to do.
• 

  EntirelyPossible

  Yes, I know how credit works. I am just asking if there is one card better than another than you have had experience with.
• 

  Anony Mous

  Not really 'better'. As I said, there's different options depending on your lifestyle and use of the card. I would never pay for the gimmicks though (whether it be miles, points or chargeback) as it always benefits the bank.

  Get a 0-cost credit card with the lowest rates available through your bank (preferably a credit union) by either VISA or MasterCard (Amex/Discover is not accepted everywhere) and most likely you'll get certain options free anyway.

  I personally like the Bank of America online interface as you can just press a button to dispute a transaction. MasterCard points seem to add up a lot faster than VISA cards though but VISA can be used in virtually every country while MasterCard is not necessarily recognized outside the first world.
• 

  EntirelyPossible

  I think I am going to go credit union. It's where I bank and will eventually get a house loan through, so it makes sense to build credit through them. I don't need any of the perks, the interest rate it low, no annual fee, etc.

  I will not do a card through BofA. I have far far too much experience inside their organization and know far better than most just how messed up and evil internally they are (although the people themselves are quite nice).
• 

  GLTirebiter

  Whatever card you get, remember this fundamental rule: If you won't still have and still be using something for longer than it takes to pay it off, then don't make time payments on it. You are only digging yourself in deeper that way. Find a way to pay as you go; be honest with yourself about which things you really need and what you can do without.

  If you get a gasoline company credit card, pay it off in full every month--no exceptions. If you use a card at the grocery store, same thing. The gas will be burnt and the food eaten long before you finish making those "low monthly payments". If you aren't going to keep a car longer than five years, don't take out a five year loan to buy it--lower your expectations and get something you can afford to pay off in less time, so you don't have more payments to make when the time comes to replace it.

  Don't succumb to the temptation to have it all--that only benefits the lenders who want to collect 18% compounded interest on everything you buy.