No doubt, credit cards are a great convenience,and life sans a credit card might be tough to envision. But for many, creditcards are a liability rather than an asset. So, keep a tight reign onexpenditure, and save yourself from paying exorbitant interest rates!
• Obtain A Copy Of The Credit Report. Check forcorrect addresses, loans or credit cards that don’t belong to you and erroneous late paymentreports by your creditors.
•Attend to discrepancies on the Credit Reportimmediately.
•Review your credit cards. Make lists (and carryeverywhere). Include account numbers and contact details (those numbers one
calls in casecards are stolen or lost.
• Evaluate recent statements to double checkinterest rates, because sometimes low introductory offers expire after a certain timeperiod.
•Check For Hidden Costs. Some companies charge anannual fee. Take stock of this and note that if it is too much, you can scout around fora better deal.
•Cancel cards…that you are not using.
•Save Monthly Receipts Of Payments Made ThroughCredit Cards.
•Check Monthly Statements…so you can crosscheckfor any billing errors.
•Make Timely Payments…You could be charged ahefty fee otherwise! If you accidentally miss a payment, request a waiver of late fee andinterest.
•In case of Debt… (And this is not a greatposition to be in) evaluate how much balance you need to pay and figure out a route so you can paymore than the minimum due each month. Pay off the card with highest interest rate first. And stopcarrying your credit card with you!
•To ensure that you have a good credit cardmanagement habit, print this checklist every month-end and tick-off what youmanaged to achieve and what not. Eventually you will be able to identify theareas that require attention.
