Credit Card Affairs Blog http://creditcardaffairs.org/ en Copyright 2009 Fri, 13 Nov 2009 18:54:02 -0800 http://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/ http://www.rssboard.org/rss-specification FICO Finally Reveals Part of Score Structure
CreditCards.com: FICO reveals how common credit mistakes affect scores.
]]> http://creditcardaffairs.org/2009/11/fico-finally-reveals-part-of-s.html http://creditcardaffairs.org/2009/11/fico-finally-reveals-part-of-s.html fico Fri, 13 Nov 2009 18:54:02 -0800 Take Advantage of Rewards and APR Offers Before They Disappear Forever
"We are going to see attempts to limit the rewards," at least in the short term...
regulations will probably lead to less lucrative rewards programs in due course."

If you've been looking to get a new card, now is probably a good time to apply, but remember to look out for those high annual fees that are starting to become more common these days.

Wall Street Journal
]]> http://creditcardaffairs.org/2009/11/take-advantage-of-rewards-and.html http://creditcardaffairs.org/2009/11/take-advantage-of-rewards-and.html Fri, 13 Nov 2009 18:29:13 -0800 Have Credit Card Defaults Peaked?
Most U.S. credit card companies reported defaults fell in September from record highs as consumers used tax refunds and other economic stimulus proceeds to lower debts, but late payments rose, suggesting more troubles ahead in an already battered industry.

Most sectors are talking about the worst being over these days, but I'm not sure if that applies to the credit card industry. If the unemployment rate starts to decline within the next couple of months we might see an improvement in the industry, but if high unemployment persists it'll be a whole different story.

Source: ABC News
]]> http://creditcardaffairs.org/2009/11/have-credit-card-defaults-peak.html http://creditcardaffairs.org/2009/11/have-credit-card-defaults-peak.html market recession Sun, 08 Nov 2009 19:25:38 -0800 Credit Union Credit Cards - It's like paradise Forbes can't deny the appeal of credit unions:

...interest rates for credit cards issued by the nation's 12 largest credit unions were 20% lower than those for bank-issued cards

The credit unions studied charged a high of 13.75% interest on cash advances, versus as much as 21.24% by banks.

13.75% APR for cash advances?! Sign me up. Search for your local credit union at CUNA

]]> http://creditcardaffairs.org/2009/11/credit-union-credit-cards---it.html http://creditcardaffairs.org/2009/11/credit-union-credit-cards---it.html credit unions low-rate cards Sun, 08 Nov 2009 18:06:35 -0800 BBC Looks at the Changing Credit Card Industry
One cannot help thinking that we may have already seen the peak of the credit card market. Prepaid cards, debit cards and the likes of PayPal are steadily gaining market share and if the faithful credit card loses some more of their allure the trend may continue.

...There is a market for the credit card but it looks likely to get smaller.

Maybe we really have seen a peak in the credit card market. It's not realistic to expect that people will just keep getting more and more credit cards. Of course, this doesn't necessarily apply to all markets. In some countries, credit cards are really just taking off. I don't think that debit cards or prepaid cards are really taking away too much business from the credit card companies. After all, credit cards offer a lot more flexibility and rewards.

BBC News: What's the future for credit cards?

]]> http://creditcardaffairs.org/2009/10/bbc-looks-at-the-changing-cred.html http://creditcardaffairs.org/2009/10/bbc-looks-at-the-changing-cred.html market uk Tue, 27 Oct 2009 23:46:11 -0800 Visa Posts Profit Thanks to Debit Cards
The chief executive, Joseph W. Saunders, said Visa was beginning to see signs of stabilization that appeared to reflect early signs of economic recovery.

Wanna tell that to all the unemployed people?

NYT: Debit Card Use Helps Visa Post a Profit
]]> http://creditcardaffairs.org/2009/10/visa-posts-profit-thanks-to-de.html http://creditcardaffairs.org/2009/10/visa-posts-profit-thanks-to-de.html profit visa Tue, 27 Oct 2009 23:38:00 -0800 Credit Cards You Might Not Totally Hate... Our friends over at Yahoo have compiled a list of credit cards that are more consumer friendly and as far as we can tell they've picked some obscure but interesting cards:

Despite a $35 annual fee, for a low rate it's tough to beat Iberia's Visa Classic cards, with a purchase rate fixed at 6.5%, compared with a national average of about 13%. Farm Bureau Bank's no-fee Platinum MasterCard currently carries a low, 5.24% variable rate.

