Choose the rewards that’s right for you. Some give out free airline miles. Others have product catalogs that allow you to cash in points for gadgets. Others even offer cash rewards. There’s no reason to get cards that offer stuff that you don’t use (like airline miles if you don’t travel at all).

Know the fees. The tricky side to getting a credit card is the fees. They have fees for just about anything. You might be getting free rewards but you might simply be paying for these thanks to the fees. The annual or membership fee alone may not justify getting the card for the sake of the reward.

Manage your spending. Credit card companies dole out these rewards for ultimately just one thing – to make you spend more. The framing points as rewards conditions you that you are getting something free. This may not be the case. This will only be the case if you don’t pay anything more than what you actually spend without the card and paying with cash.

Pay in full. To avoid the credit card debt trap, make sure that you only spend on things you need. Pay the balance in full monthly to avoid interest. Try to get a credit card that doesn’t charge annual membership fees. This way, you get points and rewards for just using their card as substitute for lugging around cash.

Interest. Interest only kills when you don’t pay in full. So make sure that you pay the full amount on your statement every month. When gunning for installment purchases, make sure that you go for zero percent interest rates.

Annual fees. Quite honestly, I don’t get the point of annual fees. The bank or the card company already charges the merchant every time you use the card, so the fee’s just another way for the company to get money. The way I get around this is to use the points that I earn to offset the fee. This way, I don’t pay anything extra with my card.

Faud. Make sure that you keep your credit card in a secure place. Keep an eye on your card every time you use it. Review your statement and contest every item that’s not an authorized purchase. And if you find anything awry, push your case to the company to get it resolved.

When you don’t have an emergency fund. Emergency funds are crucial as proven by today’s economy. So be sure that you allocate some funds (while continuing to service your debt) to build up your emergency fund at least until you can put up a month’s worth of living expenses. Then you can channel your efforts in debt servicing especially if you’re paying off debt that kills you with interest monthly.

When dealing with fixed rates. Some loans have fixed interest rates for fixed terms. Loans like car loans might give you a fixed rate for a fixed term. Check if you can make early payments that would chip away at the interest. If your loan papers with your bank or lender doesn’t allow such arrangements, then simply maximize your loan terms and have the flexibility to juggle your funds to other efforts.

A concession is to have at least 1 credit card for those choice emergencies like when you need to purchase something essential quick and you don’t have cash on hand with you.

With the new credit card law in effect, there are some salient arguments that are for owning a credit card. If you decide to get plastic, here are some of the things you might want to keep in mind when getting and using one.

1. Make sure you know the fee structure. Make sure you know all the fees that go with your card including annual fees, and interest rates. Keep in mind that the new law has prohibited things like inactivity fees so you can keep your credit card in your wallet without getting penalized.

2. Pay monthly and pay in full. This way, you basically just advance your purchases and not incur any charges on interest.

3. Spend only on items where you won’t get discounts paying in cash. This way you get to rack up points and incentives through your card.

My take on the matter is this. I do have one credit card and I use it for many of my purchases. I use it for common purchases such as groceries or when dining out. These are basically spending that’s the same whether I use cash or card. Larger purchases often allow you to get discounts when paying in cash and I use cash for those.

In return, I rack up points that I use to get my annual fee waived and a few miles thanks to my card’s frequent flyer miles program. All the while enjoying the benefit of not having to lug cash around with me every time.

Still, while it’s trickier getting these things while self-employed, it doesn’t mean that it’s impossible for you to get a loan or a mortgage. You just have to be better prepared.

Documentation is critical when getting larger loans such as mortgages. This would particularly include proof of income. That means you have to furnish your tax returns from the past (usually) two years. You do pay your taxes, right? Other statements might include your statement of assets and even list of clients.

Part of the checks done is a look into your credit score. So be sure that before filing for a loan application that your credit score will be to your favor. Pay off your credit card debt.

If you’re married and your spouse has a steady income from employement, then getting a joint-mortage might be the better deal for you. Lenders often value the fact that one of you is earning a steady income.

If you have some cash readily available, you can opt for a larger downpayment in what you’re purchasing be it a house or a car. This would mean that you’ll be financing just a smaller fraction of the whole and would only be levied interest on that fraction. This would also allow you to pay off the mortgage quickly.