Credit Cards

 Dear Creditnet: I have finally received my first credit card for bad credit after bankruptcy. My question is do I charge $400 to the card and make minimum payments over time to establish a track record, or do I charge $40 to $50 monthly and pay off the entire balance?

As credit card lenders battle to regain the top spot in our wallets, we're seeing an onslaught of awesome credit card deals offering incentives like huge signup bonuses and newly revamped rewards programs.  However, there is one credit card perk that, at least for me, stands out from the rest—the almighty no annual fee.

No Annual Fee Credit Cards

The importance of no annual fee credit cards is fairly straight forward. While other credit card rewards can be complex and confusing, freeing yourself from a big annual fee benefits everyone in the same two ways:

The recent ups and downs of the economy provided quite the challenge for credit card companies. While many think they were raking in the cash from fees and interest, we can’t forget all the money they lost because of charge-offs and bankruptcies. As many consumers fled the credit world, Visa, MasterCard and others had to kick their customer-acquisition efforts into high-gear. Because of fluctuating, and often falling, revenues, these companies wanted to be part of our every day laughs and praises to friends. The art of the commercial has thus skyrocketed, and now you can barely turn the TV on without catching a 30-second blip about credit cards. And true, we probably shouldn’t apply for a credit card simply because of an awesome commercial, but we definitely should enjoy all their great work! Below are 5 of the best credit card commercials ever: 5. Capital One, David Spade on Credit Card Rewards http://youtu.be/Mv3M-XotQkQ One of the best ways to overcome the fear and frustration of credit, is to break the tension with humor. Capital One pokes fun at an annoying conversation that we have all had at some point or another. Once we’re all nodding along with the clip, they drop the news that what they have is different - a credit card with rewards program that is easy to understand and use. Very effective.

Kids these days grow up so darn fast! When I was younger, I didn’t have a care in the world. I would run around outside for hours, playing games and hanging out with friends. The only time I needed money was if I had a hankering for a Slurpee from 7Eleven. In 2011, it’s different for most adolescents. Online games, iTunes, and $0.99 apps are everywhere, and they all require a credit card. Even those activities of the past cost money now. A child making payments, especially with a credit card, seems somewhat laughable, but it’s a reality.