Jewelry possibly from Zales

Want A Zales Credit Card?

Find yourself in need of some jewelry but are short on money and maybe even short on credit. If so, applying for a Zales card might have occurred to you. But is it even possible to get approved for one of these cards with bad credit? Let’s take a look .

The Zales credit card, called “The Diamond Card” can be used for in store and online jewelry purchases at the Zales jewelry store. If approved, you would have access to special financing deals that give you zero or reduced interest options for periods ranging from 6 months to 36 months. In addition, card holders get some limited perks like special coupons and birthday benefits.

Approval Requirements

Most store cards like Zales are usually easier to get than your average open use Visa or Mastercard. That being said, fair credit is usually required to get an approval. So, if you have bad credit, your odds are, in all likelihood, going to be slim and your answer will probably be no, but keep reading.

Let’s take a look at some more information about the Zales card, what it takes to get it and even if it is worth pursuing. But first, here is a solution to consider if you need financing right now.

Get A Fast Loan Offer

An installment loan could just be the answer to your problems. At Loan Monkey, we can get you access to one of the largest lending networks on the internet, with lenders that are used to working with bad credit. One of them may be able to make you an offer that you can use to buy the jewelry that you need from any store that you like, not just Zales. It is free to find out so, why not get started?

Quick Links:

Get FinancingGetting Your ApprovalAbout The Diamond Card

More On Zales

Okay, back to this particular jeweler. If you are still reading at this point, you are stuck on getting a Zales credit card with bad credit and that is fine. Let’s look at what this card is all about.

Zales first opened in 1924 in Wichita Falls, Texas. Besides jewelry, they also offered small appliances, cameras and cookware. Very much different than the Store you see today. In the 1960’s, they branched out even further by opening stores selling furniture, shoes and sporting goods, among other things.

Today, the store is chiefly a jewelry store and is owned by Signet along with Kay’s and Jared. Despite the relationship, the Zales Diamond Card can only be used at Zales.

Getting A Zales Approval

To get your approval from Zales for jewelry financing you will need to get your score higher. Luckily, there is no magic in credit scores, it is all based upon a formula. If you want to get your score above 580, or fair, there are some simple things that you can do. Just getting your score above that level is no guarantee of approval but getting your score at least in the fair zone will improve your odds. Here is what is going to get you from bad to fair.

Be On Time

Paying those bills on time is one of the biggest things you can do to improve your score. In fact, about a third of your score is based on that. If you have had problems with late pays in the past, start paying on time now and in as little as six months, you can start seeing some improvements.

There is nothing that you can do to get accurate previous late pays off of your score. If something is accurate, you can not get it removed unless a creditor agrees to do so. Start paying on time and then contact your creditors to see if they would remove a late payment. It might not work, but it is worth a try.

Going forward, take advantage of email and text alerts for upcoming bills. In addition, use automatic payments whenever they are available.

Pay It Down

Credit utilization is the next biggest part of your score. This is the amount of money that you owe versus your credit limit. So, if you owe 800 dollars and have 1000 dollars in available credit, your ratio is 80%.

You want this ratio to get under 30% for the best scores. Get there by paying at least a few dollars more than the minimum payment. Paying the minimum will get you nowhere fast.

Check For Mistakes

Credit reports can often be riddled with mistakes. This is why you need to check them at least once a year and several months before applying for credit like the Zales Diamond card.

Pull your report from every bureau, free once a year, and dispute anything that you believe is not accurate. Bureaus have thirty days to investigate the issue which is why you need to do this at least a few months before applying for credit.

About The Zales Diamond Card

Store cards like this one have useful benefits but they also have problems.

The great benefit is that they allow you to purchase jewelry with zero or low interest for a set period of time, usually 6 months to 36 months. This can save you a lot of money if you do everything right. This means that if you have an 18 month term, you need to get it paid off before that term expires, preferably a month or two before then. Fail to pay off your jewelry in time and you will be hit with deferred interest.

Deferred Interest

Cards like these work by deferring the interest that you pay. It is not actually interest free, instead you are not being charged the interest immediately. Instead, it is building up all along. Pay off your debt in time and it is wiped away. Fail to pay it off in time and it will all be added to your account balance.

Fail to pay off even one dollar of your balance on time and you will be charged every penny of interest from the moment you made the purchase. On a 1000 dollar loan with a 12 month plan, assuming 29 percent interest, that is almost 300 dollars you could be hit with.

Is This Card Right For You?

If you are good about paying your bills, it might be a good option for you but there are better ones. If your credit is good enough, a zero introductory interest Visa, Mastercard or Discover would be a better option. There would actually be no interest during the intro period, which is much better than deferred interest. If you fail to pay off the amount owed in the due time, you would not be charged past interest, but you would face interest from that point on.

In addition, you would be able to use the card in more places and the credit would continue to benefit you and your credit score for years to come. In all likelihood, even if you pay your Zales card successfully, it would probably be closed in the future by the card issuer once it becomes inactive.