วันเสาร์ที่ 31 พฤษภาคม พ.ศ. 2551

Bridging Loans: Charging you up to Meet the Future

Bridging Loans: Charging you up to Meet the Future

By: Anaya Erika

Many a times our fancies are taken in by a new house, a new car, a new residential plot or any other costly consumer item requiring a substantial sum as investment. So acting illogically—at least from the financial point of view—the person just barges in to the new bargain without thinking about the resources at hand. The deal thus—for example for a new house—gets signed, requiring a quick disposal of the funds. Normally an old house gives the baton to the new one; or say, people buy new house by selling the old one. So if the old one is yet to be sold, where to find the funds for the new one? It is here that the role of such loans comes in to play.

Prominent loan facilitators have very competitive set of credit providers who come on to the gloomy scene with a ray of hope. These timely set of borrowings enable a person to utilize the favorable circumstances prevailing in the property market—for example when the market is down, bringing down the property rates—by purchasing a new property at a low rate. The borrower can then sell it when the market rises again taking the property rates to the high end.

There are numerous online players which can help one in finding best bridging loan deals in the UK. It is always advisable to seek their help while going for these deals. One is also advised to compare different rates of loans in order to arrive at the best option. Just at the click of a mouse, a vast source of information on the subject provides one with sufficient choice to fulfill ones dreams.

Bridging loan deals fall in the categories of personal and commercial loans, through which borrowings ranging from £26000 to £10 million are available at very flexible and cost-effective rates of interest. Such deals can be availed at any place on the UK mainland or Northern Ireland. Bridging loan deal providers function as a conduit between the lenders and borrowers. There are facilities which provide such deals within two days. To make it really fast, quotes are provided within a couple of hours of the client's inquiry.

For more information about bridging finance deals. Please visit our website: http://www.longdogfinance.co.uk/

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Home Loan Refinance : A Primer

Home Loan Refinance : A Primer

By: Alan Lim

Homeowners choose to obtain a home loan refinance for many reasons. Before doing so, you should determine the answers to some questions in order to decide whether a refinance is right for you.

Why refinance?

Most homeowners choose a home loan refinance when they are in need of significant amounts of extra cash for a variety of reasons. For example, you may have a youngster who is nearing college age and you want to provide cash to reduce the amount of college loans that will be due upon graduation. You may need cash for pressing medical bills, or you may choose a home loan when you want to do major renovation to your home. Another common reason for refinancing and pulling equity from your home is to consolidate credit card debt and thus lower interest rates.

When is the best time to refinance?

Choosing a home loan refinance can make good sense at several times in your financial life. For example, you may have acquired your existing mortgage at a time when interest rates were high, due to the nation's economy, or you may have had a higher interest rate because of personal credit issues. Refinancing should not be done frivolously, but when you are in genuine need of the cash, or when the savings in interest fees will more than offset the cost of the refinance. Because the refinance option taken too frequently can be a sign of a homeowner in financial trouble, you should avoid the refinance option except for times when it makes good financial sense to do so.

What is the bottom line?

The bottom line will result in a savings over all to you, or an increase to you. At times, the homeowner will do a home loan refinance and save thousands of dollars in interest fees since the interest rate has dropped. Another time when the interest fees will be lower over the term of the loan is if you are repaying a larger payment in order to reduce the term of the loan. If you are spreading the mortgage out over a longer period of time in order to reduce the payment amounts, you may end up with significantly more interest costs, plus the costs of the loan itself.

What can you use the money for?

A home loan refinance with cash out can be used for almost any purpose you wish. Depending on the way you structure your loan, you may have lump sum cash available; you may decide to have a line of credit tied to your home equity value, or you may use the funds to pay off existing debts and bills in order to free up disposable income each pay period in the future. The choice will depend upon the individual needs in your situation and how your tax picture is structured.

Things to watch out for

Be cautious in structuring a home loan refinance. You will want to verify that you are obtaining your loan through a legitimate broker or direct lender. Make sure that you don't end up with a different type of loan than you thought you were getting. For example, if you want a fixed rate loan, take care that you aren't sold a variable rate loan or one where you have a negative equity building.

Determine the characteristics and terms of a home refinancing choice is important. Choose a resource site that will help you to understand and compare various loan options. The best site on the internet can be located here at Home Loan or Home Loan Refinance.

