Get the most out of your credit card this Christmas
To help vanquish the evils of sub-prime credit which has caused the credit card and mortgage markets to tumble head first into recession and drag all else with them, card companies are now seeking those with good credit ratings to help restore integrity to their books.
Get the most out of your credit card this Christmas
There are still a few good deals out there.”
What this means for consumers is that while half of us are turned down for credit cards, the other half of us are helping to bolster the shattered economy.
Credit card companies are attracting reliable customers with excellent and good credit records who they know will make repayments on time. That means there are still a few good deals out there.
Getting a good deal
Credit card options might not look that rosy by 2009, but for now we’ve got 0% interest deals, free balance transfers and moderate APRs. That means that now is a good time to get a new credit card. There are a few well known rules when it comes to these types of credit card though and if you already have had a few cards and maintained a good credit score you might already know them.
The first tip that most experts will tell you is don’t spend more money than you’ll be able to pay back when the interest free period has ended.
Realistically put, pay back as much as you can when you can and don’t get into bad debt.
Another obvious tip is not to miss repayments, if you do that on an interest free card they’ll take away the 0% interest deal and you could be lumbered with a hefty APR instead.
What’s on offer?
Well, there’s the M&S Money card which gives you 1 point for every pound spent in an M&S store and 1 point for every £2 spent anywhere else.
100 points is worth a £1 voucher to spend on food or clothes in store. It also charges 0% interest for 10 months on all purchases.
Halifax All in One card also provides 10 months interest free on purchases.
Lloyds TSB Advance MasterCard, BarclayCard OnePulse and the PayPal MasterCard each offer 6 months interest free on purchases too which could help you to spread the cost of Christmas over the first half of the coming year without paying a penny of interest.
Each card has a different set of benefits. The Baclaycard OnePulse is suitable for Londoners because they can get 5% off on public transport while the PayPal Card will give you £20 off an Ebay purchase when you first join, great for an extra Christmas gift.
The Christmas hangover
The benefits of a 0% interest deal are countless, especially when it comes to Christmas spending.
Richard Mason, a professional finance expert said: “People always leave it too late to get their finances sorted out for Christmas. You find most people will put their spending on an existing card and then panic when the bills come in January because people usually always spend more than they planned to.”
He added: “The problem is that January is when card companies have their highest number of applications and it can take eight weeks for (a new) card to arrive, so you are paying full interest until March.”
Applying sooner for an interest free deal makes it more likely you can transfer your balance before then and avoid large interest fees on your existing card.
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