Qualifying For Your First Credit Card

Qualifying For Your First Credit Card
First things first! Make sure you have both a savings and
checking account in good standing. Most credit card
companies are going to see this as a sign of responsible
money management skills. And that will go a long way in
helping you to get that first credit card.

Over the course of a lifetime, you'll be seeing a lot of
offers in the mail. Don't be overly impatient or drawn into
something that looks like a good deal, take time to
research and read the fine print as choosing the right card
will literally put money in your pocket over the long run.
The best criteria to judge a credit card, is by the amount
of interest that it charges. The second best criteria, is
to determine whether or not the credit card company is
going to charge you a fee to do business with them.

If you are applying for the your first card, keep in mind
that the best cards may not yet be in your financial range
yet. In that case, it's safe to consider a secured credit
card that requires a security deposit. The interest rates
might just be a little higher than a non-secured card, but
the goal is to establish credit. If you make your payments
without making any late, they just may bump you up in
standing and offer a unsecured credit card. This takes you
one step closer to obtaining a credit card with a good
interest rate and you can then close the secured credit
card account. Another great feature of secured credit
cards, is when you close the account, you will get your
security deposit back.

What To Expect

You can expect a credit background check. Job history,
income, past credit, home ownership, auto ownership and
more will all be determining factors in determining how
good your credit worthiness might be when it come down to
paying back a loan.

Don't make the mistake of applying for too many cards at
once. This looks like potential trouble to lenders and if
you are turned down by any one of them, the others are sure
to reject you as well. Patience is the key. Even if you
have one card and are looking for a second credit card,
it's wise to extend the application process out over a
longer period.

A good rule of thumb is to never spend on a card what you
can afford to pay in cash. This little habit will keep you
spending wisely for years to come and insure that you'll
always have the credit card to fall back on in an emergency.

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Liz Roberts is a loan consultant with NewHorizon Finance
and has been providing consumers and business owners with
financing since 1989. Visit our site for a list of bad
credit credit card
http://www.newhorizon.org/Info/unsecured.htm