Good Credit Card Habits to Protect Your Credit

Building your credit history with the help of a credit card is indeed, a wise move.  However, building good credit history doesn't just stop with owning a credit card.  More importantly, the kind of credit you’ll be building for yourself depends on how smart and responsible you are in handling your credit card account.  In this article, let’s discuss the good habits to help you build-up and protect your credit

Be aware of your deadlines.  Do you always submit your payments on time? Or are you in the habit of delaying your payments or neglecting your due dates?  If you think that occasional late payments won’t affect your credit score, you’re mistaken.  Even a single late payment can pull down your score by a point or two.  If you’re credit score is in the boundary of average and poor, that one late payment can result to a failing score.  Therefore, make it a point to submit your payment on time at all times.  Furthermore a single late payment can cost you additional fees or late penalty charges.

Don’t be content with just the minimum.  True, submitting the minimum due before your deadline can help you avoid late payments.  But if you often carry over your credit card balances from month one billing period to the next, you are also incurring the interest of your debt.  Such additional charges can add up to your burden.  Before you know it, you’re already stuck in bad credit.  To avoid the debt trap, it’s best to pay off your balances in full each month.

Understand your credit card’s billing cycle.  Do you know when your cut-off date begins and ends?  Most credit cards have cut-off dates set at the end of the month.  This means all the purchases you incurred before the cut-off would be included on your next billing statement.  Before swiping that card, calculate how much you've already charged to your card and make sure that you can afford to pay it back.

Set your own personal limit.  Aside from the credit limit you have, set your own personal spending limit.  This would depend on how much income you make each month, your expenses, and your repayment obligations.  Be realistic and live within your means.

Examine your credit card bill.  Make it a habit to examine your monthly billing statements to see if all charges in your account are correct.  In case of errors or unauthorized transactions, contact your credit card company right away to dispute those charges.  Follow up your concern by sending a dispute letter via registered post mail.

Take care of your credit card.  Credit card information can be stolen and used in committing unauthorized transactions.  Do not write your password or PIN in a piece of paper that can be easily misplaced.  Make sure that all your credit card information is kept in a safe place.  Do not carry all your good credit cards in your wallet.  In case of lost, call your credit card’s hotline immediately and have your credit card blocked and replaced.

About the Author

Melanie Mathis is writer, credit analyst, web designer from Las Vegas, Nevada. My interest are art, history, traveling, shopping, books and fine dining.