Archive for August, 2009

Travel money stealth charges could hit 20 million people

Posted by: admin  Posted date: August 25, 2009 in Credit Cards Articles
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Travellers could be worse off by €138 (£119) through hidden travel money stealth charges, according to new research.

Those seeking travel money should be wary about the plethora of “free commission” deals, according to new research from FarFX.com, the leading foreing currency provider.

The “free” deals may not turn out to be as good as they seem.

FairFX found that travellers could be paying as much as €138 in hidden charges, even though they believe that their currency purchases are “commission free”. Some of the stealth charges include:

Non usage fees Cross-border fees Poor exchange rates at many airports Misleading guarantees FairFX is calling upon the travel money industry to clean up its’ act. As Stephen Heath, Chief Executive of FairFX.com, advises: “Opaque or hidden charges in the travel money sector are frequently misleading and also remove a consumer’s right to make an informed choice.

“Consumers should watch out for the worst misleading practices which could cost them dearly. Practices like advertisi Read more…

Tags: Charges Money Stealth Money Stealth Charges Stealth Charges

The Credit Card for Bad Credit Saves the Day

Posted by: admin  Posted date: August 24, 2009 in Credit Cards Articles
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Bad Credit Credit Cards is not just a card that doesn’t require good credit history or high income. It can also be considered a lifeline that helps people stay afloat until they are more financially stable and more able to rebuild their credit scores.

Getting a card can be the first solid step towards reestablishing good credit rating. When a person applies for a credit card for bad credit, he or she does this with no risk of lowering ratings. The application is guaranteed approved so there is no chance that the rating will decrease even further because of a rejected application.

Aside from these, such cards recognize the financial state of their clients. They offer low interest rates – some even none at all. They don’t charge as much as other cards. Plus, there are some that even provide clients a grace period during payment, to give allowance for whatever financial setbacks they may be experiencing.

While using this card, a person’s credit rating improves whenever bills are paid on time and in full. As long Read more…

Tags: Bad Credit Credit Credit Card

I Can See What The Bank Manager Sees, Can You?

Posted by: admin  Posted date: August 24, 2009 in Credit Cards Articles
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With the present unprecedented failing economy, there has rarely been a more important period to get a copy of your free borrowing file. Most us haven’t a clue about the criteria lenders use to score their chances of obtaining money – and it predictably isn’t as simple as you might imagine.

Criteria such as missed payments on loans and plastic certainly influence lenders aprrovals, but are you aware that you may be declined a mortgage as you haven’t ever had credit? It sounds crazy, but in reality lenders need not only to see that you are not already overstretched, but also that you have a reasonable past of keeping up installments.

For this reason, banks you have in the past borrowed from provide borrowing reference agencies such as Experian with details on how you handle your debt options.

Something else we frequently don’t realise is credit files aren’t limited to credit cards, personal loans and mortgages. If you have a post-pay mobile that is almost always detailed on your debt report too. How about Read more…

Pros and Cons of Closing a Credit Card

Posted by: admin  Posted date: August 22, 2009 in Credit Cards Articles
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Have you recently paid off a credit card? Do you feel like you have too many? Are you considering closing one or more cards? You may want to think twice before closing your credit card accounts. While cutting back can help you stay out of debt, it could also damage your credit history if you’re not careful. Here are some of the pros and cons that you should consider before closing any credit card: Pros of Closing a Credit Card The most obvious reason for closing a credit card is to eliminate the available credit limit. When you do that, you take away your ability to over-spend on that card and get into credit card debt with it. That’s an important consideration if you know you’re prone to spending too much on your cards./p pYou also might opt to close a credit card with high interest rates or fees. Perhaps you would first transfer the balance to a card with more favourable terms (such as a balance transfer card like the ANZ Balance credit card), then closing the original account./p pAnother reason to close a credit card is that you want to consolidate — use a single credit card for all, or most, purchases (such as to accumulate more rewards points). You may Read more…

Tags: Card Credit Card

Having No Annual Fee……at a Cost?

Posted by: admin  Posted date: August 22, 2009 in Credit Cards Articles
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In an earlier post entitled It All Adds Up, Credit Cards with Annual Fees, I briefly discussed how many credit card issuers were thinking about adding annual fees to their credit card offers due to the changes made by the CARD Act. According to a recent article in CNN Money, it now looks like the first credit card issuer to add annual fees has been named and it is Citi Bank.

How much will this annual fee be? While there is no definitive answer, reports from cardholders have shown that they range from thirty dollars and above. At the moment Citi is experimenting with a range of annual fees, and a spokesperson stated that they are based on Citi’s regular account reviews. For the most part Citi has stated that these annual fees will only be added to a select group of consumer, although they have not mentioned the percentage of accounts that will effected.

From reports by cardholders, it does seem like this fee may be waived if you spent more than $2,400 on your Citi credit card. I Read more…

Tags: Annual No Annual

Credit Card Interest Increases-Should You Opt Out?

Posted by: admin  Posted date: August 22, 2009 in Credit Cards Articles
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Credit card companies will most probably make as many changes they can before August 2010 when the new rules for interest hikes step into effect. So going forward, be sure to carefully read every document that you receive from your credit card company to avoid being caught unaware of changes to your terms.

If your credit card APR does get increased or other terms are changed in ways you don’t like, you do have the option to opt out of the changes within a specified time period. Unfortunately, opting out can be a losing proposition for cardholders. Typically, when you opt out, you will be able to pay off any outstanding credit card balance under the existing terms, but your credit card will be closed and you will no longer be able to use it for new charges.

When a credit card account gets closed, it could hurt your credit score by changing the debt-to-credit limit ratio on your credit report. W Read more…

Tags: Credit Card Interest

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