Avoiding the pitfalls College Credit Card

college first year Congratulations! You are about to embark on one of the most exciting times of your life. By maintaining your parents, brothers and sisters, and friends have offered all kinds of advice on how to make smooth transition to college-how to get along with your roommate, what classes to take and which to avoid, where to find the best off-campus food, and how to stay safe on campus.

One thing they may not have warned, it is how you will quickly overwhelmed bids credit card. You will find in your textbooks, in your mailbox, and on every campus bulletin boards. You will be provided free DVDs, T-shirts, music downloads, and more in return to complete a credit application.

Why all this fuss over you for a stupid piece of plastic? Because they like to recruit new borrowers, especially in your age. They know, numerous studies, that college students tend to be impulse buyers. And even if your impulse purchases tend to be small pizzas, coffee, beer, CDs, cigarettes, books, etc., these small purchases can be added quickly.

Fifty-four per cent of first-year students and 92% of sophomores have at least one credit card. A recent study shows the average college student graduates with $ 1,500 from $ 3,000 in Credit Card Debt.

Here are seven tips to help you manage your needs college credit card:

1) Go to a card with the lowest fixed percentage rate and a low or no annual fee. Carefully read the fine print many 0% or low introductory offers expire in 6-12 months.

2) NEVER use your credit card for a cash advance. The reimbursement of costs and structure associated with a cash advance is outrageous.

3) Get a budget! Your credit card is not free money. Budget your money so that you can pay off your balance at the end of each month. If you can not pay the balance, always make more than the minimum payment.

4) Pay your bills on time, otherwise you will pay a late fee between $ 25 to 40 every time your late with a payment. Late payments will also increase your chances for having raised your rates on ALL your credit accounts.

5) Ask for a low credit limit, somewhere between $ 700 to $ 1,500. The objective is to have credit available to answer some of your expenses and, in case of emergency.

6) Less is better. You do not need more than one or two cards to the maximum. The more you have the more you will be tempted to use or "max" between them.

7) Consider using a debit card instead. A debit card is linked to your checking account and purchases are automatically deducted from your account balance. Of course, make sure you have money in your account to cover any purchases you make.

Using a credit card is a great responsibility that you are a student or an adult. Managing your credit wisely establishes a positive credit history that will serve you now and in the future.

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