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Sub Prime Auto Loans – Getting the Cash Easily

Sub Prime Auto Loans – Getting the Cash Easily

By: Mark Warne

Things it concerns:

Well, in loan market sub prime means a person suffering from credit hazards in his or her financial life. It used to be really hard to get a financial help in this situation few years back, but not now. Lenders are ready to provide bad credit holders also with the cash they require to buy their own car. It can be a new one or used one. So, sub prime auto loans are nothing except than bad credit auto loans available in market.

What may be the reason?

Well in today’s financial market it is not hard to earn a bad credit tag. And you can do it by a history of late payments, defaults in previous debts, arrears or recent declaration of bankruptcy. Whatever the reason may be if your credit score is less than 620 than you are considered as bad credit holder and the only option to drive your car on the way is sub prime auto loans.

Various flexible features:

Because of your credit status lender is exposed to high amount of risk, so they want some sort of security against the loan. And in this case it is going to be the car itself generally. If you do not want to place your car at risk then you have the option to pledge any other collateral against the financing.

You will get the money required to buy a car of your own through sub prime auto loans. Interest rate in this case can be a little bit high, but you expect to get a reasonable one with a proper work out. You should try to settle down your credit status before approaching any lender.

Availability:

With the increasing popularity among customers, more and more lenders are now offering sub prime auto loans. You can secure it through banks or online lenders also. You can opt for the lender with least terms with a proper search on World Wide Web.

Everybody wants to buy and that too at a great rate. Mark Warne, in her articles, shares her knowledge on auto loans so that you might end up getting a deal at lowest interest rate possible. To find special finance car loan, best car loan visit http://www.consumercarloan.com

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วันพุธที่ 28 พฤษภาคม พ.ศ. 2551

5 Principles for Debt Management

5 Principles for Debt Management

By: Wisan Singkhwa

Debt Management - 5 Principles to help you get your debt under control!

Introduction

Debt consolidation and refinancing have become thriving industries in America these days. American personal debt is at the highest rate we've seen. Creditors are more and more willing to give out credit cards, or let people easily qualify for home equity loans so they can refinance or consolidate debt. Not that refinancing is bad, but often times, we feel that since we've reduced our interest rates, we can afford "a little bit extra" credit as a reward.

BusinessWeek says that total household debt in the US was more than 100% of our disposable annual income last year. The average person has more than $8000 in credit card debt.

The bottom line is that our personal debt is growing at an alarming rate. You can now charge your fast food meals at many restaurants, paying interest for years on something you consumed in one sitting. Many people have taken steps to address their debt problems, including consolidating debt to lower interest rate cards, or to home equity loans, or at worst case the dreaded "B" word, Bankruptcy.

5 Principles of Debt Management

1. Create an accurate assessment of your debt situation. Make a list, chart or whatever you're most comfortable with, of all your debts. Be sure and include the amounts, interest rates, and expirations dates (especially on any no-interest for ## days type loans). Be sure and note any old accounts that you've got "laying around", such as that department store credit account that you opened to get the 15% discount. You can now get a free credit report online. You should make sure that you've got a credit report and FICO score from each of the 3 national credit bureaus: Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion. The FTC advises monitoring your CREDIT REPORT activity ON ALL 3 BUREAUS. Order your 3-bureau report from CreditReporting.com today. If you've got bad credit, paying down your debts is of utmost importance!! Click here if you need help understanding your credit score. Depending how bad your score is, you may also consider additional measures to repair your credit.

2. Make a budget and stick to it! Making a budget helps keep from increasing your debt, while you're trying to pay it down. Be specific and detailed in your budgeting. Except for emergencies, you should only be spending what is accounted for in your budget. Some people have found it helpful to keep a 30 day log of their spending. Carry a little notebook, or some index cards with you, and write down everything you spend each day. You'll probably be amazed at how much money you spend on things you want, and don't really need. The smallest things, such as that $3 cup of coffee every day, can slowly eat away at your finances. This will help keep you from getting further in debt. Your budget should define how much money you'll send to each of your creditors monthly and how much you need for bills, and how much is left for discretionary spending. Try limiting your discretionary spending to things you can buy with "pocket cash". This may be hardest thing you've ever done, but you won't get further in debt if you only spend what you have.

3. Pay off the debts one by one. Maintain minimum payments to the rest of the debts, but pick the debt with the highest interest rate, and send extra payments to pay it off. There is a proven psychological benefit to being able to take a debt off of your list.

