|
Finding The Best Platinum Credit Card Offers
By: Joshua Shapiro
It used to be that the platinum credit card was a thing of standing, a statement
of how far you’ve come in the world. Now, platinum credit cards are still surely
handy, and they sure still work very well to get you ahead in life, but they
aren’t quite as uncommon, nor as special. That’s because in part there are a ton
of them on the market. And many, to be honest, don’t hold muster when it comes
to delivering top-notch, platinum service to their customers.
The best basic tests to consider when weighing one platinum card against
another—to see if one is a real-deal platinum card and the other a pretender—is
to measure up the major factors that go into a credit card agreement. The first
and possibly most important is the annual percentage rate, or APR. This rate
basically is the percentage fee that the credit card company will charge you on
your outstanding debt on an annual basis, broken down by month. The higher the
annual percentage rate, the higher your interest payments, the lighter your
wallet will feel at the end of the year.
Other factors to consider when weighing platinum credit cards are the annual
fees and their awards programs. Annual fees, as common as they still are, are
gradually being phased out. The credit card business is tough these days, and
companies use whatever leverage they have to get ahead of their competitors. So
there are also plenty of platinum cards out there with no annual fees. Narrow
your search to them.
Awards programs are also a great way to differentiate between one platinum card
and another. Most any cards these days have some form of awards programs, but
one program can be better than another. For example, some programs are cash
back. The higher the cash bate rate, the better the program. (Again, keep your
eye out for annual rates, though.) Or perhaps you want an awards program that
offers prizes, such as travel, hotel stays, or gifts. Other programs can help
you earn cash toward certain things, like airplane flights or new cars. No
matter the ultimate prize, you can compare these programs by looking at the
ratio of dollars you spent to the "awards points" you earn.
Last but not least, try not to judge a platinum card if they require no monthly
payment, or they claim lower monthly payments. Believe or not, monthly payments
are a good thing. They help you at least slowly pay off your debt, so the higher
they are, the better for you. In fact, always try to pay off more than your
minimum monthly payment.
About the Author:
Joshua Shapiro recommends Find Credit Cards for finding platinum credit card
offers. www.findcreditcards.org/type/platinum.php for more information.
|
