Credit Card Cash Advance Rates

New law passed in May 2009 which went into effect in the beginning of this year will require credit card companies to make bills easier to understand.

For instance, they will need to provide a table showing how much interest charges will cost if only minimum payments are made. Cardholders will also be shown how much they need to pay each month to erase a balance within three years.

Available credit – Credit card companies don’t have to stop you from exceeding your credit limit. But they will charge you a fee for doing so - about $29.00 on average.

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Self Help Credit Repair

You see so many advertisements on raising your credit card score but you really don’t know if these people are telling the truth. There are some things you can do on your own to raise your credit score. So here is your self help credit repair guide.

Bill Hardekopf author of the Credit Card Guidebook and chief executive of LowCards.com offers these tips on raising your credit score. Your credit score is what lenders use to decide if they should give you credit and at what interest rate you will be charged for your credit.

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Compare Bank Fees

Small banking fees can cost you a small fortune if you don’t pay close attention. An article in Parade magazine discussed how to avoid bank fees you probably aren’t even aware of:

Transfer fees - When you move money around between linked accounts, watch out! Some banks now charge $3 or $5 for each transfer you make online. Consider making only one transfer a month or redirecting a direct deposit.

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Quick Money Scams

No one likes to be scammed but sometimes we want to believe and become vulnerable. Here are some elements you can look for if you think someone is trying to scam you:

1. It must be kept a secret.

2. You have to wire money quickly.

So here are a few rules to avoid being scammed:

1. Never wire money to anyone

2. Never keep a secret, ask someone to help you verify the facts.3. Call the BBB (Better Business Bureau) first to check out any offers.

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Found a really good article in Parade Magazine on how to stand up to debt collectors. Here is the essence of the advice:

Don’t reveal personal information - Debt collectors don’t care anything about you and you are not obliged to tell them your place of employment, the name of your bank, or your checking-account number. Stay calm and focused when you speak to them. Ask for details of the debt and written proof of the collector’s claim. Remember you are not talking directly to the company with whom you ran up the debt but rather to a debt collector trying to earn pennies on the dollar.

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Paying off Credit Card Debt Takes a Plan and Some Discipline!

Lots of Americans get into credit card debt, and it takes a plan to get out of that debt. Just like debt can creep up slowly, we probably cannot devise a quick and easy fix. We know that unsecured debt, like credit card balances, carry high interest rates, and can be really tough to pay off! However, if we can manage our debt, we know we can remove a lot of stress from our lives.

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I read an article about saving money on taxes in our Parade magazine this weekend. I thought it was important enough to pass on some of the things I learned from it. As you know, in May the IRS will start mailing out the one-time “economic stimulus” tax rebate. The article mentioned that all you need to do is file a 2007 tax return. If you qualify for the rebate ($300-$600 - for single filers and $600-$1200 for joint filers), the IRS will send it to you. Now here is what I thought was important - Even if you wouldn’t normally file a return, to get the rebate, you must file one this year, showing at least $3000 of qualifying income for 2007.

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