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Rewards Credit Card Deals

01:09:11 AM Wednesday, June 06, 2007

Figuring out which credit card deal is best for you.

Credit card rewards programs are one of the hottest things out there right now. Everyone loves being rewarded for merely spending money on their credit cards and credit card companies have no choice to comply because the competition between creditors is pretty stiff. There are a multitude of rewards options including: frequent flier miles, hotel discount credit cards, gasoline credit cards and even cash back rebates!

The type of rewards program that is right for you is going to be determined by your spending habits and your personal preferences. Not every rewards program is going to fit into your lifestyle so choose wisely! Credit cards work much like small loans that you have to pay back over time with added interests, so treat them this way.

With all of the marketing techniques being used out there by credit card companies today, it is difficult to tell which is legit and which is harmful. There are certain things that you should be looking at such as: APRs, grace periods, annual fees, and cash advance fees and many more. Picking out the right card is up to you!

Credit card company tricks

Credit card companies are in the business for one thing — your money! Don’t be fooled by all the advertisements and the solicitations. These card companies wouldn’t be in the business if they were losing money or if they weren’t trying to make some sort of gain. Credit card rewards programs are often tied in with high interest rates and high interest rates mean more money out of the consumer’s pocket!

If you carry a usual balance on your credit card it probably isn’t wise to get a rewards credit card because your interest will be much higher then it would be otherwise. Sure, you’ll be racking up rewards but you will most likely be paying back more in finance charges then your benefits even add up to!

Another trick of credit card companies is to add limitations and restrictions to their rewards programs. Travel restrictions are among the largest restrictions out there. If you plan on using your card rewards for frequent flier miles or airline miles through a specific airline, you are going to have to be careful about when you book your ticket and to where. Many companies will only allow you to fly during certain parts of the year or you may have to book two months in advance!

Comparing credit card deals is crucial. If you have any ambition of getting the best credit card deals then you will first have to compare credit cards. If you just pick up any old credit card application from your mailbox and send it in, you probably won’t be getting the best deal for your credit.

The best place to go for comparing credit card deals is the internet! The internet has a wealth of options and some websites even allow for side by side comparisons! This lets you compare a number of features that cards have and lets you pick the best one. Remember, there isn’t one best credit card. A credit card that fits your lifestyle and your spending habits is the best one for you!

Another effective way for comparing credit card deals is to use a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet. Here you can manually lay out the offers from the top credit card deals you find and figure out which one is best. By doing it this way you can put in your own criteria for a credit card.

If you have any questions whatsoever it is important that you contact the credit card company before you apply for a credit card! It would be far better to know all about the card’s fine print rather then get surprised later!

One thing that you will tend to notice about rewards program credit cards is that each card has its own system of calculating your bonus points. For instance, if you have a hotel discount credit card, they may give you 1% on all of your purchases while you’ll receive 10% for all purchases made through their line of hotels!

This is often the case with gasoline credit cards and airline miles credit cards as well. Don’t just assume that every credit card calculates their bonus points in the same way because they don’t!

One last thing that buyers should be aware of is cash rebate credit cards. You may find a card that offers 5% on all of your purchases. This may sound like a great deal, after all you’re getting $5 for every $100 spent!

But the truth with a lot of these cards is that you won’t start earning rewards until after you have spent a certain amount- say $5000 in a year! So your 5% rewards won’t start until after you have spent that five grand!