I have a favourite club (that i won’t tell you) and i support it regularly by buying the strip, going to the games and watching them play on the TV, just like any other football supporter.  But when i heard about football credit cards i simply had to go one step further.  At first i thought that football credit cards were just credit cards decorated in your team’s strip, and it wasn’t until i got one that i realised exactly what it does.

It actually pays money to your favourite football club on your behalf.  Can you believe that?  I know what you’re thinking too; no matter how much you love your club you’re thinking that they don’t need any more money, and that the players get paid enough as it is.  I agree with you, but to begin with, you don’t pay, your credit card company does, and secondly the money doesn’t go to that side of the club, it allows the development of the youth team and things like that.  If you want to support your club a little extra you’ll support the youths!

When you choose a new jacket or pair of shoes you might not choose a bright red colour simply because it doesn’t suit you, right?  Well it’s pretty much the same with a credit card, and when it comes to choosing the best credit card you simply need to know what you want.  You need to do a quick analysis of what you do, where you go, and how you spend your money.  Once you’ve done this you can better position yourself to choose the right credit card to suit your needs.

For example if you travel to the US twice a year then a credit card that offers free airmiles would be very useful to you.  If you love music and movies then perhaps a credit card that gives you money off in selected stores might be more useful to you?  You simply have to do the checks and then apply.  And don’t worry about your applications, if you have a good credit score then you’ll be fine.

If your teen gets their credit card now then the mistakes they make will be learned from much earlier and in a less stressful time than when they have moved out and are trying to make it on there own.  There is nothing worse than taking on a credit card to get you through a rough time (which inevitably we all have) only to realise that you are saddled with the debt for the next 20 years of your life.  However, if we teach our children about credit cards so that they don’t make the same mistakes then we could eradicate bad financial behaviour altogether.

Pay as you go credit cards are obviously the first step when it comes to to teen credit cards, and there is nothing better to teach them what they have to spend.  The only thing is that they are paying for their credit limit before they spend it.  This is a highly successful way of teaching teens that they need to have the money in order to spend it.

It is notoriously difficult for anyone with a poor credit rating to get a mortgage or secure a loan, and then these people are left wanting these things and are unable to get them.  You can rebuild your credit rating with a credit rebuilder card if you really want to work at it.  This is the key really isn’t it?  Wanting to do it.  If you want to rebuild your credit score and you’re tired of getting turned down everywhere you look for finance then get a bad credit card.

These credit cards will have an enormously high interest rate and an incredibly small limit on them.  This is good, and you must remember this.  The interest rate is there to convince you not to miss a payment, and the limit is there to help you spend less.  If you succeed in managing this credit card then you will be in a much better position to apply for further credit.  This is how you rebuild your financial life.

Granted, some of the charity cards have other benefits for the credit cardholder, but many of these selfless individuals have taken on their charity credit card to sacrifice something for others.  It’s a very noble thing to do, take your own rewards away in order to give them to people who really need them.  No, i don’t mean giving up your airmiles to the WWF or anything like that, what i mean is donating cash instead of gaining your airmiles.

Now the charity card can donate directly to your chosen charity on your behalf, and it doesn’t cost you a thing; only that there are fewer member benefits with the average charity credit card.  So there is no reason why you shouldn’t have one in your wallet, even if you are going to use it occasionally to donate to a charity that means something to you.

Cridit cards are simply not evil creations.  Yes, they are a way for people to make money from other peoples’ weaknesses, but this is the same as a lot of things in this world isn’t it?  The pursuit of capital has become a human instinct now, and it’s one of the main things we teach our children these days.  Indeed, in order for them to merely survive in a social society like ours a fundamental grasp of money and it’s worth is essential.  It is this reason that i think all cridit cards are not evil.

The original idea may have been evil, and was argualbly born from the illegal loan sharking business, bit these days cridit cards can be used for so much more good and be far more useful now that advice exists for correctly use them.  No cridit card can be bad if it’s managed correctly.

If you have and you have a little cash piled up in the bank waiting to be wisely invested (yeah right!) then it might just be go out and apply for student credit card time.  Even if you haven’t saved any money, it’s always a good thing to have when you need it in an emergency; which, let’s face it, as a student is quite likely!

The fact remains that credit card companies and banks like higher education students and will usually give credit cards out because they know that the student is usually supported by a loan and they work too.  Gone are the days of the poor student (unless they don’t budget well enough), and even when you get the dreadful ones who spend all their money and just want more, you will still get credit card companies throwing money at them simply because they believe that these people will eventually leave University, grow up and become the next prime minister or something; therefore making them able to pay off their loan.

So if you’re a student exploit what opportunities you have to the full!

You might think that once you’ve found a card then that’s it, but you really need to know more about the credit card company too.  Research a little by looking at what other credit cards and serivices they offer and see if those are also good deals.  If they are only providing one credit card and nothing else then they are probably not as good as other credit card companies out there on the market that can offer you a choice of cards when you decide to sign up with them.

Take Barclaycard for example, and American Express.  These two major players are always good companies to get a credit card with simply because they are big names, they have multiple cards to chosoe from and they are pretty much guaranteed to provide a good level of customer service because they can afford to.  Also, when it comes to the two credit cards i’ve just mentioned, it’s worth remembering that they are pretty prestigous companies and not just anyone can apply and get accepting these days.  This is a good thing if you’ve got the cash to back it up!

There are some pretty good reward cards out there however, and we’re going to tell you about a few of them on offer at the moment.  One of the top ones at the moment appears to be the American Express Platinum card.  With this card you can expect the following benefits:

• Up to 5% cashback.  Now there isn’t a much better reward than that is there?  Cash back from your credit card allows you to spend the money on what you want rather than what the credit card company would rather you spend your money on like wine and CDs as Virgin would have you do.
• No annual fee
• 19.9% interest rate.  This isn’t great but then for a credit card as good as an American Express if you can afford to get one you can afford the interest believe me.
• Purchase protection insurance.  Always a good thing.
• Discounts on shopping, dining and entertainment too.

If that isn’t enough for you then you’re not easily satisfied.  However, if you want to get your hands on a new shiny Amex card you’re going to have to have at least a cool £30,000 a year coming into your household.

The idea is that you get a credit card that offers rewards that you will use, an interest rate that agrees with you, and perhaps things like 0% on your balance transfers for up to a year of just over.  Now all these things are available readily from various credit card companies but sometimes people get into the trap of accepting the first credit card that accepts them through some ridiculous fear that no-one else will accept them.

Let me tell you something, if you think that you’ll be turned down for credit then you’re probably right, and you should quit trying.  But if you actually think that your credit score is good enough to get a reasonable credit card then simply hold out for the right one.  There is no use in getting a credit card that gives you free airmiles if you never leave your garden gate, and there is no point in getting one that gives you money of CDs when you don’t listen to music.

Basically, shop around and get the best deal.