5 Steps For Making Money With Your Credit Card

By Author: Jamie Hanson
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If you listen to all of the financial experts, you may be tempted to cut up your credit cards and to never use them again. After all, according to the experts, credit cards bring about the financial demise of countless people every day. While it is true that credit cards can lead to some significant financial troubles if they are not used correctly, they can also be very useful tools when in the hands of a responsible spender. In fact, you can actually make money with your credit card if you know how to use it correctly. Here's a simple guide to show you how to do it!

Step #1: Get a Rewards Credit Card

The first step you need to take in order to earn money with your credit card is to obtain a rewards credit card. There are many different types of rewards credit cards, including those that allow you to earn free travel, those that allow you to collect points that can be used toward gift certificates and those that allow you to earn cash back. In the case of cash back credit cards, your rewards card may allow you to either receive cash back checks or your account may be credited by the amount you have earned. ...
... Take the time to look through the many different rewards credit cards that are available in order to select the one that best suits your lifestyle.

Step #2: Use Your Credit Card for All of Your Purchases

Financial experts will tell you to stop using your credit card altogether. If you are a responsible spender, however, you will want to do the opposite in order to make money. While you certainly don't want to spend beyond your means, you do want to use your credit card to make all of the purchases you would normally make. Ideally, you have already created a budget, so you know how much money you have available for certain types of purchases.

By keeping your budget in mind when making purchases with your credit card, you will have enough money at the end of each billing cycle to pay off your balance. This way, you can take advantage of the rewards without paying massive finance charges. If you are going to make the purchase anyway, why not do it with your credit card and earn some money along the way.

Step #3: Sign Up for Automatic Payment Programs for Regular Bills

Just as you should use your rewards credit card to make all of your purchases, you should also use it to pay all of your bills. . Your telephone bill, your electric bill, your mobile phone bill and your satellite or cable bill are all examples of regular monthly bills that you can usually pay with your credit card. Again, you should already have budgeted for these expenses, which means you can easily pay them all off when you get your credit card statement. As an added convenience, you won't have to worry about writing separate checks for each of these bills each month, so you can be sure they will always get paid on time!

Step #4: Take Advantage of Introductory Offers

To further optimize the money you make from your rewards credit card, take advantage of 0% introductory offers and balance transfer offers. It is generally easier to get these types of offers when you first sign up for a credit card, but you may be offered a great deal from your credit card company after you have become a customer.

To take full advantage of 0% introductory offers, you should actually refrain from paying your credit card off at the end of each billing cycle. Instead, put it into a bank account where it can draw interest. This way, you can earn cash back rewards from the credit card while also earning interest from the money you have in the bank. Just make sure you put enough in the bank each month to cover the monthly credit card bill. Then, when the introductory period is over, pay off the entire balance so you avoid being hit with finance charges.

Step #5: Borrow Off of Other Credit Cards

If you really want to take this process to the next level, you might want to consider performing a balance transfer to a card that already has a zero balance. Although you can't do this with all credit cards, some will allow you to perform a "balance transfer" on a card that is already paid off completely. In this way, you will actually create a positive balance on the other credit card and you can move the money you borrowed to a high-interest savings account. Although you probably won't receive rewards for the balance transfer, you can let the money sit in your savings account and collect interest. Then, pay off the entire balance once the special offer is over so you don't get stuck paying finance charges.

A word of warning: before you complete a balance transfer in order to take advantage of 0% interest offers, find out if there is a fee associated with completing transfers. Many credit cards do charge fees for this service, in which case the interest you earn from your savings account may not be worth the expense of completing the transfer.

If you are a financially responsible person who has no credit card debt, you are ready to start using your credit card as a cash-making tool. By following all or some of these steps, it truly is possible to make money with your credit card rather than losing it!

Author is a credit card management expert and suggests how to get bad credit credit cards and pre paid credit cards and make maximum use of those.