Most of us have always had a love/hate relationship with our credit cards.  Whether its convenience, access to cash, fraud protection…we’ve all come to depend on our credit cards.  Many of us have stuck it out with the same credit card company for years, believing, falsely, that we were building relationships with these banks that would be helpful down the road.   Such has not been the case in 2009.  In fact, credit card companies have been putting the screws to customers all year long, with the latest and most egregious example being Citibank’s recent interest rate increases.

Beginning in mid-October, Citi began notifying customers it would be raising interest rates to as much as 29.99%-for no reason.  Or at least no legitimate reason.  Continue Reading »

Bucking seasonal trends, credit card delinquencies decreased during the third quarter.  While small, the decrease in late payments from 1.17 percent to 1.1 percent is a positive sign for consumer lending, especially given the fact that consumer delinquencies have not dropped during this period in a decade.

Delinquencies, which are payments 90 days late, are a strong indicator that credit card users will default.  Throughout the past year, credit card defaults have skyrocketed to as much as 13% at some of the nation’s largest bank.  This has contributed to lower credit supply and higher credit card costs, mainly in the form of higher interest rates and shorter 0% promotional periods on balance transfers.  This recent improvement, however, may bring some optimism to major banks, perhaps leading to more accessible credit. Continue Reading »

A few years back, getting approved for a credit card online took less than a minute.  Such is not the case today.  Credit card companies are spending more time reviewing credit card applications and instant credit card decisions are essentially a thing of the past.  For last minute credit card shoppers, this could prove to be a problem.

On the average, consumers looking to get a 0% credit card in time for the holidays should allow at least 10 business days for their card to arrive in the mail.  This unfortunately means that a person who applies for a credit card today is unlikely to get the plastic in hand until the beginning of December.  In a best case scenario. Continue Reading »

Many people who are long time customers of Citibank might consider any Citi credit card to be the worst credit card of 2009.  However, the victims of the Citi interest rate increases are long-term customers.  People who became Citi credit card holders in the second half of this year are likely exempt from the rate increases, as Citi cards offered during the summer and early fall featured language stating that rates would not be changed until cards expired.

Overall, Citi may have proven to be the worst credit card company this year as hundreds of visitors have shared horror stories about interest rate increases of up to 29.99%.  And these are customers with good credit.  Despite these increases, there are worse credit cards than those offered by Citi.  So while I’d love to crown Citi the worst credit card company, the (dis)honor ultimately goes to First Premier Bank. Continue Reading »

About a month ago, visitors began posing comments on Smart Balance Transfers about a Citibank rate increase to 29.99%.  The backlash was huge, with over 100 comments posted to date, mainly from customers with very good credit, long histories as Citi credit card customers, and oftentimes, low balances on their accounts.

Yesterday, a new breed of Citibank credit card complaints began pouring in, and these are just as disheartening, though seemingly less severe.  One visitor reported a rate increase to 23.99%.  Another reported getting a notice that their rate was increasing from 16.99% to 20.99% on the same day they got an offer for a .99% balance transfer.  Continue Reading »

Since 2007, Smart Balance Transfers has been providing information on balance transfer offers to tens of thousands of visitors every month.  Many visitors have been utilizing 0% balance transfers on a yearly basis to defer interest costs.  For much of the past decade, this was a relatively simple task.  When one 0% offer ended, you could easily find a new offer for balance transfers.  Such is not the case today.

As experienced credit card users may have noticed, there just aren’t that many 0% balance transfer offers available today, and most of them only provide 0% rates for 6 months.  This is not ideal, as these offers now carry higher balance transfer fees ranging from 3-5%.  Gone are the days of 0% for 15 month balance transfers, not to mention no fee balance transfers and fixed APR for life balance transfers.  Today, balance transfer options are relatively limited. Continue Reading »

Although credit card defaults remain elevated, Capital One and Discover reported lower credit card default rates in October.  Despite this drop, credit card defaults remain elevated, as they have been for nearly a year, and many expect default rates to remain elevated well into 2010.

The problem with credit card defaults is two-fold.  First, it creates losses for credit card companies which, in turn, lead credit card companies to raise interest rates, annual fees, and reduce the amount of available credit.  This ultimately leads to tougher approval standards, which limit the ability of consumers to lock in low rate balance transfers, forcing them to repay their credit card balances at higher interest rates than the current interest rate environment would normally dictate. Continue Reading »