5 Card Deals That Can Destroy Your Credit

No payments for a year. 0% interest. 15% off your entire purchase.

Such deals are incredibly enticing to cash-strapped consumers trying to make it through the holidays — and both credit-card issuers and retailers alike know it, says Gail Cunningham, spokeswoman for the National Foundation of Credit Counseling (NFCC). But what might seem like a great deal now could have some harmful and lasting effects on your credit score down the road.

"Consumers need to be aware that all credit isn't good credit and that some credit may get you into worse financial trouble than you're already in," says Sheryl Garrett, a fee-only certified financial planner.

Here are five credit offers that consumers should avoid.

Advertisements promising furniture, flat-screen TVs or dishwashers at 0% interest and no payments for months, or even years, may seem too good to be true. In most cases, they are.

Sure you save on interest and you don't have to pay for the whole thing up front, but in some cases these deals can wreak serious havoc on your credit utilization ratio, a factor that comprises almost 30% of your credit score, says Barry Paperno, consumer operations manager for Fair Isaac Corporation, a Minneapolis-based company that developed the FICO scoring formula. Credit utilization is a consumer's outstanding debt as a percentage of their total amount of credit. To maintain a healthy credit score, borrowers need to have no more than 10% to 30% credit utilization, he says.

When a shopper buys $3,000 in furniture using a no interest, no payment financing deal, they often receive a $3,000 line of credit to pay for it. The problem is now the buyer has a line of credit that is maxed out 100%. Making matters worse, the line of credit often moves in tandem with their payments. So when the consumer's balance drops from $3,000 to $2,000, the credit line drops to $2,000 as well, says Garrett. So, until the account is paid in full, that line of credit will remain at a 100% utilization rate.

Each retailer's terms are different so consumers should ask if the line of credit will be larger than the loan amount and what the interest rate will be once the introductory period expires. Also, find out if this loan will be structured as a revolving account (like a credit card) or an installment account (like a car loan), says Paperno. The latter is less harmful to credit scores, he says.

Paying for that pricey cashmere sweater is a lot easier to stomach when you get 10% off just for opening a store credit-card account. Just be prepared to feel a little queasy when you see what that card does to your credit score.

When a consumer applies for a credit card, an inquiry is made to the credit bureau which may slightly lower their credit score, says Paperno. Another hitch: Many store credit cards carry low credit limits, which can increase a consumer's credit utilization. But perhaps the biggest pitfall of these cards is that they carry dangerously high interest rates. A Macy's (M) credit card, for example, has a 22.9% annual percentage rate (APR), which increases to 24.9% if the credit-card holder is late with a two consecutive payments or twice in a six-month period. The rate on Ann Taylor's credit card varies between 22.8% and 24.99%.

Almost every credit card comes with a variable interest rate that can rise (or on a rare occasion, fall) at any time the card issuer sees fit. A sudden spike in interest rates raises the chances that consumers will be unable to pay their balance in full, which in turn can negatively impact their credit score, says Paperno.

Before signing up for a variable rate card, consumers should look at the fine print to find out just how high the interest rate can go. They can also seek out a fixed rate — although these are not very common. Just keep in mind that fixed-rate cards have their own pitfalls. The Pulaski Bank Visa (V), for example, carries a 6.50% fixed APR, which increases to 22% following a missed payment.

It's tempting to put those 0% balance transfer checks that arrive in the mail to work. Why not consolidate your debts and pay them off at a lower rate?

Just be careful about the card you're transferring to. If it carries a lower credit limit than the one you're transferring the balance from, the move could hurt your credit utilization rate and decrease your credit score. Also, you may actually add significantly to your debt. Balance transfers usually carry pricey fees, ranging from 2% to 4% of the total amount being transferred. So, on a balance transfer of $2,000, you could end up paying roughly $80.

Most banks offer overdraft reserve accounts to checking account customers who sign up for it. This line of credit kicks in when an account holder overdraws on a debit or checking transaction.

The good news is the reserve account eliminates those pesky overdraft fees that most banks impose. The bad news: If an account holder dips into that account, they have to pay the balance back immediately. Otherwise, their credit score will be hit with a late payment, much like a late payment on a credit card, says Paperno. Timeliness of payments is the most heavily weighted factor of FICO scores, accounting for about 35% of your total FICO score, he says.