Make a new friend today - get a credit card

So you have not heeded the good advice of living within your means. You may have splurged a bit upon celebration of your first true credit card. Using plastic when purchasing that new mp3 player was so easy and painless as was that five course meal for four. The pain finally did come the day the bill arrived in the mail though, didn’t it? Then the discovery of minimum payments lit up like a light bulb above your head!

Only months later after seeing the rapid increase on the balance owed did you finally begin to understand how credit really works and now you are paying the price. Your new found credit card friend quickly became something you avoided, but you do not have to. Credit cards can indeed be your friend if you treat them right.

Paying lots of interest on debt is not the key to life on easy street, but there are some simple things that can be done to help you down that road. Your first aim is to stop paying all that interest. Many credit card companies offer cards to new customers with a 0% interest on balance transfers. This means that if you have a balance of £3,000 on a card, which you could be paying over 20% interest on, you can transfer this balance to a new card and pay no interest! There are some restrictions so the key is to find the card that is right for you.

Doing just a little bit of paperwork can save a bundle, so do your homework and trade your card in for a new one.

The next step is making sure you pay off the balance. All transactions made on credit cards contribute to your credit history which can have a huge impact on any future financial decisions such as applying for personal loans and mortgages. Bad scores resulting from poorly managed credit cards can be saved by good future practices in card use. Increase your credit score by paying all statements on time, including mobile phone contracts and other monthly bills. Another thing to do is pay as much as you can afford to on your credit card balance to rid yourself of debt.

Facing your financial situation may seem daunting, but taking these measures step by step will help you out of the red and into the black.