.bodytext {float: left; } .floatimg-left-hort { float:left; margin-top:10px; margin-right: 10px; width:300px; clear:left;} .floatimg-left-caption-hort { float:left; margin-bottom:10px; width:300px; margin-right:10px; clear:left;} .floatimg-left-vert { float:left; margin-top:10px; margin-right:15px; width:200px;} .floatimg-left-caption-vert { float:left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; font-size: 10px; width:200px;} .floatimg-right-hort { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 300px;} .floatimg-right-caption-hort { float:left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 300px; font-size: 10px; } .floatimg-right-vert { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 200px;} .floatimg-right-caption-vert { float:left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 200px; font-size: 10px; } .floatimgright-sidebar { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 200px; border-top-style: double; border-top-color: black; border-bottom-style: double; border-bottom-color: black;} .floatimgright-sidebar p { line-height: 115%; text-indent: 10px; } .floatimgright-sidebar h4 { font-variant:small-caps; } .pullquote { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 150px; background: url(http://www.dmbusinessdaily.com/DAILY/editorial/extras/closequote.gif) no-repeat bottom right !important ; line-height: 150%; font-size: 125%; border-top: 1px solid; border-bottom: 1px solid;} .floatvidleft { float:left; margin-bottom:10px; width:325px; margin-right:10px; clear:left;} .floatvidright { float:right; margin-bottom:10px; width:325px; margin-right:10px; clear:left;} Is a credit card payment that’s just one day late better than a payment that’s 30 days late?

What kind of information about me is stored on that magnetic strip on the back of the card?

Why should I try to pay more than the minimum payment each month?

Wells Fargo & Co. representatives traveled to 21 high schools and middle schools across Greater Des Moines recently, on a one-day blitz to provide students with answers to questions such as these.

For many students, it’s a subject they’ve heard little about.

“I knew that credit cards had interest rates, but I didn’t know exactly how it worked or anything like that,” said Lara Townsley, a North High senior who said she hopes to become either a lawyer or a physical therapist. “I was never really talked to about it.”

On Oct. 18, the fifth annual National Get Smart About Credit Day, Wells Fargo representatives gave the one-hour presentations to more than 500 Des Moines students. It was the first time Wells Fargo had participated in the national program, which is sponsored by the American Bankers Association Education Foundation.

“Our goal is to help teens and young adults learn how to use credit wisely and responsibly,” said Dave Mackaman, president of Wells Fargo – Des Moines. “If young adults make poor credit choices, it could harm them for years. Teaching them how to best use credit will equip them to handle adult financial responsibilities, from using credit cards and applying for car loans to managing a mortgage.”

The educational push comes at a time when University of Iowa and Iowa State University officials are considering a ban on marketing of university-branded cards to students.

Teens spend an estimated $172 billion a year on discretionary purchases, and when they reach age 18 are typically bombarded by credit card offers. Yet only about one in three parents ever talks to his or her teenager about using credit responsibly, according to the ABAEF.

“We want to make sure that debt doesn’t become a monster on your back,” Deborah Mobley, an operations analyst for Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, told North High students during their accounting class. “The thing about credit is, you don’t want to overdo it; you don’t want to get into ‘credit card jail.’ It’s a lot harder to repair credit than it is to get credit.”

Holding up a credit card, Mobley said: “This magnetic strip has a lot of information about you. One of the things that you don’t want to happen is have a merchant bring it back to you and say, ‘I’m sorry, I can’t accept your card.’ Your credit score is kind of like your grade. The higher your grades, the more opportunities you have.”

And yes, making a payment just one day late counts against your credit score, she said, and a payment that’s a month late bites into your score even more.

As part of the presentation, the class reviewed a worksheet that showed them how making small payments on a $5,000 card balance could cost hundreds of dollars more in interest over a year than the principal they paid off.

“As a general rule, you don’t want to borrow more than 20 percent of your annual income,” Mobley told the students. And shop around to find the best interest rate, she added.

For Townsley, who has worked at after-school jobs since she was 14 and makes payments on a car loan, the presentation made a lot of sense.

When she gets her first credit card, “I want to start out buying little things just to build up credit, not buying a house on it or anything,” she said. “I just want to start small so I can pay it back.”