Credit Crard Traps

Credit Card tricks that cost you Money

Credit Card Traps for the Unwary

Credit card offers are everywhere. Credit card companies want you to know just what great deals you are missing out on everytime you go out to your mailbox. The next big credit card deal is only as far as tomorrows mail. You can even apply for a credit card over the internet and have a decision in seconds. Just be careful out there. What appears to be a great deal may just be your next financial headache. read the fine print carefully. The credit card offer you hoped for may not be what it seems. Here are five major credit card traps to watch out for when your deciding about your next credit card offer.

1. Late payments anywhere may affect your credit card interest rate

You pay your new credit card offer on time every month. You're happy with your interest rate and you're saving money. But you paid your gas card a few days late this month. Watch out...the credit card companies see everything. Your new credit card offer could theoretically change their interest rate on you simply because you paid a different creditor late this month. The idea is, that, you are becoming a credit risk with regard to all your debts. It's in the fine print and you missed it. Remember, paying your bills on time improves your financial health. your credit score improves and you save money with not paying or having to use high interest credit cards.

2. Changing your interest rate

think of your credit card interest rate as one that can change at anytime. Even if the offer said, 1.99% interest for six months, does not mean it can't change in two months. Credit card companies simply have to give you written notice of any intended change and ryour rate can go up. Monitor closely any correspondence form your credit card company. If rates are changing, find a better card.

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3. Keep your eye on the clock

Credit card companies want their money and they want it on the date it is due. Now, some credit card companies even wnat the payment made by a certain time of day. Check the fine print. If you pay your credit card bill by mail, make sure you give yourself plenty of time to have the payment processed. If you pay by internet, always make sure you pay early and you never have to worry about time differences from where you reside and where they credit card company is located. Being even a hour late can cause your interest rate to jump up to a whopping 28%.

4. Shrinking Grace Periods

After you make a purchase, a grace period, or time for which no interest accrues on a puchase, begins to run. Many credit cards companies used to offer a 30 day grace period, if you carried no balance from the previous month. According to consumer watchdogs, now it has been reduced to a grace period anywhere form 21 days to absolutely no grace period at all. A good credit card offer carries a grace period of around 25 days if you pay your balance in full each month. Look around for the best deal available and spend some time with the fine print.

5. Offering one thing, Giving another

The offer looks good and after all, the credit card company says in their promotional mailer that you qualify. So you give them a call, they pull your credit report, and you don't qualify. But, have they got a better deal for you. Actually, they may try to push a higher interest rate card on you and state that if you pay well on this card, they will allow you to switch to the deal you actually called about. It may take six months, they say, but their confident it can be done. Don't do it. Look around for a better deal. There plenty out there.