4. Consider debt consolidation or debt restructuring and possibly refinancing your home mortgage. Lower your credit card debt by 70% by consolidating. With interest rates down, it also may be time to refinance your home mortgage loan and cut your monthly payment. You can get free mortgage loan quotes at LowCostLending. When you refinance, make sure closing costs and other fees don't outweigh the savings in your monthly payment. Another option is to get a Home Equity Loan. Home equity loans are good because they allow you to deduct the interest on your income taxes. Remember though, new credit is not a license to incur new or more debts. Once you've transferred a balance by consolidating, or refinancing, don't add more charges to the old account. If you've got a lot of open accounts, you may want to close some of them, but you shouldn't necessarily always cancel the old account. Having a good payment history with a few existing accounts can be better for your credit record than many cancelled and new accounts.

5. If necessary, get help. You may choose a credit counseling service, or debt counseling and debt help service to help with each step of your debt solution. Credit counselors can add accountability to your debt solution, and also serve as a source of encouragement. They are used to dealing with people with bad credit or poor credit, and can help you create a custom debt solution. They can suggest money lenders that might be more willing to make a loan to someone with a lower credit rating. Once you start reducing your debts without incurring new ones, you'll start to see your credit score rise.

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The Benefits of Payday Loans

The Benefits of Payday Loans

By: Peter Nisbet

Payday loans are becoming more popular, and more in demand, as the credit squeeze continues. But can you afford to take one? That is a question that many people ask of themselves. And rightly so, because unless they go about it the right way, they can end up paying a massive amount of interest.

So, if you feel that you need a payday loan how should you go about it? First, don’t opt for the first online advert you see. Not all payday loans are the same, and you can usually get a deal that suits you. You should look for a deal that has a limited ‘rollover’ period.

Although a payday loan should strictly be repaid next payday, many people find themselves unable to do so and it carries on for another month. That is when the ‘rollover’ comes into play. The rollover involves another fee payment. You don’t pay interest as such with a payday loan: you pay a ‘fee’. For example, with a payday loans of $400 you could pay a $50 fee. That works out at an interest rate of 25% a month, or an APR of 300%. If you miss the payment, then you pay a rollover fee of another $50, so that your APR has suddenly risen to 600%. So a payday loan can be very expensive unless you make sure that you pay it. So, how do you do that?

Simple. Make your payment by direct debit from your bank on payday. Make sure that the direct debit is dated for your payday, or as close as possible to it, and you will always have money in the bank when the payment is due. If you are paid on a certain date each month, make the direct debit for that date.

The definition of a payday loan is that it is paid back on your next payday after taking out the loan. If you know your payday after taking the loan then you can arrange a direct debit to be applied on that date, and the payment will be made before you can access your account. That way there will be no temptation to spend the money before you pay it back.

If payday is a Saturday or Sunday, then you will be paid on the Friday, so arrange the direct debit for the Friday. If you have taken the loan out close to payday, you might have made an arrangement to pay next payday: in that case the same arrangements will apply.

If you ever make an arrangement to make repayments over a number of months, then it will be difficult to arrange a single direct debit date, and that kind of payment is not variable: it is made on the same date each month. Many people I know come to an arrangement with their bank in such situations.

You can open another account with your bank after discussing your problem with them, and arrange the bank to transfer your payment to that account on payday, and then have the direct debit remove that for your payday loan repayment on the 1st of each month. I know this all sounds a bit complicated, but it works for many people, and helps them to keep clear of rollovers that can end up with them owing more than they borrowed.

However, payday loans have many benefits if you are able to make the payment at the right time. It will give you emergency cash when needed, such as an emergency car repair or medical bill, and allow you to pay it back next payday. How often have thought ‘I could pay that in a couple days – I wish it were payday today’? Well, payday can be ‘today’ with a payday loan, arranged the same day, or at least within 24 hours.

So payday loans do have benefits to those that need them, and if you need one then think carefully before taking it, and make sure you get the best deal. The take it and use it well.

For more information on how to arrange the payday loan that best suits you check out http://www.principal-finance.com/online-payday-loans.html where you will receive all the hints and tips needed to make the decision most appropriate for you.

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วันจันทร์ที่ 26 พฤษภาคม พ.ศ. 2551

Secured Personal Loans: Cash for all the problems.

Secured Personal Loans: Cash for all the problems.

By: Gray Smith

You can appropriate Secured personal loans for various requirements as you may be in the need of funds for holidaying with your family or you may be planning to carry out some home improvements or you may be looking forward to get married and you can opt right business. Therefore, the process of availing secured personal loans is very fast. The other advantages of secured personal loans may be like you can maximum utilization for fulfilling financial needs, you can furnish a big amount of secured personal loans by using it.

