Tips For Choosing Among Credit Card Offers When You Have Bad CreditPosted by Nick Niesen on October 29th, 2010 Don?t let bad credit stop you from getting and using a credit card. Even if your credit rating has gone bad the last few months and you badly need a credit card, there are still companies who are willing to extend credit card offers to you. It's only a matter of finding what the different offers are and knowing the risks and benefits of each choice. Here are four kinds of credit cards you can use even with bad credit: Unsecured credit card Bad credit cards, thanks to your less-than-perfect credit rating, will charge higher fees compared to other types of credit cards. This is probably the only credit card that will charge you as much as $150 in annual fees alone. Interest rates are also higher, sometimes as much as 20%. Banks and credit card companies also charge higher application fees. If you want this card, make sure you can handle the payments. If not, you'll be in danger of getting yourself deeper into bad credit. Catalog credit card These companies will not charge you an interest rate on any of the purchases you make. However, they will require that you pay a higher installment or minimum monthly balance. Prepaid credit card Secured credit card You might think that secured credit cards totally defeat the purpose of a credit card and you're probably right. However, don't cross them out yet. Secured credit cards are a great way to rebuild your credit and still allow you to participate in cashless transactions. After all, you don?t want to remain in bad credit forever, right? So which credit card should you choose when you have bad credit? That depends on what you want to do. If you want to rebuild your credit, get an unsecured credit card that offers a good interest rate, low annual fees and no application fees. It's also important that it reports to a major credit bureau. All your payments will be recorded and if you're never delinquent, you can gradually rebuild your credit over time. If you only want a credit card that will tide you over for some temporary need, go for a prepaid or a secured credit card. As long as you can handle the monthly payments, these credit cards should help you get back on your feet once again. Like it? Share it!More by this author |