It pays to pause before signing on for such a deal, according to Ted Rossman, industry analyst at CreditCards.com.
Your first priority should be paying off your bills in full, rather than any potential rewards you may receive, Rossman said. That means paying the entire balance when it comes due. Paying high interest rates on a purchase even for a month or two can wipe out the benefit of any rewards.Another key reason to be wary of retail credit cards is the deferred interest rates they sometimes apply. Take a 0% interest for 12 months offer, for example. If you don't pay the full balance back within that time frame and deferred interest is in the fine print, the issuer can charge you retroactive interest on your daily balance starting from when you first made the purchase.
General credit cards often offer 0% deals with no deferred interest. Consequently, shoppers may want to consider those first, Rossman said. Some currently offer 18 months with no interest on new purchases, including the Citi Diamond Preferred Card, Citi Simplicity and U.S. Bank Visa Platinum, he said.
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