[WalletHub] Ampountolas Weighs In on Credit Cards for First-Time Borrowers
Credit card marketing tends to lead with rewards. For someone opening a first account, that framing can be the wrong place to start.
That was the message from Apostolos Ampountolas, Associate Professor of Hospitality Finance and Chair of Graduate Programs at the Boston University School of Hospitality Administration (BU SHA), in expert commentary published July 29 by the personal finance site WalletHub. The piece accompanied the site’s review of the Capital One Platinum card and addressed how newcomers to credit should evaluate their options.
Ampountolas made the case that a card without an annual fee is usually the more practical entry point. The habits that matter early on, he noted, are paying on time, spending within a budget, and understanding where the account sits in a broader financial picture. Fee-based rewards cards can be justified when a holder will genuinely use the benefits, but as he put it, “rewards should not encourage additional spending.”
He also addressed why relatively few issuers serve applicants with thin or nonexistent credit files. The answer, he explained, is largely about limited data: with little repayment history to assess, issuers find it harder to predict how an account will be managed. Common responses include secured cards, lower opening limits, and products with fewer benefits. Underwriting standards, costs, and risk tolerance vary from issuer to issuer, so no single explanation covers the market.
On timing, Ampountolas advised reviewing credit reports first, spacing out applications, and thinking carefully before applying in the run-up to a mortgage. He distinguished between preapproval checks, which use a soft inquiry, and completed applications, which trigger a hard inquiry and can temporarily lower a score.
Read the full Expert Thoughts.
- Date: July 29, 2026
- News source: WalletHub