Advantages of Switching Credit Cards

Switching credit cards is an everyday part of life now whether it is taking advantage of the introductory offers or simply deciding that your existing credit card account is old hand and you are looking for a newer better credit card deal than you have already. If you choose your new credit card wisely the advantages could prove beneficial to you.

Here we are going to look at some of the advantages of switching your credit card and how it may benefit you.

Lower APR

Finding a credit card with a lower APR could be beneficial to you if you do not pay your credit card balance in full every month. Having a lower APR would mean paying less interest on your outstanding balance. (Do be aware of the minimum payment warning; always try to pay more than the minimum payment.) If you had bad debt in the past and could only get a high interest credit card then you may now be able to get a credit card with a lower APR.

Reward Schemes

Does your current credit card have a rewards or cash back scheme included? Are you benefiting from the reward scheme you currently have in place? It is better to find a new credit card that you would benefit from rather than have points totting up for vouchers that you know you are not going to use. I.e. store vouchers could help you with your grocery shopping or if you are a frequent flyer air miles could save you some money on your flights. Think about the reward scheme and ask yourself if you would use the vouchers etc.

Charity Credit Cards

If you have been thinking for a long time about helping out or donating money to your favorite charity chances are they will have a credit card that you can purchase. If you purchase a charity credit card every time you use your card your lender will donate to your chosen charity. People can feel very strongly about certain charities whether it be through losing a loved one or working in a charity environment so having a charity credit card could put your mind at rest knowing that you are helping in some way. You will generally find that charity credit card have all the other incentives that other credit cards have. The same applies to football credit cards, your favorite football club would receive a payment for every transaction you make which would in turn be reinvested back into your team club.

Thinking about switching credit cards? There are many different options to think about so don’t just stick to your current credit card out of habit make your credit card decisions work for you whatever your circumstances.

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Be Smart With Your Credit Card

We all wish that our credit cards were interest free all the time. How much pleasure would it be to know that what you spend is what you pay back and there would be no interest to pay. What is happening is the credit card companies are fighting it out to see who can get the most customers and one way is to offer us 0% interest deals.

The credit card companies are offering introductory offers including 0% on balance transfers and purchases for 6 or 9 months, so everything you buy is interest free how great is that! These offers are becoming more popular by the month, the credit card companies realise we will go with these credit cards first and that interest free deals for any period of time is a great way to pull in the customers.

Break free from your high interest credit card…

All credit cards can be interest free if you pay off your full balance on time and at the end of every month, but most of us cannot afford to do this. When the APR comes into force, usually a typical rate of 15-20% will be charged. There are however some better rates about if you are willing to search for them, including a rate of 9% and maybe even lower. Always check what your rate will be once the introductory period is over.

Many credit card holders are using the 0% deals to their advantage. The term “Rate Tart” is used to describe people who transfer their balance from one card on to a credit card that has the 0% deal. This will cut out the interest payments on their existing card, however, you really have to keep on top of this especially if you have more than one credit card, as you do not want to get confused as to when and where your balance transfers are due.

Take advantage of the 0% deals…

There has never been a better time to take advantage of these great 0% deals with the big companies fighting for your business. If you’re using the 0% deals for transferring your balance and are intending to use the card after the interest free period, double check the interest rate once the introductory period is over as it may be higher than the card you have.

· Switch your balance to a 0% deal
· Check the APR that will be charged when the 0% deal is over
· Start searching for a new credit card 4-6 weeks before your existing deal runs out

For credit card advice please visit here http://www.creditcards-gb.co.uk/creditcardadvice.html

0% deals are great as long as you watch what you are doing. The more cards you have the more chances are of getting transfer balance dates confused, but if you have a good head on your shoulders and are well organized then you will benefit greatly.

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Closing Your Credit Card Account

It is one of the most frustrating feelings in the world. You’re trying to rid yourself of your debts. You’re putting more and more of your paycheck towards your credit cards. You’re gradually paying them off. Finally, the day arrives when you clear the entire outstanding balance. The card is finally cleared. A huge weight has been lifted from your shoulders and you can go to sleep at night knowing that you’ve got one less worry in life.

Credit Card Company

Does your credit card company share your joy? Do they congratulate you on taking care of a pressing anxiety in your life? In fact they do the exact opposite. It’s not really surprising, after all you’re their customer and they’re losing your business. But who would have guessed the lengths they go to stop you closing your account. Recently my wife has been closing a couple of credit card accounts and when she zeroes out the account and calls to tell them to close it, she’s sometimes insisting with them for ten minutes that she doesn’t want the account any longer, she doesn’t need it for emergencies, she doesn’t want a lower interest rate, and she doesn’t want any special offers. She just wants to close the account.

Our Personal Experience

Bad as that sort of behaviour is, it’s not the worst. On one of her credit cards, she had a magazine subscription. She had tried cancelling the subscription but the company involved refused to stop charging her account. So when the time finally came that she could close her account she paid them off, paid off all her other bills, and told the credit card company that she wanted to close her account. After the usual to and fro, they finally agreed to close her account for her.

Hey! We Cancelled!

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