| In 1958, a department store chain based in | | | | score. With all the alluring discounts, it's |
| small suburb of Dallas, Texas issued a credit | | | | easy to get carried away with your spending |
| card that afforded users a great discount on | | | | and end up with a pile of debt. |
| products bought from their stores using the | | | | |
| card. Ever since J.C. Penney started that | | | | Pros of getting store credit cards |
| trend, many other department store chains | | | | |
| have followed suit, realizing the potential | | | | Unlike regular credit cards, store credit |
| profits of this. | | | | cards are much easier to sign up for. This |
| | | | can make store credit cards useful in |
| With discounts of up to 15%, store credit | | | | establishing a good credit history. The lower |
| cards can be hard to resist. This can | | | | spending limits also mean that you are far |
| especially be true during holiday seasons | | | | less likely to get carried away with your |
| such as Christmas when discounts can mean a | | | | spending. |
| whole lot of savings due to high volume of | | | | |
| purchases. However, as with most credit | | | | With department store cards, you can |
| cards, you've got to read the fine print and | | | | sometimes obtain a financing option for |
| weigh the pros and cons before you jump on | | | | larger purchases such as appliances, |
| the bandwagon and get a store credit card for | | | | furniture or electronics. Some stores offer |
| yourself. | | | | their customers the option to pay for such |
| | | | purchases through a 6-12 month installment |
| Cons of getting store credit cards | | | | plan with little or no interest. However, the |
| | | | catch here is default payments may result in |
| The greatest drawback of store credit cards | | | | a longer repayment period where interest |
| would be their exorbitant APRs. These can | | | | charges become applicable after this period. |
| reach as high as the upper teens. For some | | | | |
| people, that simply isn't worth it. If you | | | | Just like their regular counterparts, store |
| tend to miss paying off your card balances | | | | issued credit cards come with all sorts of |
| each month, then you should forget about | | | | reward programs that you can take advantage |
| store credit cards. | | | | of. In addition to these, most stores have a |
| | | | 'special savings' event whereby greater |
| Another disadvantage would be the effect of | | | | discounts are offered during certain periods |
| the open lines of credit on your credit | | | | exclusively for cardholders. |