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Your best credit card management tips

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OnTheRebound
Established Contributor

Re: Your best credit card management tips


@CruzImperial wrote:
Aren't the above #2 and #3 suggestions the same? lols

If living off every paycheck is the situation, I would try to cut down my budget so I have room to play and pay little more on my cards.
If there's a time of the year when you take your vacations or receive a bonification or extra source of income(for many of us the income tax returns around feb~mar, make sure to use it well.

Yes. Just emphasizing the "Never Ever" part.

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Message 11 of 37
severine
Contributor

Re: Your best credit card management tips

I recently started using Mint.com and it is an excellent resource for managing your finances. What is nice about it is that you get a snapshot on one page of your balances and due dates of all your accounts (credit card, investments, student loans, bank accounts) and there is a handy budget page as well that let's you ponder questions like "Do I really need to be spending $87/month on Starbucks?". Smiley Tongue Check it out, it's a great tool for managing your cashflow.

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Message 12 of 37
jsucool76
Super Contributor

Re: Your best credit card management tips


@severine wrote:

I recently started using Mint.com and it is an excellent resource for managing your finances. What is nice about it is that you get a snapshot on one page of your balances and due dates of all your accounts (credit card, investments, student loans, bank accounts) and there is a handy budget page as well that let's you ponder questions like "Do I really need to be spending $87/month on Starbucks?". Smiley Tongue Check it out, it's a great tool for managing your cashflow.


I use mint.com as well, it's also got a nice little app for cell phones. My only issue with it is the updating isn't really that quick. I checked out pageonce (I think that's what it's called) and it seems to update my accounts a lot quicker, only issue being you can't add GECRB credit card account. 

Message 13 of 37
EandK23
Regular Contributor

Re: Your best credit card management tips

So many great tips! It's definitely true about keeping a budget. There are many great apps/ tools out there to help with this. You'll be surprised where your money is going.
Message 14 of 37
webhopper
Moderator Emeritus

Re: Your best credit card management tips

Definately a budget and cash flow worksheet for each month helps you make sure that you keep track of money instead of it keeping track of you. If you know where each penny of your check will be spent before the month starts, you have a less likely chance of going over budget and more likely to pay everything on time
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Message 15 of 37
JoPunk
Member

Re: Your best credit card management tips

I also recently started to use mint.com and the smart phone app.  I've become obsessed with it and check it several times a day.  It works off of your current bank online accounts, so all you have to do to set it up is create a mint account and then add in your other credit card and bank accounts.  I have all of my accounts on it including my 401k and investment accounts.  It updates ever time you log in with your 4 digit pin (on smart phone) and it is as current as your individual online accounts.  It shows recent card activity including pending transactions, available credit and total amount used.  It will also alert you if you have high spending in a category (preset or created by you).  It's a great way to see everything in one view instead of having to log into individual online accounts or apps.  It will also notify you when you have an upcoming bill.

 

I have several credit cards that I use for various points and miles.  It was hard at first to manage all of them at once, but now I make sure that I never use more than 2 credit cards at once, rotating through them depending upon bonus point structures.  I will pay a credit card as many as 4 times in one month as I get cash coming in.  That way it doesn't seem like such a big hit if I have to pay a lot of money at once, and If I see a finance charge, it will be small.  I setup my accounts to always pay the min amount each month, just in case I forget to pay one.  Forgetting to make a payment is the worst excuse for lowering your credit score or standing with a bank.  It's like running in to get a cup of coffee and getting a parking ticket because you parked in the wrong spot.  You end up kicking yourself.

Message 16 of 37
SwiftTone
Valued Contributor

Re: Your best credit card management tips

Before swiping your CC, you should have enough in your bank account to cover that charge right away.

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Message 17 of 37
Autumnslight
Frequent Contributor

Re: Your best credit card management tips

Definitely agree on NEVER EVER pay late. If it ever comes down to it, and you absolutely HAVE to let something slide in a particluar month, even just by a couple of days, don't let it be a credit card payment! They may raise your rate, charge you fees, and/or decrease your credit limit.

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Message 18 of 37
TheConductor
Established Contributor

Re: Your best credit card management tips

+1 to the Mint.com recommendations. It's a great tool for seeing where your money goes and setting a budget to keep things in check in those areas where you tend to overspend.

 

Pageonce is nice, too, but I tried them both for a while and decided I like Mint's interface and budgeting tools much better.

 

However, for making sure I keep track of due dates and always pay on time, my favorite is Manilla. It does a much better job than Mint of keeping me alerted to upcoming bills, and it archives every bill or statement for me automatically. I check it once a day to see my account balances and upcoming due dates, and it always keeps me on track.  Highly recommended.  And of course, just like every web app these days, it also has a smartphone version!

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Message 19 of 37
tmbr10
Regular Contributor

Re: Your best credit card management tips

Awesome advice coming from the posters. My advice to add would be...

 

1. Patience. Credit building is a marathon not a sprint.

2. Be very careful with these app sprees. Never been a fan of those.

3. Make credit work for you, not the other way around.

4. Carrying a balance is not the worst thing in the world. Just be in control of it.

 

I've had one of the worst looking credit reports that a person could have (minus a BK). I keep that report  in my files just as a sobering reminder of what credit abuse can do. Now.... I sit comfortably at 813 and drive my own "credit boat". There aren't too many credit stories that I wouldn't be able to relate to. I really stand behind my points 1 and 2.

Message 20 of 37
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