Student Credit Card - Suggestions?

rambutann on 26/05/2014 - 21:46

Hi hello hi.

Now before any of you turn around and say 'WHY WOULD YOU WANT A CREDIT CARD' yadayadayada I want a credit card simply to have a credit rating/history.

Here are my circumstances…
- 19 years old, full time student
- Current incomes are; Youth Allowance + 4 Jobs. Taxable income is about $20k (about $9k of Youth Allowance + $11k from working) + about 8k of non-taxable income (Scholarships, rent assistance etc)
- Current banks are; CBA, Bank of Melbourne & uBank
- Have lived out of home for 3 years now.
- $1x,xxx worth of savings (don't know if this will be a factor or not..)
- Monthly spendings to be put on the credit card would be about $600-$800

BUT basically I was wondering if anyone could point me towards the best credit card deal I could feasibly get my hands on.
I ideally would like $0 annual fee but if I did have to pay an annual fee I would want travel insurance or something like that.

I know I can get a student credit card with Commonwealth but in my eyes it looks pretty dismal and I want something better.

Anyone have any experience with negotiating credit cards? I was contemplating just going into Commonwealth and asking whats the best they could do.

Also, Amex or visa/mc? All of these Amex deals make me want to get an amex card.

I have no idea if i'm asking for too much as a student haha

Financial

Comments

  • Typical16-bitEnjoyer on 26/05/2014 - 22:43
    -4

    ….

    WHY WOULD YOU WANT A CREDIT CARD?

    • rambutann on 26/05/2014 - 22:49

      BECAUSE IM SICK OF SPENDING LIKE $300+ A YEAR ON TRAVEL INSURANCE WHEN I COULD BE PAYING NOTHING IF I WAS ELIGIBLE FOR THE CITIBANK PLATINUM CARD BUT IM NOT BUT I WANT SOMEBODY IN A SIMILAR SITUATION TO TELL ME THAT ITS POSSIBLE SO THAT I CAN EARN HEAPS OF POINTS AND NOT PAY AN ANNUAL FEE AND YEAH.

      Or just have a credit card to build myself up to that point lol

  • fruit on 26/05/2014 - 22:49

    https://28degrees-online.gemoney.com.au - 28 Degrees

    $0/year and no currency conversion fees.

    It would help if you told us what you want out of a credit card.

    • rambutann on 26/05/2014 - 22:51
      +1

      I did, to get a credit rating/history of some sort for future benefits.

      Travel insurance or some sort of awards program would be a mega bonus (which is basically the point in me making this post because I know I could get a commonwealth student credit card but I want something better)

      I'm just wanting the best I am likely to obtain in my current situation.

  • cpho on 26/05/2014 - 23:13
    +2

    Your income isn't high enough for a lot of credit cards. even with the 28 degree card, your 20k income isnt enough to qualify/bother. If you want it for the credit rating, I'd go with the Commbank Student fee-free credit card for now. Upgrade to the citibank & 28degree when your income goes up.

    • rambutann on 26/05/2014 - 23:53

      makes sense. I might go in on Wednesday and just ask what the best card they can do for me is.

      • Typical16-bitEnjoyer on 27/05/2014 - 19:41

        Do banks even do credit card applications in branch anymore? Just jump on their website and complete an application. They clearly show the differences in their products.

        • rambutann on 27/05/2014 - 21:10

          I have no idea I just figured I'd be better off attempting to get one with a human as opposed to a computer lol

  • mustkill on 27/05/2014 - 08:48

    Go with CBA Student Fee Free card, then they will ask you to upgrade to low-fee Gold, which has free (but looks kinda shitty) travel insurance.

    Low Fee Gold has free annual fee if spend => $10,000pa.

    • rambutann on 27/05/2014 - 09:53

      Awesome! I'm going to give that a shot and try get my fee waved or something wooo

    • twister292 on 28/05/2014 - 00:31

      Gold upgrade only works if the limit is more than $4,000.

      With CBA, Gold card needs at least $4,000 limit and Platinum needs $6,000.

      Only gold or platinum cards would have free travel insurance generally, and almost every Platinum that I know of has a min limit $6,000.

      You might need to wait till your limit is high enough to go into gold card category.

      • Tnetennba on 28/05/2014 - 01:05

        You get free travel insurance on the gold card for 3 months or something, that's how they get you to sign into it. Went into a branch to make a withdrawal the other week (like an old person) and the guy tried to sell me it, but when he mentioned you have to spend $10,000 a year on the card to have no fee, I declined as I never use it.

