Can You Roll Credit Card Debt Into a New Mortgage

How to Get a Credit Card and Control Debt

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Banks and other lenders love to make spending money easy. Checks made spending easier when they were introduced to America during the 18th century, then debit cards made it even easier to access your bank account. When chip and PIN came in, debit card transactions were easier and more secure than they had been when a signature was required, and now that we have contactless payments you can spend so quickly that you often forget the transaction. Credit cards are just as easy to spend with but you're spending someone else's money so you don't necessarily want the transaction to be quick and easy. Let's take a look at the whole credit card process which can be difficult to get into but way harder to escape from.

Getting Credit

Getting credit used to be easy but even if your FICO score is above average you might struggle to get the credit card you really want. The good thing about credit cards is that there's a card provider for everyone. If your credit score isn't very high, you'll still be able to get a card but you'll be penalized with high-interest rates. The question you have to ask yourself is whether you take the card on offer or build up your credit score and then apply for a better one.

Get Online

Getting a card online is the best option because you'll have more choice. Even if you're credit rating is low, you'll still have some options available to you. Check the small print for annual fees and other charges that will add up if they go unchecked and then make your decision. You might have a choice of different rewards like cashback or air miles. Choosing the reward that's best for you isn't as straightforward as it should be.

Credit Card Deals

Do you take the air miles or the cashback bonuses? What about retailer incentive schemes that offer points for each transaction in a given chain of stores? Are they more attractive? The truth is that the best deal is the one you will take advantage of the most. An air miles deal that's attached to an airline that doesn't fly out of your local airport will accrue nicely with every transaction but you won't be able to spend them so easily. So don't take the best deal on paper, take the best deal for you.

Secured and Unsecured Cards

If you'd like to build up your credit rating, you should opt for a card that gives you your quarterly FICO score on the monthly statements. That way you'll be able to see how your spending and payment habits affect your score. If you have bad credit, you might have to go for a card that needs a down payment before it's activated. These cards typically give you a credit limit of a few hundred dollars and ask for a quarter of the credit limit as a security deposit. Use the card and make regular payments against the debt and you'll see a big difference in your FICO score within a few months.

Visa or MasterCard or American Express?

If you have a choice, you should go for a Visa or MasterCard as they're accepted by more retailers around the world that American Express. There's nothing to choose between the two because where you see the MasterCard sign, you normally see the Visa one too. Visa has 304 million cards in circulation in America whereas MasterCard is in the wallet of 191 million Americans. AMEX only has 54 million customers but they tend to be more affluent so AMEX accounts for the second largest value of transactions on credit cards each year.

Credit Made Easy

If you just have paper statements mailed to you, debt can accrue without you noticing. The statement comes once a month so it's never up to date if you use your card regularly, and as it comes through the post cardholders might choose not to open the mail because they'll see it as a bill. Apps for credit cards and online access to your account make the process of controlling the amount of credit you take way easier than before.

Can You Roll Credit Card Debt Into a New Mortgage

Source: https://www.life123.com/article/how-to-get-a-credit-card-and-control-debt?utm_content=params%3Ao%3D740009%26ad%3DdirN%26qo%3DserpIndex

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