3 Ways To Get Approved For A Student Credit Card

If you're a college student, you know how expensive books, movies and tuition can be. And if you only work during the summer break, you may be looking for a way to stretch your funds through the cold winter months. Fortunately, a student credit card can help. Find one with low interest and good terms, and you can charge during the lean times and then pay it off when you're making money on your summer job.

To get a student credit card, follow these guidelines:

1. Find some cards for comparison.

It's easier than you think. Credit card companies often set up tables and booths at college fairs. You may even find fliers or applications around campus. And you can always find a student credit card with an online search. Be sure that the cards you're considering are specifically student cards. Credit cards aimed at students tend to have more lenient credit score and credit history criteria, and they also tend to have lower interest rates.

2. Pick the one with the best terms.

Not all credit cards are created equal! Since your student credit card is probably your first, educate yourself a bit about the terms and jargon you'll encounter. Choose one with a low interest rate, since that's the "extra" amount your credit card will tack onto your balance each month. Look for one with a longer grace period, too, which is the amount of time you have to make a payment before interest begins accruing. Other things you should look for is a card with no annual fee and a low late payment fee.

3. Apply!

Simply fill out the application--either on paper, online or on the phone--and answer the questions on the form. You'll need to reveal all the basics, like your name, current address and phone number. You'll also need to provide them with a "permanent" address and phone number. The application will include lines for information about your school, your school's address, your enrollment status and your year of graduation. It's possible they'll ask about your bank accounts and employment.

If you're currently employed or have significant savings in the bank, chances are your line of credit--the maximum balance you can hold on your card--will be higher. But even if you only have a summer job, you should still be able to qualify for $500 - $1,000 in credit.

3 Ways To Get Approved For A Business Credit Card

If you run your own business--whether it's a retail store, direct sales, hobby shop or freelance consulting--chances are you've thought about getting a business credit card. It's probably a good idea, since it makes it easy for you to separate your business expenses from your home expenses, a task that helps keep your paperwork organized and simplifies things at tax time. When you're ready to apply for a business card, follow this checklist:

1. Choose a card

Some cards offer special deals, financing or rewards for small business owners. For example, some rebate cards offer you a percentage back on everything you buy at a certain store, like a warehouse store or online store. Other cards offer cash rebates when you spend at supermarkets, gas stations or home improvement stores. If you travel often, a frequent flier or travel rewards card might get you the best and biggest bonuses. Choosing the right reward card--depending on the type of business you operate and the expenses you incur--can mean extra money in your pocket all year long.

2. Gather up paperwork

You'll need basic information about your company's financial situation, including the name of your business, the tax identification number, the business address, the number of years you've been an owner, the number of employees, the nature of the business, the business' average annual income, and the amount in the business' checking account. You'll also need to know the legal entity of your business, such as whether it's a sole proprietorship, a corporation, a partnership, a non-profit, etc.

3. Fill out the application

You can find applications for almost all business credit cards online, although in most cases you can also call and apply over the phone (a good idea if you have any questions). Depending on your credit rating, you may have to provide extra documentation of your business' current financial status, so be prepared to mail or fax information if requested. After you fill out the application, approval can take anywhere from thirty seconds to a month.

To find business credit cards online, do an Internet search or check the websites of major credit card companies.

3 Things To Look For In A Credit Repair Company Online

If it's been a while since you've looked at your credit report, you may be surprised to find errors, mistakes, or even a black mark or two. Fortunately, a Credit Repair Company can help you fix those mistakes and erase those black marks. Watch out for scammers, though, and choose a reputable Credit Repair Company with these tips:

Don't pay anything up-front

Avoid a Credit Repair Company that wants you to hand over a fee or payment before they meet with you. Reputable companies will first talk to you, assess your credit report and discuss your current situation before asking for any type of payment for their services. An up-front fee is a red flag that the company will probably take your money and run. And no matter what type of charges you may incur, be sure they aren't exorbitant. If a Credit Repair Company claims your case will cost thousands of dollars, look for another one.

