First Savings Credit Card Review
The First Savings Credit Card is an unsecured credit card aimed at customers with poor credit. First Savings Bank, which was established in 1913 in Beresford, South Dakota, issues the card to qualified customers through prescreened offers of credit only. The bank does not accept applications from customers who have not received a prescreened offer of credit for this credit card.
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First Savings Credit Card Overview
The issuing company currently has five different prescreened offers that come with varying terms. Customers should weigh the terms of the offer versus the benefits of accepting the card before making a decision.
Table of Contents
Fees
This credit card comes with an annual fee and APR that varies depending upon which offer the customer is accepting. The fees are listed on the contract for each offer:
- Annual fee of $0, $49 or $75
- APR for purchases of 14.90% or 29.9%
- APR for cash advances of 23.9% or 29.9%
- Transaction fee of $10, 4% or 2% of the amount of each cash advance
- Foreign transaction fee of 2% of each transaction in U.S. dollars
- Late payment fee of up to $25
- Returned payment fee of up to $25
Benefits
The features of the First Savings Credit Card are pretty standard. The card highlights benefits targeted at customers seeking to build credit:
- Payments reported to major credit bureaus
- No security deposit required
- Available to people with little or poor credit history
- Online account access
- No penalty APR for late payments
- Fraud coverage for stolen or lost cards
Reasons To Consider Applying for the First Savings Credit Card
The primary reason to consider applying for the First Savings Credit Card is if you have poor or limited credit and you have not been able to get approved for other credit cards. First Savings Bank will report your on-time payments to the major credit bureaus, which may help you improve your credit score and make it possible for you to be approved for other types of credit.
Though some offers have an annual fee, you do not need to put down a security deposit. This allows you to enjoy the benefits of having a credit card without having to tie up any of your funds.
Disadvantages of the First Savings Credit Card
This card can be a good option for some applicants, but it does have disadvantages. First, there is no way to apply if you have not received a prescreened offer and there is no way to request an offer. If you have not received an offer in the mail, then you will have to explore other options.
Second, the credit limits offered for this card are usually around $300, and once you pay your annual fee, your actual purchasing power is even less than that. The types of purchases you can make are very limited by this low credit limit. If you need a higher credit limit, you may want to consider applying for a secured credit card.
Finally, with an APR as high as 29.9%, carrying a balance on this card is very costly. Customers who are not careful to only charge what they can pay off each month could end up hurting their credit, rather than helping it.
Verdict
If you are a person with poor or limited credit history and have received a prescreened offer for the First Savings Credit Card, it may be worthwhile, but only if you are careful to ensure you only charge what you can pay off every month and that you make your payments on time. If you carry a balance or fail to make on-time payments, you are likely to end up hurting your credit score and wasting a lot of money on the high-interest rates and annual fees, particularly if you received an offer with the highest APR.
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