Cash The Checks

Now that we’re done with part I and part II of our store credit card reviews, here are some final comments about store credit cards.

Sure there’s pros and cons, but overall if you have decent-to-good credit, it’s best to avoid store credit cards like the plague. The little discount you get from these cards isn’t worth it, because it’s a one-time discount for a life-time card. Why use a store credit card when you can use your regular credit card (which builds your credit also). Your real credit card can also earn airline miles or rewards points, which your store credit card doesn’t have.

Store credit cards should only be used if you feel that you can take advantage of the store. Either by using the card to raise your credit score, keep more of your own money longer, or to get yourself a discount, without ever paying them a dime of interest.

Finally, remember, store credit cards aren’t offered for your benefit, but for the store’s benefit.

Fed up with scraping the pennies together at the end of the month? Learn more about debt solutions, or have a look at other options available, like a cheap credit card or a short term loan.

This is part two of our review of store credit cards.. Now let’s look at several reasons that you should get store credit cards..

• If you have such an amazing control over yourself that you won’t buy more things at the store than you would usually do, then sure, take the initial discount, pay it off, then rip the card into pieces and never use it again.
• You’re more likely to qualify for a store credit card than a regular credit card. So if you have bad credit, get a card or two, use it whenever you are at the store, make your payments on time and build your credit.
• 15% off just for getting the card? If you’re buying something big that costs a lot of money, 15% off of a $2,000 HDTV is $300 off! So take the card, get the discount, and pay it off before accruing any interest.
• No payments for one year? Great, you get to keep more of your own money for longer, all while enjoying the new refrigerator or furniture you just bought. But who knows whether you’re going to have that kind of money available a year down the line? What you could do is deposit the cost of the furniture into an interest-earning savings account, then remember to withdraw it to make your payment when the due date nears. $2,000 @ 5% APY earns you $100 in 1 year. So take it as a $100 “rebate”.

When you get to a store, such as Sears, Macy’s, Best Buy, etc., and you make a purchase, they always ask you if you want to place it on your store credit card. If you don’t have one, they’ll offer one to you. They usually come with a discount, such as: 20% off on your first purchase or No payments til 2009. Should you do it? No!

Here’s a few reasons why NOT to get these store credit cards..

• The terms are not favorable with these cards. Store credit cards usually come with a higher interest rate than your usual credit card. There could also be a yearly fee.
• You’ll always know you have the card with you, making it much easier for you to buy things at that store.
• You’re more likely to make that store your “main” store, bypassing good sales and products available at other stores.
• When you’re offered a deal like: No payment until 2009, often times if you don’t pay your bill off in time, you’ll be retroactively charged all of the interest accrued throughout the years.

In the next couple of days, there will be a post with reasons why you should get a store credit card.

The following is a review of a credit card processing company, Advantage Processors. You simply can’t compete if you don’t accept credit cards. You will lose out on potential customers if you are not set up to accept credit cards. If you offer credit card payment, not only will you receive more orders, but also those orders will be substantially larger.

A big benefit of credit card acceptance for your business is that they improve cash flow. A credit card transaction is often faster and more secure than other forms of payment, such as checks, because the issuing bank commits to pay the merchant the moment the transaction is verified, whether the consumer pays their bill on time or not.

To be successful any business must therefore have a Merchant Account Provider, a reliable institution that processes credit card transactions. One that will verify the credit card, process the transaction, and deposit the results into your account, usually within days. When looking for the best Merchant Account Provider/Credit Card Processor find the one that best fits with your business.

They also have a tutorial on accepting credit card payments here.

Look for a Merchant Account Provider that is a good fit with your business. Many Merchant Account Providers refuse accounts from start-up firms or firms and individuals with bad credit histories, or even internet-based firms. Some Merchant Account Providers will not accept pharmaceutical sites, adult sites, online casinos, sites operated outside the country, and many others.

With a good credit card processing service, you can increase your sales and flexibility and give your customers many payment options. Consider Advantage Processors so you can accept credit card payments on your site.

This is a review of the site, 0 APR Credit Cards. The site outlines various card options available to consumers. Its purpose is to help individuals better manage their personal finances. It does so by providing information about credit and debt and other personal finance issues. The main focus being a comprehensive and updated resource of information on various credit card offers.

There are many different types of credit cards each with unique offers ranging from 0% introductory rate, point and reward programs, cash back offers and much more. You can search and compare credit card offers with quality and non-bias reviews about the which is best for you.

The major credit card issuers include MasterCard, Visa Discover, Citibank, Chase, and American Express.

The site offers plenty of information on basic credit card terms, as well as a useful checklist on how to select a credit card. Thus, it is much easier to select the best credit card according to your requirements.

This was a sponsored post, to sponsor a post send your inquiries here.

In the past I’ve had a couple of fraudulent transactions on my credit card, including one in my last statement. The company was “Dream Smile”. I’m not sure how they got my info to bill me, but they sure did. I did a little research on the company and apparently many others are being charged extraordinary amounts. I guess I was lucky they only got me for $14.95. Anyways, I contacted Capital One Visa credit card and about 10 days later (during the Christmas holiday) they refunded me the amount. The whole process was extremely easy and only took a few minutes to complete.

I wonder what type of protection a debit card offers. I’d think they don’t have as good “chargeback” procedures as credit cards do. If I had to guess, it’s because with a credit card charge, you haven’t paid the charge yet, the credit card company pays it first, then later you pay them. With a debit card, when the charge comes in, you pay it up front, so the debit card company has less to lose.

We all need a little help when it comes to sorting out our money problems. Get a cheap credit card, short term loan or a flexible loan and put your mind at ease!

