Credit Card shopping.. How do you do it?

[thecoolnessrune]

Hey guys, we've been on our grandparents credit card for about 3 years. 9% fixed interest rate and tons of rewards. But now we have to get our own. We are trying the same company hoping they'll be nice to us, but are there better options? How do you go about getting a credit card? I know we can't hope to get the benefits of our grandparents card, but how can we go about making sure we get as good a deal as possible?

 

[Ryan]

IMHO, get a secured credit card from your local bank/credit union. I did when I was 16, bought everything on the card, and paid if off weekly - by 19, my credit score was around 700. Now, I obviously got turned down for anything I applied for at that point and still required a cosigner, just because I had little income, but it made for a solid start.

That said - you will probably have to have a cosigner.

 

[MyThirdEye]

In Nebraska, I'm pretty sure that you have to be 19 before you can legally have a credit card, your own cell phone contract, ect without a cosigner.

 

[Throwmeabone]

Originally posted by: thecoolnessrune
Hey guys, we've been on our grandparents credit card for about 3 years. 9% fixed interest rate and tons of rewards. But now we have to get our own. We are trying the same company hoping they'll be nice to us, but are there better options? How do you go about getting a credit card? I know we can't hope to get the benefits of our grandparents card, but how can we go about making sure we get as good a deal as possible?

How do you get one? Easy, go to a bank's website and apply for one. Or, wait for a 0% promotional offer to come to you in the mail. The best companies are Discover and American Express but are accepted in the least places. I don't think you'll need a cosigner or a secured card because the three years of being on your grandparents' account should have given you some credit history. Interest rate to me is irrelevant because I don't deal with that. It's a loser's game.

 

[thecoolnessrune]

Originally posted by: Throwmeabone

Originally posted by: thecoolnessrune
Hey guys, we've been on our grandparents credit card for about 3 years. 9% fixed interest rate and tons of rewards. But now we have to get our own. We are trying the same company hoping they'll be nice to us, but are there better options? How do you go about getting a credit card? I know we can't hope to get the benefits of our grandparents card, but how can we go about making sure we get as good a deal as possible?

How do you get one? Easy, go to a bank's website and apply for one. Or, wait for a 0% promotional offer to come to you in the mail. The best companies are Discover and American Express but are accepted in the least places. I don't think you'll need a cosigner or a secured card because the three years of being on your grandparents' account should have given you some credit history. Interest rate to me is irrelevant because I don't deal with that. It's a loser's game.

I've always paid the card off every month and will continue to. But those few months that I can't (like when I bought this laptop), I'd like as little interest penalty as possible..

 

[Ryan]

Originally posted by: thecoolnessrune

Originally posted by: Throwmeabone

Originally posted by: thecoolnessrune
Hey guys, we've been on our grandparents credit card for about 3 years. 9% fixed interest rate and tons of rewards. But now we have to get our own. We are trying the same company hoping they'll be nice to us, but are there better options? How do you go about getting a credit card? I know we can't hope to get the benefits of our grandparents card, but how can we go about making sure we get as good a deal as possible?

How do you get one? Easy, go to a bank's website and apply for one. Or, wait for a 0% promotional offer to come to you in the mail. The best companies are Discover and American Express but are accepted in the least places. I don't think you'll need a cosigner or a secured card because the three years of being on your grandparents' account should have given you some credit history. Interest rate to me is irrelevant because I don't deal with that. It's a loser's game.

I've always paid the card off every month and will continue to. But those few months that I can't (like when I bought this laptop), I'd like as little interest penalty as possible..

Then it's just a matter of shopping around to see who has the best rates, offers - :thumbsup:

 

[Q]

http://www.bettercreditcard.com

 

[ghostman]

Originally posted by: thecoolnessrune

Originally posted by: Throwmeabone

Originally posted by: thecoolnessrune
Hey guys, we've been on our grandparents credit card for about 3 years. 9% fixed interest rate and tons of rewards. But now we have to get our own. We are trying the same company hoping they'll be nice to us, but are there better options? How do you go about getting a credit card? I know we can't hope to get the benefits of our grandparents card, but how can we go about making sure we get as good a deal as possible?

