Help- Student creidt card

x__Indigo_x

Hi i am new to the forum so im sorry if any questions sound stupid/obvious

i am a third year law student and i get all the loans from the government[ maintance loan and tutition loan] and manage my money very well . i do not get any help from my parents , most of the time i give them money to manage so i dont need a credit card for that reason.

basically I was reading online somewhere that its best to have had a credit card [ that i would pay off properly!] than to never have one ...like i would have a 'bad' credit status after university say if i wanted a credit card then i would struggle?!

so my questions are is this correct ? im best to get one now when i can afford monthly repayments ?

if so would i even need to use the card or by just applying would i get a good credit status even though the card was never used? or do i need to do some sort of spend every month [ and repay it on time] ?

i hope im making some sense:o ,

thanks in advance for any replies

edit : i dont know how to edit the title but i meant to type credit not creidt

The_One_Who

Having a credit card will boost credit score a little bit, yes. Student cards generally don't have a very high limit, mine is £500. As long as you pay it off properly credit cards are great things. I would advise you to make a few payments on it every few months just to show some activity on it.

x__Indigo_x

ok thanks ... can anyone else elaberate a bit more on this??

what credit card did you get above poster?

Lokolo

Yes getting a credit card, using it, and paying it off (direct debit I would suggest) is a very good idea. However much I can save, I can spend more, if someone gave me a credit card I would be in a lot of crap. If you are the same I wouldn't recommend you don't get one.

Other than a credit card, bills and such will help credit rating. So phone contracts, broadband, phone gas and electricity.

The_One_Who

Mine is a HBOS student credit card. Maximum limit is £500.

I'm not sure which part you want elaborated but getting a credit card when a student (when they're throwing them at you) can make it a little bit easier to credit card in the future because you'll have an established history. If you go a little bit crazy with it and struggle to pay it off then you can get yourself into quite a bit of trouble.

x__Indigo_x

like i said in my first post i will not go crazy !i no for a fact i would not use it for stupid things like clothes nights out etc . i may just top up my phone with it? would that be ok then pay it off on time every month ? or would that not be enough to gain a good credit status.


well what i dont get is the intrest stuff? could anyone explain it in the simpliest form lol like how it all works ...

Bamber19

x__Indigo_x wrote: »

well what i dont get is the intrest stuff? could anyone explain it in the simpliest form lol like how it all works ...

Not sure how simple your looking to go here but in order to make money the card companies charge interest on the money they are giving you up front for you to pay off at the end of the month. A lot of cards (although you need to read the terms and conditions of each individual card) will not charge any interest if you pay the card off entirely each month but if you don't pay it off fully you wil be charged interest on the amount that remains to be paid off (and the following month you'd be charged interest on whatever remains plus whatever was added on in interest the previous month)

x__Indigo_x

thank you

soo what sort of deal should i look for, if im simply going to top my phone up and pay it off in time monthly? is there any way i could get a credit card which had no intrest for 6 months ,being a student is this highly unlikely? does anyone no the best student credit card deal around at the moment?


thank you so much for all the help so far

The_One_Who

To be honest, being a student means you aren't really in a position to go out looking for the best deals on cards. You should really go to your bank and see what they can give you.

Just a normal credit card would be fine for that, you don't need any special extras (like air miles or anything) if you are using it just for small purchases. Be careful when topping up your phone, I think some cards don't see that as a purchase and so will add interest on straight away. Best to check the T&Cs.