Financial Planning

Posts Tagged ‘Card’

People with poor credit history usually immediately assume that they no longer have any choice when looking for a credit card and just sign up for the first one that will approve their application. This is true in the sense that you will definitely not qualify for low interest cards, and only get approved for credit cards with high interest rates. However, if you have a poor credit history, you still have choices, especially if you look at it in the perspective of finding a card that will suit your current situation the best.

Before anything else, as someone with a poor credit history, one of the most important motives (if not the only) you should have for getting a credit card at this point is to help rebuild your credit history. Of course the easy access to credit that a card will give you is helpful, but that shouldn’t be your focus. Instead, you should focus on getting a card so that you can rebuild your trustworthiness in the eyes of creditors by showing them that you now know how to use your credit card wisely.

With that in mind, you will find that your approach to credit card comparison will greatly differ from that of normal credit card applicants.

The biggest difference is perhaps in the emphasis you put on the interest rates.

While finding a card with a relatively low interest rate is desirable, interest rates will not be the primary factor you should consider in finding a card. The same goes for the other fees charged by the card.

Ultimately keeping you credit card safe is you responsibility. Indeed, in a worst case scenario, if it can be proven you may have been negligent in keeping your credit card safe, you may find yourself liable for the cost of all transactions made fraudulent on your account should you lose the card. To help you avoid this, here are 5 basic credit card safety tips:

Never have more cards than you need

While it is always advisable that you have more than 1 credit card, in case it gets lost, you should never have more credit cards than you actually need to use. The principal reason why this is the case is because it becomes harder to keep a track of which cards you have and where you have kept them with the more cards you have.

Always keep a photocopy of your cards

How many times have you been asked what you card number is only to find yourself looking for your card to get the number? Now, what happens if you have a card stolen and no credit card statement to-hand? You have a problem! For this reason, it is always best practice to take photocopies of you credit cards to so that always know where to find the number should anything unfortunate happen to your card.

Always keep your receipts separate

People often talk about credit cards and all the evil it can do you but have often have you stopped to think of all the good that credit cards can do for you. For all the tales you can tell me about how credit cards were the ruination of someone, I can offer you personal finance tips related to people I know using credit cards to avoid the impact of personal bankruptcy. Of course, one of these methods is to use credit card consolidation to get out of debt, but that is just one of the reasons why I say credit cards can be used for good.

No, this is not a paid-for message issued by some credit card company. I’m serious about this; a credit card is nothing more than a symbol of an agreement between a credit card issuer and you. It’s not as if you were held at gunpoint within the comfort of your own home and made to sign that agreement. The worst personal finance tip anyone can give you is to use a credit card as if you have a license to kill. Nothing could be further from the truth. The ones that are smart use a credit card for what it is, something that offers you the freedom from carrying cash and paying up for about 45 days. If you use it responsibly, an interest rate of even 6,500,000% would not bother you since you know you will always pay on time and never have to pay a cent in interest.

With over 14 million credit cards in circulation in Australia, paying using plastic has never been more popular. With over half of Australian households also boasting high speed broadband, it is not surprising that many banks now offer online credit card applications.

With credit searching technology now available to card providers, many of them are using electronic underwriting processes to assess credit card applications. This means that credit card companies are now able to offer ‘instant approval credit cards’.

What is an instant approval credit card?

Instant approval credit cards (also sometimes called ‘online approval credit cards’) are credit cards which are agreed instantly at the point of application. They are generally available through online applications, although occasionally you can obtain an instant approval credit card by telephone.

What’s the application process?

You can search, compare and apply for many instant approval cards .It is important that you first research the various cards on offer in order that you find the instant approval credit card best suited for your needs, whether that is a reward card, balance transfer or low rate credit card.

Once you have decided which card you wish to apply for, you can head online to do this.

When applying for an instant approval credit card, the online approval process typically takes a matter of minutes or even just a few seconds. You provide basic personal information and other details such as your employment, income, assets and liabilities and the credit card company obtains your credit report online. The card provider than makes an instant authorization, determining whether or not you are considered a suitable customer. If your credit is good enough, you can get an instant approval online.

According to Reserve Bank of Australia figures, Australia’s national credit card balance was $40.4 billion at the end of 2009. That equates to an average of around $3,196 for every cardholder.

With most banks and credit card providers charging interest on credit card balances at anything between ten per cent and twenty per cent, many hundreds of thousands of you will be paying a large amount of interest to your card company. However, with dozens of instant approval balance transfer credit cards in the market, there are ways for you to save money.

Here are our four steps to saving yourself hundreds of dollars in interest charges by transferring your credit card balance online.

1.Pick a card

The first thing you should do is use an online comparison site in order to establish the right credit card for you. Using sites , you can establish which cards offer the best balance transfer deals for your specific circumstances. These deals typically include:

2.Get an instant approval

When you have established which credit card is right for you, you will generally be able to apply for the card online. Most banks offer a secure internet application process which typically takes around ten to fifteen minutes to complete.