When Mykail James was 19 and working a holiday job at Victoria's Secret, she took out a store credit card with a $2,000 credit line.
When her school break was over, she realized she could no longer afford the payments. After missing a few, she paid off the card only to find that her credit score had decreased dramatically, affecting her ability to access other types of credit.
"I didn't get an actual bank credit card until I was 21, just because of that fear," said James, who is now a financial expert and creator of The Boujie Budgeter. "Because of how it impacted my credit and also made it harder for me to buy a car a couple of months later."
With holiday shopping season around the corner, experts recommend caution when your favorite store offers you a credit card.
"If you're offered one at the checkout counter, most of the time it makes sense to say no," said Ted Rossman, senior industry analyst at Bankrate.
