A few ways credit card companies can screw you, even with new legislation

[StageLeft]

Special K I'd just keep that citi account open for the heck of it. I don't use mine, either, fvck Citi.

 

[lothar]

What is the AB Cash rebate card?

I'm not a PenFed member yet, but it's easy enough for anyone to join. It says anyone can become a member of the NMFA for $20, which gives them lifetime membership to PenFed:

https://www.penfed.org/howToJoin/overview.asp

Their increased credit card rewards would make up that $20 fairly quickly. Do you keep all of your old credit cards active? I already have 1 Citi card I never use anymore because they downgraded the rewards on it. If I were to get the Penfed card I would most likely quit using the Chase Freedom as well, given that it too has had its rewards downgraded.

I'm aware of the effect closing credit lines has on your credit score, but it's still a hassle to keep credit cards around just for the sake of keeping the accounts open. You could make a purchase with them every now and then to keep the account open, but then you miss out on the rewards of using the PenFed card.

Also my Chase Freedom is a Visa Signature. One nice perk of the Visa Signature is the warranty extension service, which will extend the warranty of eligible products (which includes computer hardware and comsumer electronics) 1 additional year up to a max of 4 years. The PenFed Visa is listed as a Visa Platinum. I wonder if you can get it as a Visa Signature.

YGPM(I sent it again because I'm not sure if it went through the first time. There isn't a copy in my "sentbox")

1.) That $20 donation/NMFA membership is tax deductible (meaning in reality only $12-13 left your pocket)

2.) No. My BAC Visa Platinum Plus CC hasn't been used in 2 years. It's only a year older than American Express/PenFed/AB Cash Rebate card and has the lowest credit limit of them all($2000), no rewards. Since it's only a year older it won't have any effect on my credit rating. It might drop my FICO score down maybe 3-5 points at best. They never bothered to close it themselves either surprisingly and they also kept the APR untouched at 11.99%. I guess they don't want to piss me off because I have my IRA and self directed brokerage account with them which won't achieve anything besides biting the hands that feed them. If your card is from 5 years ago or something, or there is a long gap between that CC and your other CC's Keep it active. Buy a piece of gum every 4-6 months. Personally for me, the idea that a $2000 CC would affect your credit rating when you have a total credit of $80-90,000 on 3 other cards is nothing but bull crap. The accounts are only a year apart from my BAC CC(1st CC). There's no need for me to go out of my way to keep my account active but for your scenario it may be different. Case by case basis.

3.) I'm not sure about Visa signature or how their warranty system is but I'll research. I only use American Express for big name warranty stuff. The only thing I've had to use it for is an $800 oven we bought in Nov '08 that would have brought only an $8 rebate if I had used my rewards card. I used my American Express instead to get the warranty benefits after doing a common sense risk/benefit analysis. Warranty extended from 3 years to 4 years. Actually since the American Express CC has 0.5% cash back, in reality it only resulted in a loss of $4 for an extra year of warranty.

 

[SandEagle]

just stop making cc payments. you have something they want: money. you have the upper hand

 

[lothar]

just stop making cc payments. you have something they want: money. you have the upper hand

Yes, and you'll ding your own credit rating in the process.

 

[Zebo]

The business of business is to make money.

Which they do very good at with near zero % fed money while raping the rest of us and socializing loses and privatizing gains.

Ask yourself, why should a Wall Street Bank get zero while the private sector gets raped?

America was built upon a foundation of All Men Are Created Equal and Equal Justice For All. What kind of justice is it when an insolvent government only bails out its insolvent banker buddies and lets the rest of the nation rot?

 

[Vic]

Because the business of government is business.

 

[colonel]

America was built credit, my grandfather said and he kept the money in a sock and never got a cc.

 

[lothar]

America was built credit, my grandfather said and he kept the money in a sock and never got a cc.

Is your grandfather Princeofwands by any chance?

 

[JSt0rm]

Unfortunately the public is not wise enough to stop using credit cards. Even if they were paid off every month... just imagine if people starting using cash. the CC companies would send someone to your door to lick your balls to get you to start using plastic again.

But I want it all.... and I want it NOW

yes... We can use our cc to pay someone to lick our balls