Credit Cards - Freedom and Responsibility
by: FINDcollegecards.com

You have just been given your first credit card, and now your head is filled with thoughts of all the wonderful things that you can buy. Clothes, compact discs, cell phones, software, computers, pizza...

Stop.

Before you go any further, that credit card is more than a piece of plastic. It's a responsibility, one that should not be taken lightly, because the decisions you make regarding the use of your credit card will follow you many years down the line. While in your mind that little piece of plastic means freedom, to everyone else it shows that you are an adult and ready for responsibility.

A credit card is not free money. A credit card simply means that the bank that issued the credit card is giving you money that you will have to pay back. If you don't make the credit card payments on time, your late payments will go on your credit report. It may not seem like a big deal right now, but down the road those late payments are going to come back to haunt you.

1. A poor credit rating affects your ability to find a job

Employers now not only do a criminal check and a drug test, but they also do a credit check on potential employees. Why is that? Well, people who are in a lot of debt or financial trouble are more prone to stealing. Also, if you aren't prudent on your bill paying the potential employer sometimes wonders if you will be a trustworthy employee. If a creditor can't count on you, how can your employer count on you?

2. A poor credit rating will affect your ability to get a house or an apartment or to buy a car

One of the most important things that landlords and mortgage companies look at, of course, is your credit rating. A landlord isn't going to rent to someone if they don't think they will pay their rent on time, and a bank or a mortgage company isn't going loan you more money if you can't prove that you can take care of the debts that you already have. Let's face it, they're not dumb.

Of course, the same thing goes for buying a car. Lenders want to know that the money that they dole out will be returned to them. So they aren't going to lend money out to customers who don't pay on time, and if they do they tack on a high interest rate.

So be careful with your spending and make certain that you pay your bills on time. Otherwise it will follow you for a very long time.