First Credit Card

[Medellin]

What should I get? No idea at all

[tng11]

I assume you're a student?

Go with whatever bank you've been banking with the longest, it'll increase your chances of being approved greatly, all student cards are pretty mediocre but when you build up some credit you'll get better ones in no time

TD Rebate Rewards is a pretty decent first card with 0.5% cashback on up to $3,000 and 1% over that amount (capped, I believe). BMO, Scotia, CIBC offer pretty much the same cashback cards and RBC offers it's own reward program

[Medellin]

I'm using TD right now, I'll look into that. thanks :)

[angel_wing0]

since its your first cc, go for the td green. Once u get some history (1 year+) with u paying your bills on time and such, then apply for the td rebate 1%.

[tng11]

since its your first cc, go for the td green. Once u get some history (1 year+) with u paying your bills on time and such, then apply for the td rebate 1%.

I got the TD rebate on my 18th birthday. The personal banker told me to go for the rebate over the green as they were the same requirements

Weirdly enough the Rebate Rewards is missing the extended warranty while the Green has it.

[StefanS]

Yeah, you can get the TD Rebate Rewards for the same requirements as Green. Seconding going the TD route as well if TD is your primary bank. You can manage your credit card online on the same page as your bank account and easily transfer funds to pay off a balance.

[VivienM]

What should I get? No idea at all

Try BMO Mosaik. A bit easier to get than others, perhaps, and they have a decent reward program for a student card...

Ideally, I'd suggest you try and get both a TD Visa and a MasterCard from somewhere. You'll get lousy limits ($500-600) on both. Eventually, though, it'll be good for your credit history...

[Nyte]

Try BMO Mosaik. A bit easier to get than others, perhaps, and they have a decent reward program for a student card...


Speaking of it, try to get the BMO Mosaik SPC card if they still have it.

[HammerRFDer]

But watch out for those overlimit fees if you hit your credit "limit".

I'm going to give a scolding to TD tomorrow about that one...

[blahing]

I got my first credit card last week! I got a BMO mosiak with 0.5% cash back, and extended warranty, plus a bunch of other benefits.

[angel_wing0]

I got the TD rebate on my 18th birthday. The personal banker told me to go for the rebate over the green as they were the same requirements

Weirdly enough the Rebate Rewards is missing the extended warranty while the Green has it.

oh really eh,. then my bad.

[Medellin]

umm so how does it work? if i owe say 500 bucks, how much is the min. monthly payment?

[D582]

umm so how does it work? if i owe say 500 bucks, how much is the min. monthly payment?

That depends on the card. But you really shouldn't carry a balance like that at the high interest rates they charge. If you owe $500, you really should be paying it off, especially if this is your first card and you have no credit history. Don't use the card to spend money you don't have.

[Mayoo]

If you are student then you can get CIBC Classic for students.

http://www.cibc.com/ca/visa/classic-visa-students.html

Credit limit:
$500 minimum

Household income:
$1,200 minimum

Annual fee:
No annual fee
Current Regular Interest rate: 18.5%1

That is how my financial life started back then in 2001 :)

[Medellin]

That depends on the card. But you really shouldn't carry a balance like that at the high interest rates they charge. If you owe $500, you really should be paying it off, especially if this is your first card and you have no credit history. Don't use the card to spend money you don't have.

so should i cap off my balance at $100? i have a job, i just wanna know whats the typical

[exstasie]

so should i cap off my balance at $100? i have a job, i just wanna know whats the typical

Well its all dependent on how strict you are with your finances.
If you know you are going to pay it off in full at when its due then it shouldn't be an issue what the your limit is.

I currently have a the American Express charge card and there is no limit at all. It works well to have that because there will be certain times where I put quite I require a higher limit and this gives me the flexibility and I know that I have control over my spending.

[Nyte]

If you are student then you can get CIBC Classic for students.


For CIBC, I prefer the Dividend card. Should be able to meet the income requirements if the person has a summer and/or PT job.

[xOnic_]

I would recommend a limit of $500 to begin with and over time, they will preauthorize a higher limit (eg, $1000) and you can simply call in to raise your limit. A lower limit might be recommended in the events that your credit card is stolen, and thus limiting the amount of money that the thief can use.

[Medellin]

I would recommend a limit of $500 to begin with and over time, they will preauthorize a higher limit (eg, $1000) and you can simply call in to raise your limit. A lower limit might be recommended in the events that your credit card is stolen, and thus limiting the amount of money that the thief can use.

dont they have PIN# for visas now?

[tng11]

dont they have PIN# for visas now?

