Finding the Right Credit Card.

Filed Under (Abbey credit card) by admin on 14-09-2010

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There are so many credit cards out there to choose from that deciding which one to get can feel really daunting. What makes one offer better than the hundreds of others you’ve seen? Take this little quiz to find out what you should look for in a card.

First, Are You a Student?

If you are, then you’ll be best off with a student card – you’ll probably have trouble getting accepted for anything else. It would be best to contact the bank where you have your student account before you do anything else.

Do You Have a Balance to Transfer?

If you do, then you need to be looking for a card with a low APR on balance transfers – preferably one that stays low for more than a few months, unless you intend to switch often.

Are You Planning to Make New Purchases?

If so, then pay more attention to the APR for purchases, which is usually entirely different to the one for balance transfers. You should also look at what kind of grace period different cards offer, so you don’t end up paying interest on your purchases straight away.

Do You Pay Off Your Balance In Full Every Month?

If you have a lot of money or you only keep a credit card for emergencies, then you might just pay it all off each time you get the bill. If you do, then you’re in a position where you obviously don’t need to worry about the interest rate much at all, since you won’t be paying any interest (make sure there’s a grace period, though).

Many people don’t realise, but the credit card company still makes money from you even if you pay no interest – the money shops pay to be able to accept credit cards. The credit card companies want to give you some kind of reward for letting them make this money without causing them any trouble, and you basically have a choice of three things:

Get cashback. For always paying everything off, they’re quite willing to throw a few dollars your way. If you spend much with the card, this can add up to a tidy sum.

Take vouchers. You might, for example, be able to earn points as you spend that get you money off flights, or other rewards.

Give it away. If there’s a charity or other cause you support, the chances are that you can donate money to them using an affinity card. This is a credit card that gives a very small percentage of each transaction to your chosen cause, and over time it adds up to a pretty decent donation for them.

Take Your Time…

Don’t let anyone pressure you into making a decision before you’re ready. Any offer that says it’s for a limited time only is one you should ignore, as there’s no reason to do it other than as a sales tactic. Think hard about your spending habits and what you want the card for, consider all the options you can find and then, once you’re sure, go for it.

Eliminate debt management problems by solving credit card debts

Filed Under (Abbey credit card) by admin on 06-09-2010

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When technology started to cater people’s whims and caprices, it also gave them a hard time in terms of debt management. Today, the most common form of debt is through credit cards. With its convenience, many people are being swayed to use it time and time again without realizing that this act alone can lead them into a pit of debt which can be hard to handle eventually.

Credit card gives people the feeling of invincibility. And it also gives them tons of uncertainty about their financial management capability when they encounter problems with their credit card debt. Although it is true that that credit cards solve financial matters especially when it comes to safety and convenience, credit cards also creates hassle especially when the person using it doesn’t know what you he or she’s getting into.

Convenience versus effects

It is often see people pull out “plastic” to pay for everything they need. And why not when all it takes is a quick swipe of the card through a little electronic box and a signature then, everything’s okay? These people who use their credit cards in purchasing something go home happy, content, and ALMOST worry-free. This is because not every one of these people realize that the convenience of using credit cards can lead to a false feeling of financial security—and this realization will strike them as soon as the bills arrive at the end of the month.

Many studies show that credit card debt and personal bankruptcies have increases bank profits to the highest level in the last five years. It only shows that more and more credit card holders were unable to manage their finances that lead to credit card debt. If you are a cardholder and having some credit card debt troubles at this early stage, it’s now time to think over the possible outcomes of this minor glitch so that a more serious problem with credit card debt would cease to arise.

Paying off credit card debt may take a long time especially if the person has high interest rates. But, it doesn’t mean that you can do nothing about efficient management of credit card debt. When you find yourself overwhelmed with credit card debt, don’t fall into a pit of depression. You can get through it with discipline and a change in spending patterns.

Eliminating credit card debt

Today, more and more people need credit card debt help badly. The main problem when it comes to debt management is that these people are having difficult times paying high interest for credit card debt. And instead of lifting the burden of credit card debt, more people are paying much in interest every month than that of the actual expenditure.

