SET Card from Popular Community Bank review

SET Card from Popular Community Bank review

Updated: February 22, 2019
Updated: February 22, 2019
Ratings Policy
Low Interest Rating:
0 rating
0 rating
0 / 5
Rates, Fees, Penalties1.3
Rewards0.0
Features1.0

In a Nutshell:

The SET card is a mixed bag in terms of interest rates, fees and benefits.  This offer is no longer available.

View simialr low interest credit cards

Regular APR
9.99-23.25%

Average

Introductory APR
None

Poor

Introductory Balance Transfer APR
0%

Excellent

Fees

  • No annual fee
  • 3% or $5 balance transfer fee (whichever is higher; max. $100)
  • 3% foreign transaction fee
  • 16.99-30.25% cash advance APR
  • $29 cash advance fee
Average

Penalties

  • Up to $35 late payment fee
  • No penalty APR
  • Up to $35 returned payment fee
Very Good

Rewards
None

Poor

Other Notable Features: Standard MasterCard benefits

This offer is no longer available.

The SET card offers a 9.99 percent interest rate, which is almost 5 percent lower than the average credit card rate of 14.96 percent. Other benefits include no annual fee, an introductory zero percent APR for balance transfers and no penalty APR.

Low interest rate

The SET card’s 9.99 percent interest rate is better than average. However, an APR always depends on your credit score, so you need to have really good credit in order to be eligible for this low rate.

No introductory APR for new purchases

The value of this card is diminished by the fact that it doesn’t offer a zero percent introductory APR for new purchases. There are many cards on the market that will finance new purchases at zero percent for 12 months or longer for new cardholders. Even with the SET card’s low interest rate, cardholders could find themselves paying hundreds of dollars more in interest for carrying a balance on the SET card than if they had used a card with a zero percent interest rate.

Introductory balance transfer APR is a mixed bag

The SET card does offer a zero percent introductory APR for new balance transfers, but it only lasts 9 months. Most credit cards that offer an introductory zero percent introductory APR usually do so for at least 12 months. However, the SET card also has an unusual benefit. It charges 3 percent of the transfer amount, but it caps the fee at $100. This means that if you transfer more than $3,334, the balance transfer fee will equal less than 3 percent of the balance. For more than $5,000, it will equal less than 2 percent. If you transfer more than $10,000 from your high-APR card, the fee will effectively equal less than 1 percent of the balance.

No penalty APR

If you inadvertently miss a payment, you do not have to worry about a penalty APR kicking in. However,  you may lose your introductory zero percent balance transfer APR if you make a late payment.

Why get the SET Card from Popular Community Bank?

  • You want to pay off your high-interest debt or some part of it.
  • You don’t care about cash back or rewards.

How to use the SET Card from Popular Community Bank:

  • Transfer your balance within the first three months to get the introductory zero percent APR.
  • Don’t use the SET card abroad because of the 3 percent foreign transaction fee.

All reviews are prepared by CreditCards.com staff. Opinions expressed therein are solely those of the reviewer and have not been reviewed or approved by any advertiser. The information, including card rates and fees, presented in the review is accurate as of the date of the review. Check the data at the top of this page and the bank’s website for the most current information.

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