Credit Cards Fees
Credit cards were golden for a while; if you had good credit, you may have had to deal with interest rate changes or disputing a fee for items you ordered and never received, but annual fees on your cards seemed to be relegated to secured credit cards or cards for people with low-to-no-credit.
In the wake of the new credit card bill taking effect on February 22, 2010, many companies are choosing to hit consumers with annual fees they have never had to pay before, and scrambling to do so before they are obligated by law to provide cardholders with 45 days of notice before making changes.
Citigroup, for instance, issued a press release that cardholders will be required to pay a $60 annual fee... unless you make $2,400 in charges over the course of a year. Since that averages out to $200 per month that many cardholders would not be able to pay off, Citigroup will end up making out like a bandit with late fees and penalties. With the new laws coming into play, Citigroup is probably not the last entity to extract new fees from you.
What should you do if you have a card that now has a fee you don't want on it? You could cancel the card, but only if you already have other credit cards and better-than-decent credit history. Since removing a card you have kept in good standing brings down your credit rating, only remove it if you can afford to. If it's your only card, or you plan to use it for most of your needs, you should consider keeping it. The fee-waiving offer dependent on reaching a spending threshold may be a new tactic that you can use to make smart credit card decisions.
- Understanding Credit:
