Why Credit Cards are important?

Convenience: Credit cards have made  daily financial. transactions convenient since, We do not need to carry bills or coins or bother about correct change.
Safer: Credit cards are safer than Cash. When stolen they can be replaced easily and nothing is lost.
Builds Strong Credit History: Above all credit cards builds a credit history that helps to buy larger purchases such as house and car.

The Credit Bureaus keep a record of your credit habits ever since you started buying things on credit. The bureaus report back the lender what they’ve recorded over the years whenever you apply for a loan to buy anything big such as a house, a car or a boat.
Good credit is like good GPA.
To Have Good Credit : Simply Pay Your Bills/Loans ON TIME.

The three largest Credit Bureaus:

Experian
Trans Union
Equifax

Credit Card Basics
A credit card is a Loan, in the simplest of terms. You Borrow Money from the credit card issuer when you buy something. A Grace Period is the period of time between when you make a purchase and your payment is due. If full payment is made, no interest is Charged. If you don’t pay them back immediately, a Finance will Charge a small amount you pay for borrowing money. The amount charged is determined by a pre-set percentage rate—called APR, or Annual Percentage Rate.

Kinds of APR

Variable Rate: Rate varies—based on big financial indexes such as the Prime Rate offered by nation’s largest banks (or strange indexes such as LIBOR).
Fixed rate: Rate is fixed. Whatever happens in economy the credit card issuer will stick to the same rate.  Minimum Payment due is determined by your credit card issuer, but it typically runs at about 2% to 3% of your balance.

American Credit Card Industry

Networks: The credit card companies, such as Discover Card, Visa, MasterCard, American Express. They make money by charging the banks who issue their cards an “association fee”—that is, a fee to be “associated” with them. 
Issuers
: Banks that issue unique version of the cards. They charge cardholders interest on their purchases and cash transactions. Some may charge an annual fee or other potential fees—for cash advances, late payment etc,. Also make money on merchant side. 
American Express and Discover are both networks and issuers. 

Smart Things to do

Make sure you Understand the terms of the credit card such as APR, the fees before getting it.  Get a Credit Card: Build a credit history and develops disciplined spending habits. Keep Track of the your credit card accounts. Never give out credit card number to person or website you do not trust. PAY AT LEAST MINIMUM BALANCE ON TIME. KEEP A GOOD CREDIT HISTORY! If in deep debt, ASK For Help.

How to apply for credit cards?

The credit card can be applied from regular forms available at various places such as college unions, magazine or Online.

Online: Fast decision and as safe as the mail forms:

Below links of some the top credit card applications:

Useful Links:
Capital One
First USA Credit Card 
Aspire Visa Credit Card
American Express® Credit Card for Students

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