Those rates are incredibly low. Leave a comment if you have one of these cards. Check out the link after the jump for the entire article and some more cards with reasonable rates.
]]> http://creditcardaffairs.org/2009/05/credit-cards-you-might-not-tot.html http://creditcardaffairs.org/2009/05/credit-cards-you-might-not-tot.html farm bureau bank Iberia low-rate cards mastercard visa Sun, 03 May 2009 18:46:24 -0800 MasterCard Doing Just Fine
]]> http://creditcardaffairs.org/2008/11/mastercard-doing-just-fine.html http://creditcardaffairs.org/2008/11/mastercard-doing-just-fine.html mastercard Tue, 04 Nov 2008 11:40:59 -0800 Credit Card Market Outlook for 2009 record losses in 2009. Thanks to the $700 billion bailout we probably won't see any large credit companies fold. Let's hope for the best.

WSJ
]]> http://creditcardaffairs.org/2008/11/credit-card-market-outlook-for.html http://creditcardaffairs.org/2008/11/credit-card-market-outlook-for.html 2009 delinquencies market Mon, 03 Nov 2008 12:14:10 -0800 How are credit card companies responding to the wall street? 1. Sending out fewer card offers. Only people with very good credit are getting offers these days. Got a few blemishes on your credit - you might be out of luck.
2. Fewer 0 percent APR offers. People have been using these offers to pay off their debt, but as more and more people are defaulting it no longer makes sense for banks to offer these kind of terms.
Check out the rest of the list here
]]> http://creditcardaffairs.org/2008/10/how-are-credit-card-companies.html http://creditcardaffairs.org/2008/10/how-are-credit-card-companies.html banks downturn 08 market Mon, 27 Oct 2008 12:36:48 -0800 Alaskans Love Their Credit Card (Debt) I expected to see higher balance increases in 'mortage meltdown states' such as CA, FL and NV, but none of these states have seen sharp increases in credit card debt. Maybe all those people who lost their homes down here had to flee to Alaska?

For more data click here

]]> http://creditcardaffairs.org/2008/09/alaskas-love-their-credit-card.html http://creditcardaffairs.org/2008/09/alaskas-love-their-credit-card.html market numbers stats Tue, 16 Sep 2008 11:51:09 -0800 No More Student Loans Thanks to Your Credit Cards? Maybe, but most likely not. Here's why: Credit card interest rates are usually higher than those on student loans. Yes, you might be tempted by one of those 0% APR offers, but keep in mind that those usually only last for 6-18 months. Also, there are fees associated with balance transfers that can quickly wipe out the savings you were hoping for
For more advice from an LA Times columnist click here
]]> http://creditcardaffairs.org/2008/09/no-more-student-loans-thanks-t.html http://creditcardaffairs.org/2008/09/no-more-student-loans-thanks-t.html balance transfers saving money student loans Mon, 15 Sep 2008 11:40:34 -0800 Credit Card Company Shares Down, Down, Down MasterCard was down 4.4 percent, Visa 3.2 percent and AMEX and Discover around 2 percent.
Source: AP

]]> http://creditcardaffairs.org/2008/09/credit-card-company-shares-dow.html http://creditcardaffairs.org/2008/09/credit-card-company-shares-dow.html amex discover economy market mastercard visa Mon, 15 Sep 2008 11:31:15 -0800 Banks Are Trying To Help out Struggling Customers... Sort Of
I am very happy to see that most banks have realized that their better off giving up some of their profits to help out customers, rather than pushing everyone into bankruptcy...

To find out what Banks are using what strategy exactly click here

Source: WSJ
]]> http://creditcardaffairs.org/2008/09/banks-are-trying-to-help-out-s.html http://creditcardaffairs.org/2008/09/banks-are-trying-to-help-out-s.html banks collections economy Wed, 10 Sep 2008 12:11:29 -0800 Taking the Plastic out of 'Plastic' Now if they only would figure out a way to make those contactless payments more secure...

Source
]]> http://creditcardaffairs.org/2008/09/taking-the-plastic-out-of-plas.html http://creditcardaffairs.org/2008/09/taking-the-plastic-out-of-plas.html canada technology Tue, 09 Sep 2008 11:52:55 -0800