In 1958, a department store chain based in small suburb of Dallas, Texas issued a credit card that afforded users a great discount on products bought from their stores using the card. Ever since J.C. Penney started that trend, many other department store chains have followed suit, realizing the potential profits of this.
With discounts of up to 15%, store credit cards can be hard to resist. This can especially be true during holiday seasons such as Christmas when discounts can mean a whole lot of savings due to high volume of purchases. However, as with most credit cards, youve got to read the fine print and weigh the pros and cons before you jump on the bandwagon and get a store credit card for yourself.
Cons of getting store credit cards
The greatest drawback of store credit cards would be their exorbitant APRs. These can reach as high as the upper teens. For some people, that simply isnt worth it. If you tend to miss paying off your card balances each month, then you should forget about store credit cards.
Another disadvantage would be the effect of the open lines of credit on your credit score. With all the alluring discounts, its easy to get...