6 of the Most Common Credit Card Mistakes
Credit cards are a great asset when it comes to taking care of expenses. They are especially helpful in times of emergency where you could just swipe them and pay the bills. But they can also be harmful if you misuse them. Let us take a look at some of the most common credit card mistakes that most people make:
Ignoring the Statement
Quite often, people come across transactions in their inaccurate billing statements. To rectify this, they should detect this at the early stages of the transaction to take action against fraud transactions. This is why you need to keep checking your transactions regularly to make sure everything is accurate.
Skipping a Payment
Missing payments negatively affects credit score. If your payment date crosses the 30-day mark, then your credit score could take a 17 to 83-point hit. It gets worse when the date crosses the 90-day mark, as your score could take a whopping 133-point hit. Clearing the payment before 30 days would not affect your credit score.
Misusing Your Credit Card
There are a lot of people who max out their credit cards. This is something you should refrain from doing, as keeping your utilization rate high could also cause a fall in your credit score. If you are using your credit card close to its limit and managing to clear off the dues at the end of the month, you can call up the credit card company and request an increase on your credit card limit.
Frequently Getting New Credit Cards
All new credit requests are recorded on your credit report. Too many inquiries in short time would put you in a bad light for lenders. Make sure you do not ask for a new one more than once every six months.
Taking Cash in Advance
A lot of people are unaware that taking out cash in advance results in the interest starting to pile up. There’s most likely a 5% fee for the cash you took out in advance. Plus, there is no grace period, so you need to clear off the payment as soon as possible. If not, you could be paying a lot more because of the delay.
Not Clearing Your Balance
According to studies, 22% of people in the country simply carry over their balance because they think it’s good for their credit score. Such a mistake is quite common among credit card users. Doing this would just increase your utilization rate, not to mention the interest that is constantly growing on the balance that is due. You should always clear your debt as soon as you can.