People who are having debt management problems through their credit card debt or those who are near in bankruptcy often don’t realize that the power to eliminate their credit card debt troubles totally lie in their hands. They don’t know that for them to start eliminating problems with credit card debt, they need tips and techniques on how to pay off their balances easier, how to consolidate of frequently encountered problems, and look for free debt consultation agencies that can help them.

Through these—little by little and inch by inch—you can rediscover ways on how you can regain your financial freedom by reducing you credit card debt.

Credit Cards - Can You Really Live Without Them?

Filed Under (Abbey credit card) by admin on 30-08-2010

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In 2007, having a credit card is no longer a luxury or even a convenience - it’s a necessity. You can’t rent a car, check into a motel, or order online without a credit card. If you want a cell phone, you’ll probably have to purchase prepaid minutes - at a premium - unless you have some plastic with your name on it. And without a credit card, you either have to carry around a lot of cash, make frequent trips to the bank, or hope that the stores you patronize will accept your personal checks.

Credit Cards Can Be Lifesavers in the Case of an Emergency

Worst of all, people who lack sufficient access to credit are the most likely to use payday loan services. Later in this series we will explore this subject in depth, but for now, just consider this: If a single mother is hit with a sudden, unexpected expense - say a car repair for $600 - what can she do if she doesn’t have the money? She needs the car to get to work, and she doesn’t know anyone who can afford to lend her the money out of friendship. So she decides to use the local payday loan shop and ends up paying a 530 percent APR (annual percentage rate) interest. If, instead, she had a credit card with at least $600 of available credit, she wouldn’t have had to use the payday charlatans, and would have paid a much, much lower interest rate. Many people who use payday loan services, even once, fall into an inescapable spiral of debt, where they work all week to pay back their payday loans, and then have to take out new payday loans to meet their weekly expenses. People who use their credit cards responsibly never fall victim to this scenario.

Credit Cards Can Help With Budgeting

Credit cards help spendthrifts easily track their expenditures. One simple technique is to use one credit card to automatically pay your recurring monthly expenses (phone, cable, utilities, etc.), another to buy your groceries and gas, and a third for all other expenses (entertainment, eating out, etc.). When you get your bills each month you can compare how much you spent on your wants versus your needs and make adjustments as necessary.

Protections Offered by Credit Cards

Although the media likes to focus on the “epidemic” of identity theft, the truth is that using a credit card is much safer than using cash, a check, or virtually any other means of exchange. If you’re carrying cash and your wallet is stolen, you’ll never see a dime of your money. If a merchant cashes your check and refuses to grant you a refund, chances are, you’re out of luck. But in either scenario, using a credit card would have offered you protection.

If, for example, your wallet full of credit cards is stolen, you will not be liable for any more than $50 of fraudulent charges, per card. This is the legal limit, but in reality, most card issuers don’t even hold you liable for the first $50 - they just stick the merchants with the bill. And if a merchant refuses to give you a refund that you deserve, you can file a “chargeback,” in which the credit card company will side with you 99 percent of the time. Paying in cash or with a check offers no such protections.

Your Credit Card - Don’t Leave Home Without It

Credit cards are ideal for traveling abroad because they automatically convert to the local currency. This means you won’t have to waste time with the money changer or carry around several foreign currencies, and of course, not carrying cash makes you much less susceptible to pick-pocketing.

The main thing to understand is that credit cards can be wonderful tools that greatly enhance our lives. All that we need to do is be informed, active, and responsible users of these powerful little pieces of plastic.

Credit Cards: An Unnecessary Evil

Filed Under (Abbey credit card) by admin on 23-08-2010

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Why are we in debt?  Why is a majority of all people living with debt beyond their means?  We all have debt, this seems to be the nature of life, but why is it that our debt at least equals or exceeds what we can afford?

It is really quite simple.  This is what the credit card companies allow, this is what they want and this is how they make it rich.  The worst part is that they love for us to fall behind.

