With the festive season underway, markets are buzzing with provides and reductions. There is a surge in bank card provides as properly. In such a state of affairs, it’s simple to overspend. While bank cards facilitate simple transactions, they could lead to overspending if not used responsibly. Therefore, checks and balances are required whereas utilizing bank cards, as festive buying might go away you with a prolonged buying invoice.
So earlier than you embark in your buying journey this festive season, paying heed to those factors is important.
Know your bank card
You should know the important particulars of your card. These embody credit score restrict, excellent steadiness, unbilled utilization, accrued reward factors, reward factors incomes ratio and the cardboard cycle. A transparent understanding of those parameters for all of your bank cards helps you make prudent selections about which card to make use of, when, and the way a lot. Informed selections will maintain your funds in steadiness.
Start firstly of your cycle
If you begin your festive buying in the beginning of your billing cycle, you get 30-40 days to settle your dues. This is nice for you. After a festive season binge, you could want a while to repay your dues. Therefore, the longer the interest-free interval, the higher.
Avail further reductions via particular playing cards
In tie-ups with numerous lenders, totally different manufacturers supply further reductions over and above the generally obtainable reductions in the course of the festive season. If you personal a number of bank cards, make sure you use probably the most appropriate one whereas buying to avoid wasting additional bucks.
Put reward factors to utilization
Keeping monitor of the reward factors accrued in your numerous bank cards is very beneficial. The festive season is a chance to exhaust your reward factors to get further advantages, thus lowering your credit score. You might get a cashback rather than these factors, or you’ll be able to utilise them to avail of the varied provides by making a partial cost.
You might take into account availing no-cost EMIs
Many bank cards give you a selected buy restrict that may be transformed into no-cost EMIs. Unlike a conventional EMI, whereby prospects additionally have to pay curiosity, a no-cost EMI possibility facilitates patrons to pay solely the product worth in equal installments. If you personal any such bank cards with bundled no-cost EMIs, they are often of nice use this festive season.
Use bank cards that supply most reward factors
Reward factors in your purchases are one of many enticing options of bank cards. It is advisable to make use of bank cards that supply probably the most reward factors. During the festive season, numerous large ticket-size purchases might fetch you extra reward factors for later utilization.
While utilising bank cards in the course of the festive season, keep away from going overboard and exhausting the higher credit score restrict threshold. Using a mixture of playing cards might help. While doing so, it is suggested to not transcend 30 per cent of the credit score restrict and to pay again the dues instantly to keep away from curiosity expenses. Higher utilisation of the spending restrict and an unpaid card steadiness will damage your credit score rating. Moreover, you could discover settling the big quantity in full within the stipulated interval tough. Prudent and wise utilization of bank cards in the course of the festive season will enable you to maintain your creditworthiness wholesome.
The writer is the CEO of BankBazaar.com. The views expressed are that of the writer.