How do you get one? Easy, go to a bank's website and apply for one. Or, wait for a 0% promotional offer to come to you in the mail. The best companies are Discover and American Express but are accepted in the least places. I don't think you'll need a cosigner or a secured card because the three years of being on your grandparents' account should have given you some credit history. Interest rate to me is irrelevant because I don't deal with that. It's a loser's game.

I've always paid the card off every month and will continue to. But those few months that I can't (like when I bought this laptop), I'd like as little interest penalty as possible..

The fact that you say you pay off your CC every month is a good sign. But the fact that you could not pay it off EVERY time is worrisome. Because CC's tend to be regressive like that. If you're unable to pay in full, you may end up being slapped with higher rates (yes, even if you manage to make the minimum payments), making it even harder to pay it off. When I chose my card, I chose it based solely on the benefits, committing to never miss a payment. Just don't buy anything that you don't already have the money in cash to pay off! (Don't depend on your next paycheck to pay off a CC bill, since you might get fired.) It's a simple concept that people can't seem to follow.

 

[thecoolnessrune]

Originally posted by: ghostman

Originally posted by: thecoolnessrune

Originally posted by: Throwmeabone

Originally posted by: thecoolnessrune
Hey guys, we've been on our grandparents credit card for about 3 years. 9% fixed interest rate and tons of rewards. But now we have to get our own. We are trying the same company hoping they'll be nice to us, but are there better options? How do you go about getting a credit card? I know we can't hope to get the benefits of our grandparents card, but how can we go about making sure we get as good a deal as possible?

How do you get one? Easy, go to a bank's website and apply for one. Or, wait for a 0% promotional offer to come to you in the mail. The best companies are Discover and American Express but are accepted in the least places. I don't think you'll need a cosigner or a secured card because the three years of being on your grandparents' account should have given you some credit history. Interest rate to me is irrelevant because I don't deal with that. It's a loser's game.

I've always paid the card off every month and will continue to. But those few months that I can't (like when I bought this laptop), I'd like as little interest penalty as possible..

The fact that you say you pay off your CC every month is a good sign. But the fact that you could not pay it off EVERY time is worrisome. Because CC's tend to be regressive like that. If you're unable to pay in full, you may end up being slapped with higher rates (yes, even if you manage to make the minimum payments), making it even harder to pay it off. When I chose my card, I chose it based solely on the benefits, committing to never miss a payment. Just don't buy anything that you don't already have the money in cash to pay off! (Don't depend on your next paycheck to pay off a CC bill, since you might get fired.) It's a simple concept that people can't seem to follow.

It wasn't just minumums or anything like that. I bought a 1300 dollar laptop. I paid 850 the first month and the remainder the next month. I had to leave enough to pay my grandparents bills as they don't have hardly any income and had some unexpected doctor's bills.

 

[Dulanic]

I use a chase freedom for most of my spending and average a $250 check from them every maybe 4 months.

 

[compuwiz1]

You don't need a credit card for online shopping. A Visa or Mastercard debit card can be used the same way.

 

[Deeko]

They'll generally give a student card to someone with no credit - it has a lower limit, and higher interest rate, but it's a start. I got an Amex Blue and Citibank Visa when I was 18 and 19, respectively. They were fine until I graduated college, had a better score, and was able to get a "normal" card with a much lower interest rate.

 

[HexiumVII]

You can also start with a store card at department stores, or amazon buy.com chase cards require pretty much no credit to get.

 

[yhelothar]

Originally posted by: Ryan
IMHO, get a secured credit card from your local bank/credit union. I did when I was 16, bought everything on the card, and paid if off weekly - by 19, my credit score was around 700. Now, I obviously got turned down for anything I applied for at that point and still required a cosigner, just because I had little income, but it made for a solid start.

That said - you will probably have to have a cosigner.

nah it shouldn't be too hard to be approved for any card out there.
my ex just got approved for the blue cash card, and she's 19. She just got her first credit card when she was 18, and never even spent that much with it.