Everybody likes to get paid on time, but your creditors actually prefer the opposite.  They want you to be late!

Now granted they don’t want you to be too late or to default, but a week or two is just great.  Let’s just think what a late payment means to them.  You are still paying, but you are a week or two late.  Their late fee is $30.  They just made $30 for doing nothing.  You are already maxed out, so this fee puts you over your credit limit.  This earns them another $30 for, again, doing nothing.

You can now make your minimum payment of $20.  The math does not work in your favor.  Let’s just say that you have $15 in interest for the month.  Your total costs are; $15 in interest + $30 late fee + $30 over limit fee = $75 charged to your account.  You pay $20, which leaves you $55 worse than when you started and you have nothing to show for it.

This is why credit cards are evil and we must learn to do without them!

The first step in this process is to gather up all of your credit cards and destroy them.  You can save one or two, but get rid of the rest.  Just pick the ones with the lowest interest rates and preferably no annual fee.  Store your select few in a safe place that is not easily accessible.

This may seem extreme, but most people do not have the will power to simply not use the card.  They look at their statement, see $50 or $100 dollars in available credit and look at it as free money.  There is no such thing.

If you can’t bring yourself to cutting up your cards, at least gather them all up and store them somewhere that would take some effort to get to.  A safe deposit box is always a good idea.  You can also have someone that you trust hold on to them or hide them.

The key is to not have them accessible for those impulse purchases that we come across every day.  Once we pass the moment, chances are that we will realize that we don’t need to make that purchase or probably forgot about it all together.  We are now even closer to getting out of debt.

Don’t forget to cancel the cards that you are no longer going to use.  Most credit cards have an annual fee, anywhere from $30 to $100.  This is wasted money that you can use to apply towards the balance.

Some cards may charge you a closed account fee to persuade you to stay with them.  At this time you need to analyze the impact.  I recently cancelled a card that is charging me $3.50 a month in closed account fees.  My annual fee is $59.  12 months at $3.50 is $42.  I am still ahead of the game by $17, or more, if I pay it off within a year.  The most important part is that there is no way that I can use that card again and worsen my situation.

Now that the temptation is out of the way you can start paying them off.  Just remember to pay at least the minimum, pay all accounts on time, and stop using credit.  Now step back and enjoy the road to financial freedom.

Credit Card Rebates Rule The Roost

Filed Under (Abbey credit card) by admin on 13-08-2010

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Put the power of credit card rebates in your wallet! This can be done very easily if you have good or excellent credit, pay your balance monthly, and enjoy spending money to receive cash back on your purchases.

These unique credit card rebates are all over the place and they provide cardholders with cash rewards or rebates when they shop just like they normally would. All you have to do is use your credit card and purchase items that you always buy from your favorite store and you earn a percentage that you spend back in rebates. The average percentage rate is around 1% to 5% according to which credit card company you choose.

You may first wonder, what the gimmick is, because you know there is one. Well, to put it simply, the credit card rebates are given to you because the credit card company charges the business a fee. This fee is used to give you a rebate. You may also notice that with some credit card rebates you may be paying higher interest fees and annual fees than you would with a regular credit card. These annual fees are usually between £25 and £100 per year.

Many times with credit card rebates such things as balance transfers and cash advances do not count toward your rebate, but there are a few credit card companies that do offer £5 with all balance transfers. You will have to read the terms and conditions and of course the fine print to learn which credit card companies offer credit card rebates with balance transfers and cash advances.

Most credit card rebates are great even if you may have to pay a higher APR. Today, there are some credit card companies that are still keeping the APR as low as possible while offering credit card rebates. However, if you do not pay your balance on time you will soon learn that the money you would be earning is gone due to paying interest on your balance. The best way to avoid paying interest is to pay off your entire balance monthly. You may find that you are paying more in interest than you are actually earning in rebates if you carry a balance.

Remember, all credit card rebates are a great way to get something back for all your spending but for most credit card companies they only give these type of credit cards to individuals with good or excellent credit.