6 Tips For Using Your Credit Card During Coronavirus

Are you spending sleepless nights stressing over your financial situation?

The coronavirus pandemic may have hit income streams hard, but that doesn’t mean that you have to worry about how you are going to pay your bills.

The credit cards in your wallet can offer a way out of your financial dilemma.

If you tweak the way you manage your credit cards, and you may find that you have enough resources to steer through the ongoing crisis

1. Reduce online shopping

Working from home may have increased your visits to online shopping portals.

However, instead of buying stuff off these websites immediately, try leaving it in the cart overnight.

The next morning, you’ll likely find that you don’t need those items as much as you thought the previous day.

The aim is to reduce unnecessary expenditures and save resources for emergencies.

You may even go through your credit card statement to spot expenses that you may be able to do away with - for example, memberships and subscriptions you no longer use.

2. Turn off autopay

Autopay can help you avoid late fees; however, in times when your checking account balance may be getting lower, it’s a good idea to turn it off, so you don't accidentally cause an overdraft.

Alternatively, you can tweak it to cover minimum payments only, and pay more manually as you can afford to do so.

3. Use up your rewards

Usually, it’s advisable to use up rewards in such a way that they offer maximum value.

Travel card points, for example, provide maximum benefits when they are redeemed in connection to travel-related activities, instead of getting a statement credit.

However, in current circumstances, it may be wiser to just take the statement credit and ease your financial crunch.

4. Opt for balance transfer cards

These offer a low promotional interest rate, which means you can avoid paying interest on new purchases or balance transfers for an introductory period - which will be at least six months.

You can transfer existing high interest debt to these cards and also use them for purchasing essentials if you are low on funds.

However, balance transfer cards make sense only if you are confident that you’ll be able to pay off the amount after the introductory period is over, or else you may face serious trouble.

5. Consider paying other bills via credit card

If you are finding it difficult to meet essential expenses such as rent, utility etc., it can make sense to put the expense on your credit card, if permissible.

Though many such service providers charge a 2% convenience fee, it can make sense if you need to build up balance in your checking account.

6. Rethinking credit card best practices

Don’t carry a balance from month-to-month; always pay more than minimum due; and, keep credit utilization below 30%. These guidelines need to be followed for maintaining a good credit score.

However, in times of financial emergencies such as these, it can make sense to flout these practices temporarily to help tide you over.

Once things start settling down, you can revert to previously followed strategies to restore the damage to your credit score, if any.

Finally, remember that many card issuers and service providers are offering help to distressed consumers in these troubled times.

If you are facing financial issues, you can approach the relevant institution to find out if they would be able to offer some relief.

$50,000 - $250,000 of unsecured credit at 0% interest

At Fund&Grow, we utilize creative credit card financing in such a way that we can help clients with good credit obtain as much as $250,000 of unsecured credit at 0% for a period of 6, 12, or 18 months.

This amount can be used for any purpose – from financing a small business to providing a down payment on a property - no questions asked.

So, if you need these kinds of funds, call us at (800) 996-0270, and we will help you right away.