The site to check your Capital One points is: https://www.capitalonepointsrewards.com

I was always looking for how many points I had on my capital one credit card account area, but could never find out how many points I had. It turns out that when you log-in to check your account, there’s a pop-up which has a link to your points account. I use FireFox so the pop-up was always blocked and I never got to see it.

You have to sign up for an all new rewards points account which is completely separate from your usual capital one account, which is a hassle. It’d be better if you could check all of your account information from one place, not two.

I got my Capital One No Hassle Rewards Points Card in the mail today and activated it immediately. This is the first time I’ve ever been with a card that has a points or rewards system. Now I just don’t know what to buy first just to see if I see the points added to my account. I know it’s all just extra motivation to spend more money, so you can pay them more interest. But it’s still enticing.
I like what Bank of America has, if you buy something that costs $17.42, they add $0.42 into your savings account. That’s just a win-win situation for everyone involved.

I guess you when you hardly use your credit card, it’s insane to think your credit card company will raise your credit limit. While I’m certainly not interested in spending enough money to get to my credit limit, it sure would be nice knowing I could spend a lot more on my credit card without having to worry about ever reaching the limit. Currently, my Capital One Visa credit card is at $7,500. Since I’ve been trying to get into the “plastic world” and use my card more often, I’m hoping to get it automatically raised to $10,000 by the end of the year.

I have no doubt I could get it raised if I called their customer service, but it’s not extremely important and I’d rather let it take on a natural course. You never really know when you might have an emergency though, so having a large credit limit can have it’s advantages, especially when you’re in the need for some extra cash and the loan process is taking too long. I guess in a worst case scenario, “Check Into Cash” would be another alternative. Who knows, maybe I’ll get to meet Gary Coleman.

In a continued effort to try to raise my credit score, I’ve switched a monthly automatic debit charge (cable bill) that used to be debited from my bank account to my credit card now. This’ll increase my monthly charges on my card even more. It’s still nowhere near the heights I want to be at, but it’s a start.

It was always a hassle to make sure that specific bank account had enough funds to pay the cable bill every month. Now with the credit card I’ve eliminated yet another hassle from my life and can increase my credit score all at the same time. And as I’m sure you’re aware, time is money.

All of these are just small steps I have been taking and will continue to take, to lead to a better, stable and a more secure financial future.

Are you finding yourself short of money at the end of each month? Solve potential money problems with a cheap credit card, short term loan or a flexible loan, whichever is the best for your money needs, and relax!

To my surprise this morning I received a letter from Capital One. I thought it was yet another credit card offer, or changes to their policy, or some credit card checks. To my surprise when I took a look, it turns out my regular Capital one Visa Card is being upgraded to a “Capital One Visa No Hassle Rewards Points Platinum Card”.

The major change is that now I earn 1 point for every dollar I spend. These points can be redeemed for gift certificates or even a payment made by check.

2,000 points gets you a $5 gift card at BlockBuster or at Bed, Bath and Beyond. Another bonus is when you spend $3,000 or more in a year, you’ll get an extra 5,000 points. After doing some calculations, spending $500.00 per month will get you 6,000 points per year, add the 5,000 bonus and that’s 11,000 total points, which is enough for a $50 gift certificate and you’ll still have some points left over.

It doesn’t sound like much, but it’s an extra $50 per year that you would’ve never had to begin with, for doing what you already do, use your credit card. It’s these little things that count, that add up to a substantial amount at the end of the year.

In an effort to get more credit and raise my credit score. I’ll be taking a very small step and begin to use my Capital One Visa credit card more often now. While the difference in my score may be minimal, it’s worth it, any amount is worth it. As time goes by, I’ll become more accustomed to using a credit card, that I’ll open up additional cards too - of course making sure I can make the payments on time.

You never want to live above your means, if you care about your credit score.

Another thing that can help your credit score is opening a new loan, then paying it off. This is one option I will most likely not do. First of all, I have no need to borrow money, second of all, even if the interest rate I borrow at can be very low - it’s not going to be as low as what I’d earn at a savings account. So there’s no profit to be made.

For now, it just looks like I’ll use my credit card more often now.

With all the talk about the need to check your credit, to see if you’ve been the victim of identity theft, the other day I figured I’d take a look at my credit report. Reportedly, if you live in certain states, you’re entitled to a free credit check once a year.

I went to Equifax and put in my personal information securely and just like that I got my credit report, free of charge. I was a bit dissapointed though because I figured I’d see my credit score as well, but alas, only some data showed up. My report showed me who had been checking my credit lately, my open and closed credit cards, and any negative points on it. As it turns out, a lot of credit card companies have been checking my credit, I guess that’s why I receive so many junk credit card offers in the mail.

Overall, my report looked pretty empty, which was dissapointing. Had I paid to see my credit score, I might have been even more dissapointed. It’s not that I don’t have good credit, it’s that I have no credit. I only have one active credit card, and that one shows a balance of $0 every month - since I pay it all off immediately every month.

Most of shoppers prefer to pay through debit cards instead of credit card as it protects them from hassles like credit card debt . It ensures enhanced security with similar ease of use and acceptability of discover card and citi card as for credit card. This habit, however, has caused a rise in use of payday loans to cover the urgent financial needs if you are not using credit card. Such short term funds are easy to get when compared to the long term loans like auto finance and home mortgages.

Having one too many credit cards could have you running for the quickest online loan you can get. A consolidation loan is one of the many debt solutions that could help you with spiralling loans and credit cards. Check out all your options which can help you get out of debt – an IVA or Debt Management might be more suitable for your financial situation.