        • twister292 on 28/05/2014 - 01:37

          Same. I declined CBA's gold card offer for the same reason.

          I did sign up to Westpac's promo for fee-free 55-Day Visa Platinum for life of the card, and that does have decent insurances. But with minimum income of $30k, OP wont be able to apply for it straight up.

          Best travel insurance is with ANZ's Platinum/Black cards IMO (they use QBE for travel insurance)

  • Tnetennba on 28/05/2014 - 01:13
    +1

    OP, I was in a situation like you about a year ago. Decided to apply for a CBA low fee credit card for the same basic reasons.

    Shortly after, I realised Australia isn't like the US where they get a 'score' or 'rating'. An Australian credit report simply lists something like this:

    25/05/2012
    $5,000 loan from OzBargain Pty. Ltd.

    It doesn't specify how well you go with repayments, however if you miss a repayment it can show up on the report. It's more of a system that simply lists what lines of credit you have applied for/have open, and any debts and such. It doesn't award good credit history, it simply lists what you have.

    A future lender may see a credit card that you have and see that as another liability you have, rather than a positive thing (unless the loan is from the same bank, who can see your repayment history is good).

    Anyway, back to my story. I got approved for a $10,000(!) credit card and was shocked. I use it about once a month and pay it off immediately. I don't earn much, and work part time at a supermarket. I had less than $10,000 in savings when I applied (with CBA) and have been a customer since I was a wee lad, which probably made them approve it.

    Overall I don't think it's worth it, as the risk of credit cards can be pretty high (sudden emergency? easy money @ 20% interest!). You can still get smaller loans without having ever had a credit card, like a car loan or whatever, which will probably help your lending ability once you pay it off.

    I'm not a financial advisor, btw. What I just said could be totally wrong, but it's just my opinion. I think you can easily get credit in the future (when you actually need it, for a car/house/etc) if you have a steady income at the time. I don't think having a credit card really matters in Australia.

    • twister292 on 28/05/2014 - 01:39
      +1

      Australian credit reports are now moving to a score-based system as well…missed payments will dent your score, so will repeated applications for credit within a short period of time.

    • rambutann on 28/05/2014 - 10:08

      This is the answer I've been looking for!

      I'm thinking I should wait until I can afford a no fee cc with insurance no matter what I spend..
      Still contemplating going in and having a discussion with someone about it to see if they can change the terms of the contract so that I get free insurance with no annual fee. I just really want the insurance because I spend like $300 a year on it so yeah.

      I just thought that a lender would be less inclined to lend to somebody with absolutely no credit history rather than some.

      Like, I don't need a credit card at all I'm never in any situation by which I need one but yeah I thought it would set myself up for a better future in terms of a home loan/future credit cards with better points/insurances.

      • Tnetennba on 29/05/2014 - 03:11
        +1

        CC travel insurance often sucks and is quite restricted, compared to using something like travelinsurancedirect. If you travel often, which is probably the case, then yeah, yearly travel insurance is about $300.

        When it comes down to it, you may have to pay fees if you want travel insurance. Many cards have annual fees of $50-100, which, if it gives good travel insurance, already saves you a fair bit. I guess the idea of a "fee free" credit card is that it's no-frills - no insurance/etc for a reason.

      • twister292 on 29/05/2014 - 04:00

        It's better to start off with a lower credit card and then move up the tiers as your limit eventually increases.

        Examples of no-fee CCs with decent insurance would be Bankwest Zero Platinum (the Zero Gold also has insurance but covers 3 months per year, Plat covers 6), Westpac's 55-Day Platinum (if you get it under the current promotion of fee-free for life)…they both have minimum income criteria of $30,000 per year (or a minimum credit limit approval of $6,000)…if you applied for them upfront, you would get a knock-back.

        OTOH, if you apply for a CBA student mastercard (part of their Low-fee portfolio), you might get one with a lowish limit. Eventually, if you keep using it responsibly, your limit can be increased. Once your limit is higher than the minimum limit for the next tier, you can move to that without needing to be re-assessed.

        Don't chase after the "premium" cards…they will likely have fees (except for the 2 I cited, there would be more too).

        ANZ's cards offer travel insurance through QBE, which would be a decent insurer.

        The next cheapest card I've seen for insurance-carrying ones is NAB's Flybuys Platinum Visa, which again has a minimum limit of $6,000.

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