What Credit Card Company is good for Paying for my Wedding Exenses?

3 comments

1. 

   Phoenix on March 26, 2009 at 6:49 pm

   Search for zero percent introductory rates and try to pay it off in that amount of time. Once the zero percent rate runs out, get a personal loan to pay off the credit card. You will be paying far less in interest that way.

   Any Discover, AmEx, Visa, or Mastercard will work well. Visa and MC seem to be the most commonly accepted. Do not get one that has an annual fee as you can get one that has no fee.

   It might be a little more difficult for you to get one since it is your first, but it’s generally pretty easy to get a card. The credit limit might be a bit low, though. You should consider getting a personal loan for your wedding.

2. 

   Jovy T on March 29, 2009 at 4:51 am

   They are all the same. Maybe you want to look for one that gives you free membership for many years. Those that gives 1 year free are crab. There are some like Maybank have been given free 7 years since long ago.
   I guess you will need a temporary credit increase for your wedding expenses. Just let the credit card company knows and they will be more than glad to do so.

3. 

   unglittering on April 1, 2009 at 10:28 am

   Despite what some may have you believe, credit cards are not all the same — but I’m assuming you already believed this or you would not have asked

   In my opinion, the best card for you would be some kind of “reward” card with no annual fee and low interest rates. There are lots out there — look for one with a reward type you will actually use (i.e., don’t go for a frequent flier miles card if you never actually plan to fly). Personally, I have a cash back card that gives me 1% cashback on every purchase I make; since I use this card often, I have made a decent amount of cash in the time I’ve had the card, without having to do anything but spend the money I would have had to spend anyway.

   Personal finance web sites like Motley Fool (fool.com) can be good sources of information — they help you break down what to look for in a credit card offer and what to steer clear of. I would also recommend you read up on credit rating and how to handle credit — since this is your first card, it sounds like you probably do not have much (if any) credit record, and you want to make sure you establish a good one from the get-go (it’s much easier to keep a clean record going than clean up a bad one).

   On that note — a word of advice: DO NOT RUN UP A BALANCE ON A CREDIT CARD!!!!!! It’s not worth it. A credit card can be a useful tool to help smooth out your expenses during the month, but you should never charge more than you can afford to pay off EACH MONTH before interest starts to accumulate. I realize that weddings these days can be very expensive, but the last thing you want to do is start out your new life together with thousands in credit card bills to pay off. If you absolutely must go into debt for your wedding (and I really beg you to think long and hard about that one), you’re better off financing the wedding through just about any other means than a credit card (except maybe a “payday loan”). Even cards with low rates usually have provisions that allow the card company to raise them as soon as you establish a balance, and you often end up paying many times the original amount by the time you finish paying off the balance.

   No matter what option you choose, the best way to not get buried in debt is to plan and budget and do your best to stick to it. This can also be a good personal exercise for you and your fiance as well — a nice way to open the infamous “money discussions” that all couples must have before they turn into money fights.