Watch out for "re-inventors"

Some companies will tell you that you can wipe your credit slate clean by "re-inventing" yourself with a new social security number. But that's not true! In most cases, what they plan to do is get you a new credit report by applying for an Employee Identification Number (EIN)--used by businesses--which resembles a social security number, and you're told to use it as such. But this practice, known as "file segregation," is a scam, and it's also illegal! Avoid any Credit Repair Company that suggests this practice.

Look for one that helps you help yourself

A good Credit Repair Company will tell you (for free!) what you can do yourself, such as writing letters to creditors and contacting the credit reporting bureaus about errors. Avoid any Credit Repair Company that encourages you to do anything illegal or unethical--such as disputing a legitimate charge or fee on your credit report.

Before signing up with any Credit Repair Company, make sure you check with the Better Business Bureau. They'll have records of any formal complaints against the company, so you can avoid scammers and rip-off artists.

Avoiding Credit Card Fees

Credit card bills can be expensive. Sometimes they can be simply too expensive. Depending on how you use your credit cards, and how much you spend, and how disciplined and controlled you are over your own spending, you may or may not have trouble paying your credit card bills when it comes to the end of the month and the bill arrives in the mail. No matter what your situation is however, there is always one thing you will not, under any circumstances, want to see on your monthly credit card bill, and that is a credit card fee.

There are different types of credit card fee and different reasons for incurring them, but the good news is that many of them can be avoided by simply following a few simple rules and keeping on top of your finances and bills. The most important way to minimise the fees you receive from your credit card company is to pay your bill on time and in full each month. Generally if you do this, you will be charged no interest of finance charges at all, and will be receiving all the benefits of a credit card and over a month of credit absolutely free. If you are one of the lucky customers who can manage to maintain your account in this way, you will be very lucky.

However, many people cannot pay their account in full each month, therefore, they incur the most common of all credit card fees, and this is finance charges. Credit card companies actually charge very high interest rates to their customers so if you have the option of borrowing in other ways that may be cheaper it is recommended that you use these methods if you are planning on needing the money for more than a couple of months. It is far cheaper to pay back a short-term loan than to maintain a large credit card balance.

Another credit card fee is a late fee for when you are late in making your monthly payment. Many people who have more than enough money to make their repayments simply through a lack of organisation miss payments and incur large fees. If you are late in making your repayment because you don’t have enough money to make it you may need some debt counselling or other advice to help you manage your way out of this situation.

There are many other fees that your credit card company can impose upon you depending on the company, but being aware of how they are calculated and what sets them off is probably all you need to know to be able to avoid incurring them in the future.

3 Ways To Get Your Free Annual Credit Report

Yes, you can now get your credit report without paying a dime. And unlike before, now it is truly free. No longer do you have to sign up for a "free" credit report by signing up for "credit monitoring protection service" for a low annual fee of $79 a year! The days of dodging the annoying charges and service fees for a free credit report are over.

Under the 2003 Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act, you have the right to a free copy of your credit report within a 12 month period from the big three credit report bureaus (Experian, Equifax and TransUnion).

The goal of this new government act is to ensure that Americans have the right to stay informed about what these three credit reporting bureaus say about you without having to pay for it. Since identity theft, fraud and errors are quite common today, why should you have to pay for a copy of a report to fight back against these problems?

Here are the 3 ways to get your free annual credit report:

The three credit reporting agencies have created a website to request your annual credit report.

1) Go to www.annualcreditreport.com

2) Call (877) 322-8228 to request your free credit report.

3) Complete a form from the Federal Trade Comission, http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/include/requestformfinal.pdf and mail it to: Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA 30348-5281.

If you go directly to the three agencies or use any other type of service you may end up having to pay or sign up for the subscription services I mentioned above! Make sure you use one of the 3 methods I have listed to get your annual free credit report.

You can get the reports from all 3 agencies at once or stagger the reports from each one during the course of 1 year. The advantage of staggering the reports that you receive is to keep track of how any major changes in your financial picture affect what is on your credit report. For example, if you plan on getting a second mortgage over the coming year, or applying for student loans, ect. it might be wise to get a report before and after these major events!