Different lenders have got different rate of interest of secured personal loans for different borrowers, because the lenders who provide secured personal loans on the borrower’s credit history that’s why the interest rate is different of secured personal loans, if you don’t have good credit history then interest rates may be more than fixed interest rate, if you have got good credit history then interest rates may be same that is. The repayment process is also easy. Mostly secured personal loans are large terms loans. The amount of secured personal loans can be repaid within 7 years.

Requirement of secured personal loans is increasing day to day because secured personal loans are the combination source for availing money in the financial institution. If you want large debt amount, long repayment period and low rate of interest then secured personal loans will suit you the most. However, if you are in hurry and want quick funds then unsecured personal loans are more appropriate. Online personal loans make the loan process more convenient and effortless. You can save a lot of time and efforts by applying online.

Secured personal loans are becoming more and more popular. For applying online, the process of applying online is absolutely simple and fast whenever you will apply online, and you will find tremendous lenders by searching over internet. After the right search you will have opted a right Secured Personal Loans provider who provides cash any time. Apply for cash you are to fill up an online application form and submit it. After verification by the lender, the cash will be accessed in your current bank account within few hours. Since they are convenient and reliable. Secured Personal loans are basically meant to provide you financial backing for all your monetary needs. From sponsoring your child’s education to bearing a medical expenditure.

Gray smith has done his master in finance and now he is an expert in finance and insurance at nocreditcheckpersonalloansz.com to find Personal Consolidation Loan, Personal Loans, Secured Personal Loans, No Credit Check Loan 5000, Fast Cash Personal Loans visit http://www.nocreditcheckpersonalloansz.com

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วันจันทร์ที่ 12 พฤษภาคม พ.ศ. 2551

How To Get A Used Car Loan

How To Get A Used Car Loan

By: Larry Kearney

There are a number of important facts you should know before you apply for a used car loan.

First you need to order a copy of your credit report. Do you have good or bad credit.

The information in your credit report will give you a better idea of your chances of getting approved for a new or used car loan and your over-all interest rate.

If you have good credit, you should always go to your bank to apply for a car loan. Banks will always offer to you the best interest rates that are available to you anywhere nationwide. Keep in mind, the banks only offer auto loans to individuals that have good credit.

If you have poor credit, your interest rate could be as high as 26%. The result of a high interest rate is that you are going to pay up to $25,000 for a car that you had purchased for $16,000 and your monthly payments could be as high as $375.00 per month.

Getting a used car loan with bad credit is not a good idea, because of the high interest rates. Once you have paid payments for 2 or 3 years, you will still have a balance of more than the car is worth. So this would make it impossible for you to trade the car in without rolling some of your balance of the old car, to your next car.

There are a number a ways to avoid this problem. One way is to get a co-signer that has good credit. This would lower your interest rates to the point that could cause your payments to drop by over $100.00 per month.

Another method of getting approved for a good low rate auto loan is to clean up your credit history.

Pay off as many creditors as you can on your credit report. You can contact each creditor to see if they would be willing to settle by offering to reduce your balance. If the balance on an account is to high for you to payoff, offer to make payment arrangements.

You must do everything you can to get approved for an average or low used car loan.

If you choose to get a high interest auto loan, you will never be able to get a fair trade in on your car. When it is time to trade in your car you will have to add the balance of your first car to your new car purchase. This would increase the new car balance and your monthly payments. Which means that you are going to have to pay more each month for the same type of car that you have just traded in.

Online Used Car Loan Programs

There are a number of companies online that offers new or used auto loan services. Most of them offer bad credit auto loans online with no upfront fees.

The good thing about these types of online programs is that they are going to search for the best lenders that are available nationwide. This would greatly improve your chances of finding a low interest loan. This is better than applying for a loan at a car dealer because the dealer is only going to have a few financing companies to process your loan. The online programs have access to hundreds of loan companies that offer different interest rates.

Once you are approved for a loan from a online financing company, you can still purchase your car from any local dealer in your area. Once you have selected a car, the financing company would send your car dealer a check to cover the cost of your new or used car.

You could be on the road with your new car in just a few days.

Are you about to purchase a new or used car? If you have no credit or bad credit, there are a number of important facts you should know before you try to apply for a car loan. Getting approved for a high interest auto loan could increase your monthly payments by as much as $100.00. http://www.loan98.com/autoloans14.html, http://newcarloans.wordpress.com

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วันจันทร์ที่ 5 พฤษภาคม พ.ศ. 2551

Auto Loans With Bad Credit – Drive Your Dream Car

Auto Loans With Bad Credit – Drive Your Dream Car

By: Duglaus Hondo

Almost all people wish to own a vehicle but all don’t own one. Many times poor financial condition prevents people from buying a vehicle. The situation was even worse for people having bad credit records because it was difficult to get a loan. But nowadays with the specially crafted loan called "auto loans with bad credit" it is a child's play to get a loan. Such a loan is meant for people with bad credit history.

