Credit Card Bills are Adding Up

Credit Card Bills are Adding Up

you may have not really noticed how the bills have been getting higher and higher. then one day, you open your credit card bills and wonder how youll even make your minimum payments. congratulations. this is where change happens.

youve reached your breaking point. the point where you have to change how you manage your money. it can seem like an awful time. you dont know exactly how to get out of this mess. but dont worry, all you can do now is go up -- youve hit the bottom already.

lets look at some credit card truths. all credit cards are not bad. credit cards can be very nice in some situations. what is bad is charging to your cards and not immediately paying it off. here is the truth about credit cards:

truth #1: not paying off your credit card each month will cost you.

you have to pay off the card each month or you will be charged interest on your purchases. it may not seem like a lot at first, but that three dollar breakfast at the fast food place could cost you $30 before you are finished paying for it.

truth #2: minimum payments cost you maximum money.

if you only make the minimum payments, you could pay for years and years without seeing the bottom. minimum payments are only two to three percent of your balance. you are paying interest and just the slightest amount to the balance. check it out. compare the finance charge with your minimum payment. there will only be a slight difference in the amounts. if you are paying $10 and being charged $9.50 in interest, your balance isnt going down very fast.

truth #3: you dont need more than two credit cards.

some people will even argue that you dont need more than one. if you have more than two, it can become difficult to keep track of each account -- checking for errors and keeping track of spending. you need to read each account statement every month.

truth #4: credit cards call up your interest rate at any time.

some credit card companies can increase your interest rate without any notification. you are comfortably paying a nice 10% credit card, then one month, before your eyes, it changes to 29%. it happens. and there isnt a thing you can do, except pay the card off and close it.

truth #5: getting out of credit card debt isnt easy.

paying off your debt takes time and a lot of money. money that you didnt have in the first place, or you wouldnt have used your credit card. but it is possible. and it is worth it. there is no better feeling than knowing you only owe your student loans and your mortgage. there is no better feeling than having all that money you used to pay to your debts back in your pockets.

simply start with taking a good hard look at your finances. create a budget and stick to it. pay off one card at a time, if necessary. it may take years, but it will save you years of payments. remember, its a long process, but worth it. oh -- and cut up all the cards right now. you dont need them anymore.

martin lukac, represents, #1 loans usa(http://www.freeroller.net/mbs.cgi/mb151283), a finance web-company specializing in real estate/mortgage market. we specialize in daily updates, rate predictions, mortgage rates and more. for mortgage rates please visit http://www.rateempire.com

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0% Balance Transfer Credit Cards: How to Avoid Costly Mistakes & Take Advantage of a 0% APR

youve seen the offers: 0% balance transfer, pay no interest for one year. currently, the chase platinum card even offers a 0% interest rate for up 15 months. for those carrying balances on high interest credit cards, the savings that can be reaped with these balance transfer offers is tremendous. however, one false move and youll not only lose the 0% rate, you might also end up paying a higher rate than the one you previously paid. credit card issuers call it the default rate, and it can range up to 29.99% or more, a far cry from 0%.

how can a 0% balance transfer dream turn into a 29.99% nightmare? its not as uncommon as wed like to think. in fact, it could happen with only one late payment. yes, missing a payment constitutes default in most contracts, bringing with it the horrific default rates attached to most, if not all credit cards. luckily, many credit cards wont throw the book at you if you simply miss one payment by a few days. if your credit is questionable, however, one late payment could be enough to trigger the default rate.

fortunately, there are easy ways to prevent this. one very effective, time-saving method available is automatic payment. you can schedule a monthly payment directly from your bank account to your credit card, ensuring payment is received on time. the next easy way to maintain your 0% interest rate is to simply pay your bill when it arrives. e-mail bill notifications are also a great way to keep you up to speed with payments.

the money a 0% apr can save you over the course of 12-15 months greatly outweighs the burden of paying a bill on time. besides, defaulting on a high interest credit card will also cause your rate to hit the ceiling, and probably much quicker than it would with a new 0% balance transfer credit card. it is never a good idea to miss a credit card payment for this reason alone, and many people seek 0% balance transfers because they have been unfairly hit with a default rate by their current credit card issuer.

credit card companies give you the opportunity to save with 0% interest rates for up to 15 months because they want you to use their card. not only do they make money every time your card is swiped for a purchase, they also expect to make money on your balance once the 0% apr expires. the 0% offer works for credit card companies because it brings in new customers. more importantly, however, the 0% offer works for you because it can save you a substantial amount of money on interest during the introductory term.

just how much you can save will vary. for example, transferring a $2,000 balance from a 13.99% credit card to a 0% balance transfer credit card offers you the opportunity to save over $200 in interest (assuming no additional usage during the year). not too bad, but small change compared to the $1200 or more you can save by transferring $10,000 to a 0% rate.

everyone with decent credit and a revolving balance should take advantage of 0% interest balance transfers to help reduce the burden of paying off credit card debt. why pay to borrow money when someone will lend it to you for free? it simply doesnt make sense. with credit card issuers like citibank, american express, chase, discover, mbna, hsbc, and others fighting to gain you as a customer by offering a 0% rate, there has never been a better time to cash in on the hundreds to thousands of dollars these companies will allow you to save just for transferring a balance to one of their credit cards.

jeff weber is the president and ceo of credit card depot inc., an online credit card marketing company. for over two years, the companys primary website,http://www.freeroller.net/mbs.cgi/mb819907, has provided consumers with detailed credit card application information as well as articles to help consumers find the best value in credit cards. at credit card depot, you can compare over 300% balance transfer credit card applications from every major credit card issuer mentioned in this article and apply online for approval. credit card depot also feature a wide variety of credit cards that offer a0% interest rate on purchases and balance transfers for up to 15 months.

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Sendmethecard & Applyonline.citicards: How To Take Advantage Of These Offers

we all receive credit card offers in the mail daily. unfortunately, a majority of them are unsolicitated and quite frankly, bad offers. however, there are a few that may prove to be useful. the two solicitations that fall under this category are the sendmethecard/mychaseplatinum offer from chase manhattan bank and the applyonline.citicards offer from citi.

sendmethecard is an invitation sent out by chase only to consumers who are pre-approved for their chase platinum card. consumers who receive this invitation may go to sendmethecard.com to redeem their pre-approved chase platinum by filling out the online application and inputting their invitation number. though the chase platinum is considered a good offer by many, coming with a 0% apr for 15 months and a low variable apr of 10.99% thereafter, there are other ways to take advantage of the sendmethecard offer. it is a very good assumption that if youre pre-approved for the chase platinum, you probably qualify for several of their other offers that perhaps are better suited for your lifestyle.

citi has a similar offer, applyonline.citicards. this works in a similar way. consumers may visit applyonline.citicards.com to redeem their pre-approved citi credit card. this offer or invitation is also extended through the mail, and opens the door to several consumer credit cards geared toward those with good credit.

if youve received either of these offers, this is good news. if youve been pre-approved for a chase or citi card, chances are you have pretty good credit. these two banks dont offer pre-qualified credit card invitations to people with bad credit. therefore, getting a copy of your credit report should really not be much of a concern. if you elect to apply for a card, you have the option of comparing cards from both issuers side by side. both banks offer several different cards with rewards programs attached to them, so you will be able to choose which card is best suited for your lifestyle. if you arent in the market for a new card, at least you know that you have options.

russ nauta is the senior editor and investigator for http://www.freeroller.net/mbs.cgi/mb1071669 a leading consumer credit card information portal since 2004.

this article may be republished with a live link back to http://www.freeroller.net/mbs.cgi/mb1071669.

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