This new Act does not supplant the other methods you can take advantage of to receive a free credit report. If you are applying for unemployment or been denied a loan, or need a credit report in order to get a job, you still have the right to obtain a free credit report.

Take advantage of this new government regulation and make sure all of the information listed by all three credit reporting agencies are correct. Any errors or omissions can reduce your credit score and end up costing you a lot of money when you apply for any type of credit.

The Credit Card - Quick History

Common enough today, a model of the credit card in it's current form was first invented by a fiction writer in early 1887. Edward Bellamy, author of "Looking Backward", mentions the credit card in the context of a utopian and socialist American society of the distant future. His hero falls into a hypnotic time traveling trance and is whisked forward through the time a full century, ending up in Boston in the year 2000, a place where he is able to make purchases using a commonly held piece of plastic. Credit however evolved long before the concept of carrying it around on a piece of plastic. Credit and debt have been the driving force behind achievements ranging from people working their way out of debt to a land-holder, etc...

The advent of wide-spread credit card use was not seen until the 1920's. At that point in time credit cards were not recognizable as the powerful buying tool they are today. There use was fragmented, and very often just tied to specific merchants rather than specific banks or as it is today. Later, carrying and using a credit card was just a way to use your money when you were away from your banking institution, a common use today, that debit cards have largely absorbed.

Still later, came partial or revolving payments. Initially, most issuers required credit card balances to be paid in full at the end of every month or pre-determined period. With the introduction of "revolving credit" came the realization that these cards were not just convenient for the user but could provide large amounts of revenue to anyone who wanted to tap into the strong desire to consume. This desire, coupled with new products and the convenience and care-free feel of handing over a card instead of cash has led some critics to believe that credit cards may have been responsible in part for The Great Depression of the 1920's.

Though different in many ways, the modern incarnation of the credit card relies on the same trusts and understandings as its earliest counter-parts. The card is not cash, but a representation of cash, sometime of resources that don't exist. The credit card taps into a history of human commercial interaction, created by necessity and re-imagined hundreds of times on its way to 2007. In the future, some predict that we will be living in a paper-less world. Many people believe that every money transaction will be purchased with a credit card from a cab fair to candy from a machine. The credit card has and continues to stand the grueling test of time.

3 Major Credit Bureaus – Which One Should I Contact?

There are 3 major credit bureaus that have information on your regarding your credit history. Anyone that has ever applied for a loan or credit of any kind has a file at one of the 3 major credit bureaus. Since merchants usually report to only one of the 3 major credit bureaus, you may have to request a free report from all three to get an overall look at your credit report.

To request a free credit report from either or all of the three major credit bureaus, all you have to do is to request a free report online. You can also send the request by mail and you have to provide all your personal information. There are sites that will charge you for a credit report from one of the 3 major credit bureaus, but it is necessary for you to know that by law you are entitled to one free credit report a year. You should contact the credit bureau directly to get your free report.

When you do receive your credit report from the 3 major credit bureaus there are certain sections of this report that you need to pay particular attention to. The first section details your name and address. You should check this to make sure that it is correct. If there are any inaccuracies in this section, you need to contact the credit bureau that sent the report with the correct information.

The next section will give details of your current bills. Each of the three major credit bureaus may contain the same information or one of the three may have different information regarding your credit history depending on which merchants report to that credit bureau. You should also note that you might have an excellent credit record with two of the 3 major credit bureaus and a poor rating with the other.

Check the listing of your bills, the amount of the payment and the due date. If you have been late with a payment or missed one altogether, this will show up on the credit report you receive from the 3 major credit bureaus. You also need to check to see who has been inquiring about your credit history to make sure that no unauthorized person or company has been making inquiries without your permission. When you see that everything is as it should be, then you know that your information is safe with the 3 major credit bureaus. If there are any inaccuracies in the debt information, you will need to contact the credit bureau to start taking the necessary steps to have it corrected.

There are 3 credit bureaus and you need to know about them if you are concerned about your credit report.