Auto loans with bad credit are available in two forms. If you can furnish some property as collateral, then you can go for the secured loan which provides you with greater amount at lower interest rate and the repayment duration is also longer, generally 5 to 25 years. But there is a risk of your property getting forfeited in case you default in payment. If you don’t have any property to take loan against or if you don’t want to risk property for loan, then you should go for unsecured auto loan. This loan however comes at a bit higher interest rate with smaller loan amount and shorter repayment duration.

Auto loans with bad credit, be it be secured or unsecured, usually comes with high rate of interest as bad credit is associated with your profile. However the interest rates can be lowered if you offer a down payment to the car dealer and then go for the auto loan. The interest rates can also be lowered if you choose the online medium to apply for the loan. Many lending companies have their presence online and hence you are flooded with options. Also not much of a toil is required to search for lenders online and you can easily choose from the many options available based on the amount, interest rate, repayment duration and others details quoted by them.

Bad credit is nothing to panic about, instead you should freely approach a finance company for auto loans with bad credit. Such a loan besides fulfilling your desire to own a vehicle, will also give you an opportunity to improve your credit ratings provided you stick to your repayment term.

Everybody wants to buy and that too at a great rate. Duglaus Hondo, in her articles, shares her knowledge on auto loans so that you might end up getting a deal at lowest interest rate possible. To find auto finance loan calculator, auto loan poor credit visit http://www.advancedautoloan.com

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Risk free instant money for all

Risk free instant money for all

By: Lilly Lydia

People take out loans to meet their urgent financial requirements. Loans available in the UK financial market are considered as the standard ways of borrowing money. People can borrow from banks, building society, commercial institution, specialist Loan Company, or in vogue private lenders. However, obtaining these loans is no more limited to the borrowers having securities to prove their legitimacy. Borrowing the desired amount is no longer tougher for those who are devoid of valuable asset. For the convenience of these borrowers,the lenders have come up with the provisions of loans without security.

Borrowers can avail a good amount of money as per their personal requirements under these loans. Nonetheless, the amount sanctioned varies from person to person and lender to lender. Generally, maximum loan amount goes up to £25,000. Borrowers avail the benefits of the money provisions for a period that ranges between 1-10 years.

With the unsecured loans amount, borrowers are never being imposed to invest their amount this way or that way. The borrower spends the loan money according to his necessities and the lenders have no say in it. In general, home improvement and renovation, car buying, business development, children’s education, holidaying, etc., are some of the best utilities of these loans. Above all, borrowers too can obtain these loan benefits and pay off their high rate debt and dues well before any further adverse financial repercussion. Importantly, those who are just struggling with their credit score i.e., CCJs, IVAs, bankrupts, arrears, and defaulters, can avail bad credit unsecured loans without much hassle. The problem they may have to face is the dilatory processing and a higher rate of interest.

Processing of unsecured loans too has become rather simpler and more convenient these days due to the increased competition. Since the entire process of application, borrowing and lending is done through online process, borrowers do not have to go out leaving the comfort of their homes to avail the loan amount. There are numbers of lenders available online and offline but processing online should be preferred. Now,these loans are also open for the unemployed people and job seekers.

For more information about loans: Bad credit unsecured loans, Personal loans , What matters the most – Business Plan or Money?

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วันศุกร์ที่ 2 พฤษภาคม พ.ศ. 2551

