A Credit Card Can Sing A Christmas Carol
"Christmas Time, Mistletoe and Wine" How many times have you
heard this so far and its only November? A few I'll bet, but
with Christmas seemingly becoming earlier to us each year, we
will no doubt feel the need to get ahead with our present and
food buying. This though only leads to us spending more than we
should. This is because with the shops full of decorations and
Christmas tunes, the stores are dictating to us that we have to
buy our gifts now, which will mean by the time December has come
and gone. We would have spent more over the 2-month period that
the shops have been full of Christmas cheer.
This is not all bah! Humbug.
Personally for the occasion alone and seeing the kids faces when
they open their presents on Christmas morning, as Christmas is a
special time of year that for the day makes all the preparation
and spending all worth while.
But that doesn't mean that it comes without cost and in some
cases more of a cost than folk can ill afford. For all of its
pomp and occasion, Christmas can come at a heavy price to bear
for a lot of people who, rather than let their children and
family down, will turn to the promise of riches that credit
cards and store cards offer.
Don't get me wrong, credit cards and even store cards, have
their uses. This is only true though, if you only use them to
your advantage, to get the best out of them. If you are thinking
of taking one or the other, then the only suggestion that I can
make is to plump for the credit card, over the store card.
We all want to enjoy this time of year, so by getting all that
you want to do this and in doing so, save cash and not to fall
heavily into debt, will make the festivities all the more
enjoyable. So by giving you a few advantages and disadvantages,
which credit cards and store cards entail, will hopefully go a
long way on helping you make the right decisions.
Firstly the advantages of credit cards:
* More favourable interest rates than a store card. * Many
offers on the market, which are giving you an interest free
period. * Some come with money back schemes that give you a
percentage of your expenditure back to you. (Usually between
0.5%- 2%) * Will protect your gifts, as soon as you have bought
them. * Lets you buy now and pay at a later date, only on what
you have spent without incurring any interest charges.
Now the disadvantages:
* Can lead you to spend more than you can afford to pay back,
which in turn will lead to the interest being charged to your
account. * They can come with a heavy hit in the pocket, with
charges for late payments and going over your credit limit.
Advantages of the store card:
* Can use them as soon as you are accepted for the card. *
Initial discount (normally 10% off you first purchase) will give
you a saving straight away.
Disadvantages:
* Overly high interest rates, which are well above those of a
credit card. Some can be as much as 30%. * Can lead you quickly
to debt, if they are not cleared at the end of each month. *
Sold to the customer, by assistants who know absolutely nothing
about what they are selling.