PIN# doesn't mean fraud proof as the majority of transactions are swiped today. Even then, who's to say they can't copy these security chips?

[dieselpower]

Support your school and get a card that has their name on it. Alumni associations often have them.

[exstasie]

PIN# doesn't mean fraud proof as the majority of transactions are swiped today. Even then, who's to say they can't copy these security chips?

The PIN on a Credit Card is implemented to work the same way as a Debit card currently does.
The PIN is to provide authentication, which there currently is not. I can easily forge anyones credit card to use. Whereas in the near future, you will be required to enter your PIN in order to complete the transaction.
It's not 100% fraud proof but it does drastically improve fraud prevention.

And no, you cannot copy a security chip. There is alot of technology involved in the process and this process is not feasible. There are other ways around the technology, but chip cards pretty much as safe as you can get without getting into biometrics.

[djino]

I would recommend a limit of $500 to begin with and over time, they will preauthorize a higher limit (eg, $1000) and you can simply call in to raise your limit. A lower limit might be recommended in the events that your credit card is stolen, and thus limiting the amount of money that the thief can use.

This I wouldnt be to highly concerned with. Its the banks money they would be frauding. So if you've found any transactions not authorized by you, just call the bank and they will investigate and usually will adjust the charge after you finish talking to them.

djino
"Thats why its always better to use credit than debit"

[exstasie]

This I wouldnt be to highly concerned with. Its the banks money they would be frauding. So if you've found any transactions not authorized by you, just call the bank and they will investigate and usually will adjust the charge after you finish talking to them.

djino
"Thats why its always better to use credit than debit"


It's the same thing for Debit. If you just call the bank up (majority of the time they will call you to inform you) they will refund anything that has been lost due to fraud.

[djino]

It's the same thing for Debit. If you just call the bank up (majority of the time they will call you to inform you) they will refund anything that has been lost due to fraud.

Thats true, but with Debit, they will usually charge a fee to do the investigation (assuming you are calling them to report a transaction you didn't make) whether or not the end result is in your favour. And you do not get the funds back until they conclude their investigation.

With Credit, they cannot charge any fees to do the work, and you usually get the adjustment done immediately.

djino

[tng11]

The PIN on a Credit Card is implemented to work the same way as a Debit card currently does.
The PIN is to provide authentication, which there currently is not. I can easily forge anyones credit card to use. Whereas in the near future, you will be required to enter your PIN in order to complete the transaction.
It's not 100% fraud proof but it does drastically improve fraud prevention.

And no, you cannot copy a security chip. There is alot of technology involved in the process and this process is not feasible. There are other ways around the technology, but chip cards pretty much as safe as you can get without getting into biometrics.

I do have the RBC and CIBC chip cards, and it just seems that 95% of the place I use them at still swipe and have me sign.

I guess PIN authentication isn't that bad of an idea as cashiers don't check the signature panel. What I'm worried about though is the shift of liability to the consumer as I've had a terrible experience trying to get back money that was fraudulently withdrawn with my bank card while getting it back on CC is easy as pie.

[exstasie]

Thats true, but with Debit, they will usually charge a fee to do the investigation (assuming you are calling them to report a transaction you didn't make) whether or not the end result is in your favour. And you do not get the funds back until they conclude their investigation.

With Credit, they cannot charge any fees to do the work, and you usually get the adjustment done immediately.

djino

While yes, it is true that it can be difficult, however these are rare instances. Majority of the time where there are random transactions on the account, they are legitimate transactions that either the client forgot about, or someone else in the family used the card.

It is very rare where there would be an actual fraudulent incident that would require a thorough investigation.

But I agree, it is an easier process to get your funds recovery on your CC...for now!

I do have the RBC and CIBC chip cards, and it just seems that 95% of the place I use them at still swipe and have me sign.

I guess PIN authentication isn't that bad of an idea as cashiers don't check the signature panel. What I'm worried about though is the shift of liability to the consumer as I've had a terrible experience trying to get back money that was fraudulently withdrawn with my bank card while getting it back on CC is easy as pie.

The reason why it is so easy right now to get your money back is because the CC company does a chargeback to the merchant so its actually the store who ends up taking the loss. The customer and CC company are not impacted in any financial way.

This indirectly does affect the consumer though because merchants are forced to raise their prices because of these additional losses. Add in the fact the Credit Card companies charge high interchange fees to the merchant (the per transaction fee) many merchants have a higher per cost transaction.
This is why a lot of the no frills, inferior good stores don't offer Credit Card. While it is good for the consumers, they cause a lot of headaches and financial pains to the merchants.

[jwei]

BMO Mosaik!

0.5% Cash Back + Extended Warranty Purchases:D