Personal Loans for People with Bad Credit

Personal Loans for People with Bad Credit

By: Gray Smith

If you are having bad credit history and you don’t have any source of cash then apply for Personal Loans for People with Bad Credit. All the financial problems will disappear automatically. Whenever you need urgent cash and you don’t have any other source then loans are the best way to generate money for immediate and urgent requirements. If you are having a good credit history then you are able to avail the loans from any bank, financial institutions and credit agency, on the other hand bad credit history one of the worst record of getting the cash. If you are having bad credit history and you don’t have any source of cash then apply for Personal Loans for People with Bad Credit. Personal Loans for People with Bad Credit are the loans that are provided by the lenders especially for the bad credit history borrowers. It is absolutely correct. Due to the growing competition in the financial market lenders are ready to take risk by offering loans to people suffering from bad credit status. FICO credit score ranges from 300 - 850 points. If your credit score is less than 600 points then you are eligible to avail Personal Loans for People with Bad Credit. You can avail Personal Loans for People with Bad Credit to meet any of your personal or professional needs. You can use Personal Loans for People with Bad Credit for holiday, wedding, purchasing a car, paying previous debts and so on. Personal Loans for People with Bad Credit are mainly two type’s secured personal loans and other unsecured personal loans. To avail secured Personal Loans for People with Bad Credit you need to place one of your properties as collateral with the lender. This way you can avail large amount of money at comparatively lower interest rate. The loan amount that can be availed with Personal Loans for People with Bad Credit ranges from $5000 - $75000. The loan amount depends upon the value of your collateral. The repayment duration of secured Personal Loans for People with Bad Credit ranges from 5 - 25 years. On the other hand no such collateral is needed in order to avail unsecured Personal Loans for People with Bad Credit. The loan amount that can be availed with unsecured Personal Loans for People with Bad Credit ranges from $1000 - $25000. Unsecured Personal Loans for People with Bad Credit are short term loans, the repayment duration being 1- 10 years. Lenders charge slightly higher interest rate for Personal Loans for People with Bad Credit because the loan is advanced to people suffering from bad credit status. But you can easily avail Personal Loans for People with Bad Credit at competitive interest rate because of the tough competition prevailing in the market. With Personal Loans for People with Bad Credit you can easily fulfill all you financial needs easily and economically.

Gray smith has done his master in finance and now he is an expert in finance and insurance at nocreditcheckpersonalloansz.com to find Personal Consolidation Loan, No credit verification loans, Personal Loans for People with Bad Credit, No Credit Check Loan 5000, Personal Loans with Bad Credit visit http://www.nocreditcheckpersonalloansz.com

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How to stamp out bad credit card offers

How to stamp out bad credit card offers

By: Elena Laramie

If you're like me, your mailbox is usually stuffed with things like bills...postcards selling some turbo-charged Internet service...maybe a few magazines...and, of course, credit card offers.

It's the credit card offers that get you. They're pretty tempting, aren't they? Whether it's being pre-approved for $10,000, or the promise of earning free airline tickets, there's always something that lures us in.

While you might get a few good offers every now and then, most should be sent right to the shredder. The trick is, knowing which ones should stay—and which ones should go.

Be choosy

Keep one thing in mind: if you have a couple of credit cards you're happy with, try not to apply for more cards. Each time you apply, it shows up on your credit report. And that can make you look credit hungry. It may also lower your credit score.

When you do decide you need a new credit card—or you are applying for your first one—ask yourself: what kind of card do you want? You can get one with reward points. Or miles. Or even a card that helps you save. With so many cards out there, you don't have to jump at the first offer you get in the mail. Shop around.

Learn the lingo

You've probably noticed that credit card offers come with what looks like a lot of legal mumbo jumbo. But these are the terms and conditions of the credit card, and they explain what fees and finance charges you could pay when you use the card. Every card has different terms and conditions. To shop for the best deal, you need to know what the main terms mean. Here are some to look out for:

Annual Percentage Rate (APR)—This is the yearly percentage rate charged when a balance is held on a credit card. This rate is applied each month that you carry a balance (the lower APR, the better).

Annual Fee—Yearly fee associated with having the credit card. Unless you are getting rewards or miles, or something extra, you may want to look for a card without an annual fee.

Grace Period—A period of time during which you are allowed to pay your credit card bill without being charged a finance and/or late fee. This period is usually 10-28 days.

Introductory Rate (or Intro APR)—A temporary, lower annual percentage rate that is raised later. Make sure you know what the rate will go up to after the intro period is over.

Other fees—Also check for the amount of the late payment and cash advance fees.

Why wait? Activate

Once you receive your new card in the mail, activate it right away. Then put it in your wallet or in a safe place. Otherwise, you may set the card down, forget about it, and it could end up in the wrong hands.

As you use your card, keep an eye on your bill and the charges listed. Also, you should get your credit report on a regular basis to make sure no one else is using your account. That way, you stay in charge of your credit card.

TransUnion's TrueCredit empowers consumers to manage their credit health, providing information on credit-related issues that range from the significance of a credit report to identity theft protection. TrueCredit's offerings include free monthly newsletters & online products, including credit reports, credit and insurance scores, credit monitoring, debt management tools and identity theft insurance services. http://www.truecredit.com/

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