Credit Card Offers for Students and Grads
- Overcoming Credit Card Debt: A Strategy for Students
It's up to students to learn how to use their credit cards wisely to avoid crippling debt and a poor credit score. Read More - Plastic 101: A Sensible Credit Card Guide for College Students and Their Parents
Having a credit card at college offers convenience along with potential financial pitfalls. Decisions you make now will affect your adult life. Read More
Leader(s):
(1) Under provisions of the Credit CARD Act, Americans under 21 years old may no longer get a credit card without a co-signing adult.
Title(s):
(1) Student Credit Cards Go the Way of the Dinosaur
Author:
Woodrow Aames (aka. Gabby Hyman)
Highlighting: Keyword and Keyword Phrase Highlighting
The party is over for solo student credit cards. When the Credit CARD Act of 2009 went into full effect in February 2010, its provisions and tightened restrictions on lenders diminished the ability for under-age students to get their own credit cards. The Act addressed consumers' long-held complaints about rising interest rates and fee hikes on credit cards. But the Act also means no new credit cards for people under 21 years old without adult co-signers unless they can provide proof of adequate income.
Credit Card Lenders Leap Off Campus
The days when credit card companies haunt the student union offering perks (travel, apparel, coupons, and sporting goods) for student account sign-ups are practically over. Under terms of The Credit CARD Act, credit card issuers can’t allow minors to get a new credit card without co-signers capable of paying down the new credit line.
That means students will have transparent records of charges at nightclubs, hotels, concert venues, clothing retailers, airlines, or other merchants that they'd prefer to hide from mom and dad. Not only will credit card companies be forced off campus by ever-tightening restrictions, they won't be able to hand out goodies in exchange for debt.
New Long-term Ramifications for Students
There are even greater concerns affecting young borrowers. The new government regulations result in lenders refusing to extend new lines of credit if young adults are unable to find a co-signer for their account until students can prove they've found a reliable source of income. The rippling effect may impact students' abilities to secure additional loans to attend graduate school or at least strain parent-student relations over spending.
Under the new laws, credit card companies must spell out--in black and white--the consequences of delinquent payments and the length of time it will take to pay off the account on minimum payments. Students and parents should become completely familiar with them before signing on to an account. Many colleges are promoting 'responsible borrowing' seminars on campus.
Welcome to Adult Realities
In the end, credit card companies still want your business. That means that just after they graduate or turn 21 years old, former students can expect a rash of digital or snail mail come-ons from alumni associations or college related organizations that offer perks and discounts on college activities like concerts and sporting events. They'll dangle pre-sale offers just like retail affinity credit cards.Under the new regulations, college affinity organizations must observe transparency, too. That means their profits and perks must show up clearly in terms of the bottom line and the relationship with the sponsoring institution. It could get ugly with alumni backing out of what used to be more anonymous fundraising campaigns.
New Decisions for Students
For those students who want to establish a credit history before they enter the working world, those co-signer credit card provisions will let them in the doors. But they'll have to be willing to lead a life of accountability to lenders and family. On the other hand, in responding to the Credit CARD Act, lenders are likely to increase service fees and hefty balance transfer fees in the future to offset revenue losses under the restrictions of the Act.
For students who are unwilling to partner up with their parents, or for those who feel the temptations of runaway teen spending, it may be more practical to wait until after graduation to get their own, solo credit card accounts along with the buying power that comes with them. The risks--running up a debt in college that encumbers their parents and potentially ruins credit ratings all around--are considerable.
(1) Under provisions of the Credit CARD Act, Americans under 21 years old may no longer get a credit card without a co-signing adult.
Title(s):
(1) Student Credit Cards Go the Way of the Dinosaur
Author:
Woodrow Aames (aka. Gabby Hyman)
Highlighting: Keyword and Keyword Phrase Highlighting
The party is over for solo student credit cards. When the Credit CARD Act of 2009 went into full effect in February 2010, its provisions and tightened restrictions on lenders diminished the ability for under-age students to get their own credit cards. The Act addressed consumers' long-held complaints about rising interest rates and fee hikes on credit cards. But the Act also means no new credit cards for people under 21 years old without adult co-signers unless they can provide proof of adequate income.
Credit Card Lenders Leap Off Campus
The days when credit card companies haunt the student union offering perks (travel, apparel, coupons, and sporting goods) for student account sign-ups are practically over. Under terms of The Credit CARD Act, credit card issuers can’t allow minors to get a new credit card without co-signers capable of paying down the new credit line.
That means students will have transparent records of charges at nightclubs, hotels, concert venues, clothing retailers, airlines, or other merchants that they'd prefer to hide from mom and dad. Not only will credit card companies be forced off campus by ever-tightening restrictions, they won't be able to hand out goodies in exchange for debt.
New Long-term Ramifications for Students
There are even greater concerns affecting young borrowers. The new government regulations result in lenders refusing to extend new lines of credit if young adults are unable to find a co-signer for their account until students can prove they've found a reliable source of income. The rippling effect may impact students' abilities to secure additional loans to attend graduate school or at least strain parent-student relations over spending.
Under the new laws, credit card companies must spell out--in black and white--the consequences of delinquent payments and the length of time it will take to pay off the account on minimum payments. Students and parents should become completely familiar with them before signing on to an account. Many colleges are promoting 'responsible borrowing' seminars on campus.
Welcome to Adult Realities
In the end, credit card companies still want your business. That means that just after they graduate or turn 21 years old, former students can expect a rash of digital or snail mail come-ons from alumni associations or college related organizations that offer perks and discounts on college activities like concerts and sporting events. They'll dangle pre-sale offers just like retail affinity credit cards.Under the new regulations, college affinity organizations must observe transparency, too. That means their profits and perks must show up clearly in terms of the bottom line and the relationship with the sponsoring institution. It could get ugly with alumni backing out of what used to be more anonymous fundraising campaigns.
New Decisions for Students
For those students who want to establish a credit history before they enter the working world, those co-signer credit card provisions will let them in the doors. But they'll have to be willing to lead a life of accountability to lenders and family. On the other hand, in responding to the Credit CARD Act, lenders are likely to increase service fees and hefty balance transfer fees in the future to offset revenue losses under the restrictions of the Act.
For students who are unwilling to partner up with their parents, or for those who feel the temptations of runaway teen spending, it may be more practical to wait until after graduation to get their own, solo credit card accounts along with the buying power that comes with them. The risks--running up a debt in college that encumbers their parents and potentially ruins credit ratings all around--are considerable.
