If you’re looking for a new rewards credit card, then the Younkers credit card may have crossed your mind. Let’s look into this particular card a little more closely and decide if it’s worth a chance.
Where can you use the Younkers card?
The Younkers card is your standard department store credit card and not linked to any of the major credit card issuers like Discover, American Express, Visa, or MasterCard. This card will only be accepted in the Younkers departments stores but also in it’s sister stores Bon-Ton, Boston Store, Carson Pirie Scott, Elder-Beerman, Bergner’s, and Herberger’s. This could be a potentially beneficial credit card choice IF and only IF you shop at these stores on a regular basis.
Rewards are tracked through a point system. For every dollar you spend on the card, you will receive one point. Your points will accumulate throughout the year and at the end of the year the company will determine what “tier” you fall under and then issue your rewards. The higher your tier, the better membership you’ll fall into and better rewards will result. These points can really rack up if you spend a lot of money at the stores. This card also qualifies you for perks like free shipping and shopping passes if that’s important to you.
How can the Younkers card affect your credit score?
This is a good starting card for someone who doesn’t have a large credit history who needs to build up their score. This could also assist someone rebuilding their credit score. Because the card is not linked to one of the four major issuers, it will be slightly easier to obtain for someone with a less than stellar credit score. Using this card and then paying off the balance every month ON TIME EVERY TIME will establish a solid payment history which is 35% of your credit score. A perfect and easy way to make that score rise quickly!
Drawbacks of the Younkers card
Before you rush to your nearest Younkers to apply, you do need to realize some of the negative aspects of the card. For and foremost, the interest rate will range anywhere from 21 to 24.99% interest rate, depending on your credit. This is astronomically high, and will be a terrible waste of money if you plan on carrying a balance. Carrying a balance is never ideal for your credit score, but especially not if you’re being charged high interest rates. This will be no problem at all, though, if you plan to pay in full every single month. Next, realize there are some restrictions and exclusions when to comes to using their coupons.
Furthermore, this is not an especially valuable card to have in your long term credit portfolio. One of the best reasons to have a credit card is to use in case of an emergency, and you cannot use this in a scenario such as that because it’s only accepted in the aforementioned department stores. A Younkers card is not considered a prime credit card, and will not be looked at as favorably by lenders as something like a Visa card. This could potentially hurt you in the long run when trying to get approved for a large amount of money or a high limit prime credit card.
When choosing a new credit card from any bank or store, you really do need to sit down and weigh the pros and cons before applying. It is not a decision to be taken lightly. Whether this card is for you depends on your individual needs and where exactly you may be in your life and in your credit journey. It would benefit you greatly to look at more than just the rewards offered to you within the store; think about if this card will reward you financially in all areas and if the benefit will be carried long term. Happy shopping!
