Retail credit cards are among the best investments that you can make in your commercial life – if you know what you are doing. The big retailers have plenty of room to give away deals.
If you are among the lucky few who understand the way to get these deals, you can save a great deal of money by simply holding on to one or more of these credit cards.
Amazon, Target and Best Buy are among the best retailers to do business within this way. There are some differences that you should know about before you commit to any of these cards, however. Here are some of the most important things that you should know about big retail cards and how to use them to your best advantage.
The Advantages & Disadvantage of Retail Store Cards
Just because you are offered a store credit card does not mean you should necessarily take it. Take a good look at the fine print so you will know exactly what kind of agreement you’re getting into. There are many differences between traditional credit cards and store credit cards that you should know, and this section will go over what they are.
First of all, cards that are meant to be used at Amazon and Target will have limited use. You will only be able to use them at those stores. However, they will have some of the best deals of any cards that are being used at that store, so pick your battles wisely.
If you read the fine print and you know that you will get better deals because you shop at a higher volume or with specific products at the store, then you can go ahead and get a retail credit card without any problems.
Keep in mind that retail credit cards will probably have higher interest rates than regular credit cards. In some cases, retail credit cards are not subject to the rules that limit the interest rates of traditional credit cards. If this is the case, then you will definitely find some deals that are not good at all if you do enough research.
You should also understand that rewards are more difficult to get with retail credit cards. Because you are already getting great deals on the products that are in the store itself, then you can’t look for extras. Some cards may offer this, but it is usually not a substantial part of the offering that you receive.
You may be able to get around this limitation if you get a co-branded card. Cobranded cards have an affiliation with the retail store that you are buying, and they also have a logo from one of the major credit companies like Visa, American Express or MasterCard.
If you get a retail credit card that is meant to be used at one store, then you will only earn rewards at that store. The rewards may be substantial, but they will be limited in the form of the physical proximity that you have to the store.
Make sure that you have convenient access to a store before you invest in a retail credit card for that store. You may make an exception for extremely large chains that you can find anywhere.
If you travel, then having a card for a retail store that is widely distributed will certainly help you if you need to make an emergency trip at some point.
The Interest Rate
The interest rate that is associated with a credit card
is one of its most important characteristics. Most of the store credit cards
that you will consider will not have those very attractive features like
0% APR or a time frame of interest-free purchases. What you will
likely find is the promotion for deferred interest. This is one of the favorite
promotions of retail stores that sell big-ticket inventory.
Deferred interest simply means that you need to pay the entire balance
that is on the card before the end of the promotion period. If you do not
do this, then you will be charged the interest rate that is set on the
card. The interest that you pay may be backdated, so you will end up
having to pay the interest for the entire promotional period. It is very
important that you understand the difference between this kind of promotion in
the promotion that is given on most traditional credit cards.
You will likely have a lower credit limit on your store credit card and you will on your traditional credit cards. Retailers expect you to spend less in one store than you do overall, so they do not give you is high the limit to begin with. This is especially true if your overall credit score is not good or you do not have a record of purchasing products at that store.
With low credit limits like these, it is actually very easy to spend the entire limit in a single day. You may not be able to get approved for a higher credit limit very easily, but you can certainly try if you have a decent credit score. The store cards themselves do not go very far in establishing an overall credit history.
If you want to maximize your efforts in this endeavor, then you need to get a major credit card that works everywhere instead of a store credit card. You can certainly have a store credit card along with one of your major credit cards, and your performance on the major credit card will affect the privileges that you receive on the store credit card.
However, you can actually begin a credit record with a store credit card. Most major retailers to report to the three major credit rating agencies, meaning that you will have all of your purchases count towards your future credit score. On the flipside, you will also have all of your late payments and all of your non-payments count on your credit record as well.
In short, make sure that you know exactly what you are doing when you invest in a store credit card. There are certainly many advantages to using this tool, including getting great deals on products from stores that you frequent and improving your overall credit score.
However, you need to play this game correctly if you hope to succeed. You should certainly consider a strategy of having a major credit card alongside one or more retail credit cards in order to optimize your benefits. There is certainly no downside to having a retail credit card if you read the fine print.
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