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prepaid credit cards

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Prepaid Credit Cards

 

Prepaid credit cards are just like credit cards except, as you might have guessed, you prepay or "fill" your account with money before you use the card. Your are not extended a line of credit and therefore you do not go into debt and you don't pay any interest charges. In this way, prepaid credit cards are quite different from regular credit cards. But the best part about having a prepaid credit card is that you can use them just like a standard credit card to buy computers, movie rentals, music, or just about anything else a standard credit card can get you.

Prepaid credit cards are great for:


  • Students who generally don't have an established credit history.


  • Those who have had some debt or credit problems in the past
    and who are finding difficult to obtain a regular credit card.


  • People who simply hate the idea of going into debt.

Prepaid Credit Cards: The Advantages 

Prepaid credit cards are very easy to get when compared to regular credit cards. You can order a prepaid credit card online with no worry about credit history checks or other encumbrances like income requirements. There are also many other benefit to getting a prepaid credit card, including:

  • No Debt: You'll never have debt that accumulates as with standard credit cards. This can mean peace of mind for those who have trouble managing their debt. A prepaid credit card simply stops working once the funds you deposited into it run out.


  • No Interest Charges: You'll never pay any interest charges with a prepaid credit card, a major advantage over standard credit cards. Interest charges can become extremely burdensome, especially for those with high interest credit cards. When it comes to credit card debt: interest charges are the credit card companies' best friend, and the credit consumer's worst enemy.


  • No Exorbitant Fees: Prepaid credit cards aren't free, but you'll never pay an over-the-limit fee, late payment fee or any of the other fees that regular credit cards usually have. That can mean a lot less worry and stress for you.


  • No Credit Checks: You won't be subject to a credit check when you apply for a prepaid debit card, which also means that just about anyone can get approved for a prepaid card.


  • Prepaid Card As A Teaching Tool:
    A great way for a parent to teach a high school- or college-bound teen about finances and budgeting is to give him or her a prepaid card. Not only can parents monitor their child's spending habits online (most prepaid cards allow you to track transactions via the Internet), students can also learn about the importance of budgeting and spending wisely, without having to worry about hefty interest charges, draconian fees and oppressive debt if a money-related mistake is made.


  • Fraud Protection: Most prepaid credit and debit cards feature the same fraud protection that's offered with standard credit cards. Prepaid card issuers that offer fraud protection generally refund to the cardholder any charges that the cardholder didn't make.

Prepaid Credit Cards: The Disadvantages 

Setup Fee: With prepaid credit cards, you'll have to pay a setup fee in order to open a prepaid credit card account. The setup fee can be as much as $50 (most prepaid credit cards have a setup fee that is much less than $50.) This might seem high, but it's a one-time fee, and when compared to the fees and interest associated with regular credit cards, it's really not that bad.

Certain prepaid cards also charge a monthly maintenance fee.

Automatic Rebilling: Another disadvantage to getting a prepaid credit card is that you may not be able to use a prepaid credit card for transactions that bill your card automatically on a regular basis (recurring payments.)

Credit History: You can use a standard credit card to pay for the goods and services you want and need in life. You'll receive a statement every month and you'll either pay the minimum amount due, the total balance due or a sum that is somewhere in between. The payments made to a standard credit card company are recorded, not only by the credit card company but also by one or more of the 3 major credit bureaus: TransUnion, Equifax and Experian. This activity becomes a part of your credit history (a.k.a credit profile), and if you've been able to make steady payments on a standard credit card for 2 or more years, your reliable and timely payments become a very attractive part of your credit profile (attractive to the banks and other financial institutions.)

With prepaid credit cards, there is no reporting to the credit bureaus, which means that any and all spending you do with your prepaid credit card will neither add favorably nor detract from your credit history. If you are the type of person who has trouble managing their debt, then this can be a good thing. However, if you are the type of person who pays bills on time every time, then using a prepaid credit card would be a wasted opportunity to enhance your credit rating.

Prepaid Credit and Debit Card Links 

Prepaid Credit Cards
The prepaid credit cards website.
Prepaid Credit Cards Blog
A blog about prepaid credit cards.
0% Credit Cards
A website dedicated to 0% credit cards.
0% Credit Cards, No Balance Transfer Fee
0% introductory annual percentage rate (APR) credit cards that don't charge a transaction fee for the first or initial balance transfers.
Business Credit Cards, No Fee Balance Transfer
Business credit cards where you can transfer your credit card balance @ 0% intro APR and pay no transaction fee for the initial balance transfers.
Small Business Credit Cards
Highly recommended credit cards for small and medium sized businesses.
Prime Rate
Want to know where the Federal Reserve is going with interest rates? If so, bookmark this blog.
Credit Card Blog
An informative blog about consumer-friendly credit cards in the American market.
Prepaid Credit Cards Online Poll
An online poll related to prepaid credit and debit cards. Click this link to cast your vote!
Prepaid Credit Cards Article
An informative article about prepaid credit cards.
Best Business Credit Card
Click this link to visit the best business credit cards ever webpage.

Debt and Personal Finance 

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Small Business Credit Cards 

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Prepaid Credit Cards Lens Guestbook 

djshivam

wohhhhhhh ohhhh hooooooo..... i was lookin for such an information......and finally i have got it!

Posted April 21, 2008

netrider79

Really Gr8 information and helpful artical..

Posted April 21, 2008

djshivam

great job.... invincible!

Posted April 16, 2008

PAUL-B

Informative content. Thanks for sharing.

Posted April 15, 2008

ghostfreak

great info thx

Posted April 14, 2008

prodigytx

great article

Posted April 13, 2008

gamescoper

i thought of getting a prepaid credit card to use instead of a normal one since there is no interest

Posted April 13, 2008

gamescoper

i thought of getting a prepaid credit card to use instead of a normal one since there is no interest

Posted April 13, 2008

templars26

that is a very intelligent article enjoyed reading it...

Posted April 12, 2008

emsplanet

nice information! thanks for sharing this...keep it up...

Posted April 08, 2008

Hoster007

Thanx for gr8 info.

Posted April 02, 2008

 
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