Credit Cards For College Students Article

Credit Cards For College Students

Offers for credit cards for college students deserve close scrutiny!



Everyone knows that their credit rating can significantly impact their lives. A good credit rating results in better lending rates, when you need to apply for a loan and can even make a difference in your employability.

Just thirty years ago, credit card companies were handing out credit cards like candy. You'd receive credit card offers with low interest rates and a sky's-the-limit line of credit. At the time, credit cards for college students was a primary target group. Such offers were mass mailed and all you needed to do was sign on the dotted line. Almost everyone jumped on the bandwagon, buying those desired items they couldn't pay cash for, but could make a monthly payment. How convenient!

If you're a college student and receive such offers of credit cards for college students, talk to your parents. See what their experience was, so many years ago. It's likely you'll hear that, when they 'took advantage' of their own credit cards for college students offers, they bit off more than they could chew. The generous lines of credit tempted many to live beyond their means. Eventually, the cardholder ended up with too many credit cards and just as many minimum payments they couldn't come up with at the end of the month. The final result? The cardholder spent years paying it all off. Not a good plan!

Unless you were raised by an accountant or tax man, if you're young, you may not  have a good handle on your finances. If you see a great pair of shoes or a video game that's on sale, it's likely that plastic comes out of your wallet and you walk away with the goods. However, the bill does come at the end of the month.

It's unbelievable, but nonetheless true, that offers for credit cards for college students are as abundant as they were thirty years ago, but such offers no longer have what you'd call an attractive APR. Fees are substantial for late payments. A single late payment most often results in an even higher APR.

Some credit card companies may not require much information from you before issuing that card. It's up to you to read all of the fine print before you accept the card. Such agreements are printed in a very small font and are several pages long. These little brochures are designed to be of little visual interest, stuffed in the envelope along with glossy four-color offers for other services. They're hoping you won't read the agreement!

Be smart when you shop these credit cards for college students. Read the cardholder agreement carefully. Don't regard that card as a windfall of cash. It isn't. Be prepared to pay it off each month. If you must max it out for emergencies, make at least three times the minimum payment, to avoid having your balance increase instead of decrease. If you're smart, a credit card can be a good thing!




Related Credit Cards For College Students Videos


Next page: Credit Rating


Credit Cards For College Students News


Tips when co-signing for a College Student's Credit Card - Pressemeldungen.at...

3 Jul 2009 at 5:27pm 

Pressemeldungen.at (Pressemitteilung)

Tips when co-signing for a College Student's Credit Card
Pressemeldungen.at (Pressemitteilung)
If you're a parent co-signing for your college student, you should know whether or not your child is ready to handle his own credit card. ...

and more »


Read more...


Credit card fees for college students who charge tuition - Credit.com News

2 Jul 2009 at 10:47am 

Credit.com News

Credit card fees for college students who charge tuition
Credit.com News
But the cost of paying for college is growing even higher for some students, as more universities levy extra fees on those who use credit cards to pay their ...
Paying college tuition with credit card gets costlierUSA Today
Colleges hit credit card payers with junk feesWalletPop
Credit card users faceWWLP 22News
Ecommerce Journal
all 5 news articles »


Read more...



Kindle: Amazon's New Wireless Reading Device

Permalink: Credit Cards For College Students | Copyright © 2009 financialplanningdepot.com All Rights Reserved