I’m sure we’ve all been offered some form of retail store credit card (Nordstrom card, Circuit City card, Dell card, etc.) in our recent lifetime. The usual perk in these cards is a short-lived one at best. If you are like us, then you usually witness the original sales pitch for these cards right after you have, perhaps needlessly, spent the better half of a fortune, on retail products through one of these participating companies. Be ware! This is the optimal time to sucker you into one of these options.

The lure: Once you’ve finished ringing up the amount of your total purchases the cashier or sales man/woman will offer the option of openeing a credit card with this particular retail company in exchange for (here’s the immediate benefit, thus ultimate lure) a usually whopping 15-30% off your total purchase. This sales tactic on the financial department’s behalf is nothing short of genius when making this offer at this exact time. This strategy is at it’s most effective when the customer has just spent an exuberant amount of money. Then almost out of nowhere this all too enticing “discount offfer” comes on the scene. This instant savings can shift our attention away from long term negative financial implications.

When breaking down statistics of these cards it can be relatively straight forward. The APR you will pay on retail credit cards is high (generally above 25%). On some occasions they will throw in 0% APR for the first few months if your credit score deems you worthy, but potention hidden fees will generally surround these offers as well. Your best bet (in our opinion) is too generally stay away from these offers unless happen to take advantage of a 0% APR preiod. In this case read the fine print thoroughly and ensure yourself the ability to pay back the amount in full before the promotional period expires.

Different credit cards come with different benefits and features, compare all aspects thoroughly before opening.

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