Many people receive credit card offers in the mail, they open them up, they call the toll free number, and they open an account. They do all of this without really looking at any of the materials that come with the offer.
It is dangerous to do this and that is because in all of that information that comes with the card is your interest rate and if you don't pay attention to what your percentage rate is you can end up in a lot of financial trouble.
Pay Attention to the Interest
If you are under the impression that all plastic money is the same you are very wrong. The biggest difference between them is not the way they look or what they offer but their annual percentage rates. This is the amount of interest that you will pay on your account balance.
Rates vary wildly so you really cannot assume that you are getting a specific rate. Paying attention to this one number can save you a lot of money in the short term as well as grief in the long run.
There are debt cards out there with rates as low as 8% and some as high as 29% and perhaps higher. This may not seem like it is worth knowing, but think about the sales tax that you pay on your every day purchases.
Look at your receipts next time you go to the store and see how much you are paying for even the smallest purchases. It may just surprise you.
When you see that number, think about what it would be if you were paying 29% instead of just seven or eight percent like it is in most areas. You'll be paying a lot and it can make paying off your bill from month to month very difficult, if not impossible.
Your percentage rate on your credit cards can make all the difference between being affordable and unaffordable and that is why you need to look into this before you accept any store cards or any other type of plastic money.
You may find that some of them are worth having even if they have a higher rate. That is because they have perks such as cash back on some purchases or a rewards program that will save you more money than you will pay out in interest.
The idea behind credit cards is not to go into debt. If you aren't fully educated about all of the numbers associated with it then you will dig yourself a hole that will be very hard to get out of.
Many people have ended up in serious financial trouble with their charge cards. But if you educate yourself about any opportunities beforehand, it will save you from making the mistakes that a lot of people have made in the past.
In fact, you may even be able to increase your credit score as well as your buying power simply by being educated and making educated decisions.
Got a Question? Ask.
Ask the community a question about this article:
Q&A Powered by:
Latest Banking Articles
Washington Mutual Bank: Growing Through Good Times and Bad
By: Thomas Boston | 18/07/2008
Washington Mutual Bank has long had a reputation as a bank that knew how to grow through both good times and bad times. This history, as well as current pattern of growth, is part of the reason WaMu has been so successful.
Washington Mutual Bank: A Long History with the Community
By: Thomas Boston | 18/07/2008
Washington Mutual (WaMu) Bank has a long history with the local communities it has associated with. This history shows a long standing tradition of trying to be a part of, and improve, the communities that Washington Mutual bank is associated with.
Bend Oregon Mortgage Defaults Skyrocket
By: Jim Johnson | 18/07/2008
The Bend Oregon real estate market is not doing well. Mortgage loan defaults are up 410 percent!
Next-generation Rdc: the Small Business Market Heats Up
By: Deborah Matthews, Aap | 18/07/2008
Small Business looking at alternatives to driving paper checks to the bank for depositing. Remote Deposit Capture has evolved since it's inception and banks will be wise to offer newer, more robust solutions to offer their commercial depositors.
The World of Check Truncation
By: Deborah Matthews, Aap | 18/07/2008
Fundamentally, the idea of check truncation is to stop the paper check from having to go through the system. Today, most people are familiar with the fact that the check writer’s bank will convert the written checks to images in lieu of returning the paper checks in their bank statement. This was one of the first forms of check truncation and has been well received by check writers. Learn now Check 21 will affect how your business handles checks in the future.
Squeeze More Profits Adsense
By: Parveenn Kumarr | 18/07/2008
You’ve optimized your website for the search engines, populated it with Adsense ads, and you’ve been accumulating great backlinks. Your site has pages with good ranking and you are getting some traffic. Maybe you’re even getting a lot of traffic.
Today's Trend, Auto-generator Software to Create Thousands of Pages at a Time
By: Sushil Kumar | 17/07/2008
What I am about to reveal may be regarded by many as heresy. But I will expose evidence to prove that the Adsense strategies of 2005 are dying fast - and reveal what will *really* be the driving force in Adsense profits over the coming months and years.
Tom Drummey Named Randolph Savings Bank President and Chief Executive Officer
By: Steve Dubin | 17/07/2008
Drummey, formerly the Bank’s Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, will succeed Richard Boonisar who is retiring in July.
More from Ajeet Khurana
Get Going With Race Games
By: Ajeet Khurana | 17/07/2008 | Art and Entertainment
When you play racing games you probably feel happier because you really enjoy them. Physiologically playing a game can make us feel better because of the effects on the brain. It is amazing that people become addicted to these games because after all they are just entertainment option. However, when...
Online and Offline Car Race Games
By: Ajeet Khurana | 17/07/2008 | Art and Entertainment
If you want to play race car games then the best way to do so is to play online. The Internet is chock full of websites that have such sports so your best option is to search different websites and find the ones that you would love. Of course, there...
Know More About Addicting Games
By: Ajeet Khurana | 16/07/2008 | Art and Entertainment
If you have played games online before then you are well aware of the many addicting sports out there. For some reason when you begin with a fun program you want to continue because you enjoy it and also because you simply want to win it. Usually, it takes time...
Know Everything About Dragonballz Games
By: Ajeet Khurana | 16/07/2008 | Art and Entertainment
Do you enjoy playing Dragon Ball Z games? If so then you might be interested in learning a little more about how the Dragon Ball Z came about. They are based on a show that was originally a Japanese animated series.
The show was first aired in 1989 and stayed on...
Know More About Popular War Games
By: Ajeet Khurana | 16/07/2008 | Art and Entertainment
Do you like to play war games? If so then you probably enjoy finding the different kind of sports out there and trying them out. There really are hundreds if not thousands of these on the web so finding the best ones can be mixed with playing plenty of undeserving...
Reasons to Play Game on the Internet
By: Ajeet Khurana | 16/07/2008 | Art and Entertainment
Do you like gaming? If so, then you need to play games online. There are so many different options when it comes to doing online that you will never have to leave your computer to have a lot of fun.
Too many people think you can only have the true experience...
Be a Sport, Play Car Games
By: Ajeet Khurana | 16/07/2008 | Art and Entertainment
There is nothing more exciting than playing car sport online. It really is a lot of fun and it's a great way to lose yourself in some excitement. You may not have known about the many different options of playing these online but there are in fact many.
Go ahead and...
Get Going For Driving Games
By: Ajeet Khurana | 14/07/2008 | Art and Entertainment
Online games are quite popular nowadays. If you are stressed then you should try out things that will help you relax Like playing online driving games!
Finance 
| Posted: 06-04-2008 | Comments: 
