What does APR stand for?

  When looking at credit card applications and offers you will often see APR.  This simple stands for the Annual Percentage Rate that you will be charge on the money you charge on your credit cards.  This is a very important figure you need to be aware of before filling out any credit card applications or loan applications.  Any time you borrow money you need to know the exact APR and it has to be in the contract before you sign any papers. 

  Many times with Credit Card Applications you will get a low introductory APR for a short period of time.  Generally for six to nine months you will get a low APR of around 9.9% (June 1, 2004 figure) for all new purchases and balance transfers.  This is often a good way to save some money if you have a higher APR card that you want to transfer the balance onto the new card so you do not have to pay the higher interest rate for at least six or nine months. 

  If you do decide to fill out credit card applications that have a low introductory APR you should make sure you make note of the date that the APR is going to be increased.  Make sure you write this down on a calendar somewhere you will see it when it comes do so you are not surprised when this rate goes up.  Your final APR rate has to be listed on the credit card applications so there are no surprises once your intro period is done. 

  If you are going to be using your credit card and carrying  a balance each month it is important for you to compare all the different credit card offers and find the card that has the best APR for you.  This is not necessarily the card that has the lowest intro APR as it's final APR might be a couple of percentage points higher than the other cards.  If you are going to be keeping this card for a number of years then you will end up paying more in the long term.  Once  you find the credit card offer for you, go ahead and fill out your online credit card applications.

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