Credit Cards

Ever since the Credit Card Act of 2009 became law, consumers have watched as one credit card company after another has raised interest rates. I’ve had several people tell me their rates have gone up 5% or even 10% for absolutely no apparent reason. They didn’t miss a payment, they haven’t lost their [...]

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Last week we published a list of free and low cost prepaid cards. In response, a reader asked about building credit with a prepaid credit card:
Is using a PrePaid Credit Card a way to build a credit history for someone who doesn’t have one?
This is a great question, and underscores how confusing the different [...]

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A few days ago we wrote about two Citi student credit cards that are offering double rewards for three months. In response, a reader calling herself “Wilt’s Mom” wrote the following comment:
Awesome! Providing credit cards to people who don’t even have an education yet – never mind a job – is one of my [...]

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It is estimated that about 40 million Americans do not have a bank account. The reasons for this vary. For many, they are unable to qualify for a bank account because of past bounced checks. Bounce too many checks, and you’ll find yourself in the Chexsystems, which many banks use to evaluate [...]

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I’ve been a banking customer with Citi for nearly 20 years. I use a Citi debit card and the Citi Platinum Select MasterCard. I chose Citi after graduating from law school for one reason and one reason only—it was across the street from my office.
While that’s not how I’d recommend choosing a bank [...]

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Citi is running a double rewards bonus on two of its college student credit cards. For both the Citi Forward College Student Card and the Citi mtvU Platinum Select Visa card, students earn double the Thank You Points for the first three months. Here’s the deal.
Both of these cards reward students with 5 [...]

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0% balance transfer offers are becoming harder and harder to find. In part due to the passage of the Credit Card Act of 2009, the length of 0% offers has diminished, while balance transfer fees have gone up.
Earlier this year, it was easy to find a 0% balance transfer offer for 12 months, for [...]

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