Hotel Rewards Credit Card Offer

Cards that offer hotel rewards are redeemable for free nights or discounts on your hotel stays. They are great deals for frequent travelers because you also earn bonus points when you stay. Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card credit card offers from American Express are right now the most popular hotel rewards cards.  With this card, when you earn up to 25,000 Starpoints, it equals to up to 6 free nights in 1 or 2 category hotel.  You can use your upgrades and free nights in 95 countries with no blackout dates.  With your first year you will have no annual fee, after that it is $45 a year. Cardholders can build points quickly in two ways. The Starwood card offers 1 point-per-dollar spent on any purchase and 2 points-per-dollar spent on any Starwood related purchase. The introductory rate is 2.9% doe 6 months then 15.24% thereafter.  Accumulated points are redeemable in increments of 7,500, which is equal to a discount of $100. Cardholders can instead redeem their points for frequent flyer miles or special rates on Amtrak instead of discounts on hotel stays.  Car rental insurance, travel accident insurance and fraud protection are additional benefits of this American Express Card.

Advice on credit card deals

Credit cards are now an integral part of someone’s wallets. There was this time when there would be very few people who flashed a credit card and today it is no longer a rare thing to be the owner of a credit card. You might as well apply for a credit card now. Before you apply for a credit card you must know that all companies say that they offer the best credit card deals but you need to be able to research well and decide for yourself which deals are the best and which deals do not suit your needs.

Here is some important advice before you find a credit card for yourself.

1.       Get a list of all the credit card companies.

2.       Find some of the offers that attract you the most. Remember to look for freebies as well as interest rate and annual fees.

3.       Interest rate is the most important factor pay special attention to this while choosing the best credit card deal.

4.       Look to see if you can find a 0% interest rate credit card which you are eligible for. These are very handy and give you the freedom to spend without paying interest for the first few months.

Break the Vicious Minimum Payment Cycle

Minimum payments are usually calculated as a certain percentage, averaging around 1-3% of your credit card balance.  The biggest mistake you can make is to miss a single payment on your credit card because that will trigger the interest rates and you end up burying yourself deeper into debt because instead of simply paying off the principal, you’re stuck paying for the interest.  Making at least the minimum payment will help you avoid more bad debt but why prolong the agony in the first place?  Break the cycle and manage your money wisely.

When Being A Deadbeat Works. Credit card companies make their money off the interest rates they charge you especially when you keep making the minimum payments.  Try to pay more than the minimum amount due – you end up knocking off the debt quickly and save your money from high interest rates.  Even better, make the payment in full and as much as possible avoid carrying balances altogether.

Improve Credit History. You can cost precious points off your credit score when you just keep on meeting the minimum payments.  Your credit score will rise when you pay off your balance faster by making higher payments. (more…)

Should You Settle Your Credit Card Debt

Debt settlement is growing in popularity with credit card companies as they are sending offers to consumers that have been making minimum payments, or are close to their limits or even those consumers that have reached and even exceeded the spending limit that was established. Settling the debt will result in a lower price being paid, even with the use of monthly installments in some cases, to the credit card company – rather than repaying the full amount of the credit card debt.

Although one of the main benefits of debt settlement for your credit card allows the consumer to reduce the debt which is paid in total, it can reflect poorly on the consumer as this act is recorded on the credit report. Be sure to check with the credit company and research your options to ensure that you are preserving your credit rating – debt settlement should be the last resort.

Why are credit cards offering debt settlement choices to so many consumers? The credit card company would rather receive a portion of the money that has been charged, rather than to lose all of the money together when the client and card holder is unable to repay the bill that has been accumulated. Therefore, the credit card company can see fewer losses.

Although it can free up money within the finances, it is important to know of all the terms and conditions that come with the offer. Are you going to be able to maintain credit with the company or will the account be closed? How long will it continue to affect the credit report? These are all aspects to keep in mind when considering credit card debt settlement.