Get The Best Credit

Do you read the fine print on your credit card bill? Did you read the fine print when you accepted the credit card in the first place?

If you’re like most people, you didn’t. You probably noticed that the interest rate charged on purchases is different from the rate on cash advances. Sometimes the cash advance came with a low promotional fee, so it was charged at a rate such as 5.9% while purchases remained at 12.9% or even higher.

Unless you did read the fine print, you probably didn’t notice that your payments all went toward paying down the lower interest balance, rather than being allocated proportionately between them or applied to the higher interest balance.

Under the new Credit Cardholder’s Bill of Rights, that will change. Your minimum payment will still be allocated to the lowest interest rate balance, but any amounts you pay above the minimum will be credited toward your high interest balance. So if you accidentally use the wrong card and charge $50 in high interest purchases on a card that you planned on only using for cash advances, you can hurry and pay $50 over your minimum payment to get rid of the high interest.

The new law also bans a practice that you probably didn’t realize was being done. This practice, known as double-cycle billing, based your finance charges on the average balance of both the current and the previous month’s balance. So even if you made a large payment and brought your balance down considerably, you’d still be paying interest on that paid debt the next month.

A third consumer-friendly provision goes into effect in just two months – in August 2009. This provision requires credit card issuers to mail your statement 21 days in advance of your due date, as opposed to the current 14 days. The shorter time frame was causing many consumers to receive their statements too late to write a check and return it in time for it to get back to the card issuer before the due date.

Gift cards will also be regulated under the new laws. Beginning in August 2010, all gift cards must be valid for at least 5 years – allowing consumers plenty of time to use them. Also, while at present the issuer can assess inactivity fees if the card is not used for a short time, they will now not be permitted to assess such fees unless the card has gone unused for 12 months.

————————

http://www.bestrateforcreditcards.com is your on-line resource for credit card comparsions.

Source: http://www.submityourarticle.com

Permalink: http://www.submityourarticle.com/a.php?a=60646

Republished by Blog Post Promoter

I am Glad you could return. Have you signed up for The Best Credit For You Newsletter? Thanks again for coming! Your comments are greatly appreciated. Related Websites

• Interest Rate Hikes And What You Can Do About Them
• How to Trim Your High Interest Credit Card Debt
• 3 Reasons Why Paying With Cash Hurts You in the Long Term

Copyright © 2009 Tara Tiemann

Debit cards can be somewhat misunderstood because SOME of them have activation fees and monthly fees. But are there certain advantages that only prepaid cards provide?  In this article, let’s consider advantages that prepaid cards bring:

1. Spend only the money that you have.  When you make a purchase and charge it to your credit card, technically, you borrow the money from the credit card company in order to make the purchase and you pay it back at a later time.  Prepaid cards allow you to only spend the money you have in the attached account.  With a debit card, you are more conscience of what you spend since you know once you have spent all the money in the account, that’s it, the card will not allow further purchases.

2.  You spend only as much money as you load onto the card.  Credit cards can lead to overspending and breaking your budget.  Since you can charge as much as you want on a credit card, you risk going over your budget if you’re not careful.  This is impossible with a prepaid debit card.  With a debit card, you can only charge the amount that you have in your account.  Spending more than what you have is simply not possible.

3. A convenient tool for small business entrepreneurs.  Business owners and entrepreneurs will find giving debit cards to their freelance workers as a convenient and inexpensive way of sending payments.  Are your freelance workers working outside of your State or from another country?  It doesn’t really matter.  You can use your debit card for sending money anywhere in the world.

4.  Prepaid debit cards are convenient for transferring money.  Aside from business owners, parents too can find debit cards really useful when transferring funds to their kids who are in college.  Debit cards provide worldwide services so you can send money to anyone wherever you are in the world.  Wire transfers and western union can be pricey.  Debit cards are a much cheaper way of sending payment.

5. Company owners can use prepaid debit card in paying employees.  With a few clicks of your mouse you can schedule payroll for your employees to be automatically deposited on to their debit cards. Thus eliminating the need to mail out checks.  This is advantageous for employees as well since they can choose to withdraw their wages at their most convenient time.

6. Debit cards are useful tools for those with no bank accounts.  Having a checking account isn’t needed in order to open a debit card account.  You can use your paycheck or any automatic payment to set up your account.  If you want to do your shopping without the need to bring cash, you can use a debit card instead.

7. Prepaid debit cards are easier to get approved for than credit cards.  Credit card companies have adopted strict credit score requirements.  On the contrary, anyone can apply for a prepaid debit card and get an approval.

In fact, people with bad credit or low credit scores can apply for a debit card to improve their credit status.  Once their credit is improved, they can apply for credit cards with better rates without getting declined or refused.

————————

Go- Prepaid (http://www.go-prepaid.com ) is a resource site for people who want to live debt free! If your on a budget using pre-paid credit cards and pre-paid cell phone services can save you big money!

Source: http://www.submityourarticle.com

Permalink: http://www.submityourarticle.com/a.php?a=59749

Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Related Websites

• The pros & cons of debit cards
• Why Debit Cards Are Inferior to Credit Cards as a Payment Method
• Why Debit Cards Are Better Than Credit Cards

It is very easy to ignore your finances especially when debt is mounting and becoming too much for one to handle. There are many ways to deal with the situation, firstly, accepting the debt is there and that it needs to be dealt with. Secondly, take a look at what you are spending monthly then make a plan.

It is best to work out how much you are spending on a monthly basis. Make a list of everything you need to pay out including your food bill. Once you have estimated the amount that is needed each month it will be easy for you to work out how much you have left to save or spend. This way you can make sure that your monthly income is not exceeded.

It would always be wise to get advice from a debt advisor once your budget has been worked out, they can then take your information into consideration while helping with solutions to clearing the debts in the best and quickest possible way.

There are many options out there for people who are getting deeper into debt, unfortuanately people are not aware of the options that are available; however there is a lot of advice out there and available options such as a debt consolidation loan.  A bad debt consolidation loan can be very helpful to some, however if you are looking at getting one, it would be useful to look at more than one loan company and see what deals are being offered.

If you have a poor credit rating it is usual for people to think that it would be a lot harder for them to get help for a loan. This is not always the case and although not all companies can help a few can, making it possible. The interest rates are normally higher if you have a bad credit rating, nevertheless it is still obtainable.  In fact some companies use people facing bankruptcy as an example.

Debt consolidation loan means merging your bills into one monthly payment, this is what makes a consolidation loan appealing to many as it takes away the pressure. The monthly amount can be considerably reduced although you will be paying it back over a longer period of time. It should be researched carefully before any decisions are made on consolidating your loans.

Final Comments

Improving your debt will take hard work and dedication this is why a debt consolidation loan shouldn’t be taken lightly, much consideration should be taken to make sure monthly payments can be met.

————————

Steve Smith writes for allaboutloans where we offer all kinds of debt help, from  debt management plans to  debt consolidation loans. Visit Today http://www.allaboutloans.co.uk

Source: http://www.submityourarticle.com

Permalink: http://www.submityourarticle.com/a.php?a=58956

Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Related Websites

• Meet The M-Network: An Interview With PaidTwice From I've Paid For This Twice Already.
• Top Prosper Listing Titles Of All Time
• Getting Out of Debt Quickly pt 4