What to avoid when dealing with credit

Prime importance of credit dealings

12:57 24 January 2014

When you are dealing with credit everyone tells you the various things you should do. They tell you what you need to do in order to be responsible but people hardly ever talk about the various things you should stay away from.

Here are some of the things you should keep away from when handling credit.

• Avoid making only the minimum payment. Making the minimum payment will not hurt your score but it will make it harder for you to pay off your debt. The longer you make only minimum payments on your credit card, the longer it takes to pay your card off. If possible, pay off as much of your balance as possible every month.

 

• If at all possible avoid large balances. If you do have to make a large purchase make a plan to pay it off and stick to it. You may have to spend a few months cutting back to pay the balance off but it will be worth it to lower your credit card debt quickly.

 

• Avoid missing payments or paying late. It might not seem like much but these issues are automatically reported to the credit reporting agencies. They can seriously have an effect on your ratings.

 

• Be cautious in whatever you do but take more precaution to guard your financial information. While there are ways to help protect you against credit card fraud, the majority of the responsibility rests on your shoulders to protect yourself.

Handling credit responsibly is more than just knowing what to do but it also means knowing what to avoid. When you are managing your financed options make sure to protect yourself from fraud by guarding your information, pay down balances by paying more than the minimum, and creating a payment plan to handle large purchases. Following these steps will help you avoid problems with your credit.