What you need to know about getting your first credit card
In spite of a lot of people owning their own credit cards
nowadays, there's still a significant majority who haven't
joined the bandwagon of having a credit card as a precaution to
ending up with debt that will haunt them for the rest of their
lives. However, the allure of having a credit card is sometimes
too hard to resist which is why more and more people are now
contemplating on how to get a credit card of their own - but
they still need a lot of help when it comes to choosing the
right one.
Here's some easy tips on what to prioritize when it comes to
choosing your first credit card:
*When it comes to trying to establish a credit history, there
are actually a lot of banks out there that have made it their
specialty to extend VISA or even Master Card credit cards even
to those who are still greenhorns when it comes to owning a
credit card. However, don't go "applying crazy" as each
application will actually reflect on your credit reports so if,
unfortunately, you end up getting rejected - lots of times,
it'll make you look pretty bad in the eyes of creditors as you
may be deemed desperate.
*If you failed in that kind of application, you can still pursue
two other possible approaches. One is to try your hand with
credit cards from department stores or the ones from oil
companies - gas cards as most people call them. These pseudo
credit cards will actually help you get some credit history and
are much easier to obtain as compared with credit bigwigs like
VISA or Master Card. These will help you become more qualified
for a real credit card, still, don't get too excited and start
pursuing multiple applications at one time, even if you already
got the thumbs up from one company, still wait a little while
before once again applying for a new card.
*Once you've been given a bank issued credit card through the
proper management and handling of your department store or gas
company issued cards, you must prove to your new creditors that
you really are worthy of owning a credit card. Don't start to
shop 'till you drop because even though credit card companies
will make more money out of your debts, this will still leave
room for them to question your ability as well as maturity to
really manage a credit card well. Always make sure that you pay
your credit card charges on time and if you can, don't just pay
off the interest as this may accumulate over the years, try to
actually pay off the entire thing so that you'll have a really
good record with your company, prompting them to possibly giving
you more credit lines, benefits or special offers.
*Assess your "credit history" after a year of getting your bank
issued credit card, a good and well managed credit card history
actually entitles you to the possibility of getting another
credit card, however, if there's really no need for a new one or
if you've mismanaged you first one, don't even think of applying
for a second credit card line as you may end up acquiring more
and more debt.