Your Credit Cards Guide

Without access to the proper financial resources, the poor and underprivileged have little hope of bettering their economic standing. Nonprofit microfinance organizations issue small loans to individuals unqualified to borrow from traditional financial institutions. Rather than simply gifting charitable donations, microfinance organizations allow individuals to make investments in economic opportunity. Check out a few of our favorites, and feel free to make a donation or two in the process!

For helping those who help others: Accion

Founded in 1961, Accion has helped build 62 microfinance institutions in 31 countries around the globe. Their reach extends to 4.9 million clients in the US, Mexico, Latin America, Africa and Asia. They provide instruction and assistance to microfinance institutions worldwide, offering guidance in management, investment and governance.

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Chase is the latest big bank to enter the prepaid card market in a serious way. Its new entry into the increasingly crowded field called Liquid is a worthy competitor to Americans Express prepaid card, which until now was the undisputed leader. AmExs product is still the best option for everyone with a poor FICO score whose primary goal is to get back into the credit system, because it offers a path to a charge card. Everyone else, however, now has a choice between two very good prepaid cards.

The Liquid card is very much like a Chase debit card, with the only difference, as far as I can tell, being that it is not linked to a checking account and so its users have no access to checks. Other than that, the two card types are indistinguishable. If there is still someone left out there who is asking Why would a bank like Chase bother to be issuing debit-card-like prepaid cards?, the answer, of course, is that the Durbin Amendment slashed the revenues big issuers are getting from debit transactions by 45 percent, while leaving credit and prepaid interchange fees untouched.

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Do you recollect that moment of time when you decided to order all the gifts you needed for Christmas from Amazon.com, but there was a misunderstanding with the delivery that almost left you worrying about whether you would be arriving at a family party empty handed.

You were annoyed but you still like shopping with Amazon.

However what if the company that controls your credit card handed you a penalty charge for being slightly tardy making your monthly payment? Would you be happy and would you want to forgive them?

A recent survey has suggested that when it comes to credit card companies the majority of Americans can play hard ball, refusing to forgive their credit card issuer when penalty charges are added.

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There are so many different kinds of credit cards out there today, and it can be difficult to decide which one to apply for. So it’s wise to carefully compare credit cards before selecting the one you wish to have in your wallet or purse.

Here are eight categories on which to base your next credit card decision.

1. Card type. Check to make sure whether you are applying for a Visa, MasterCard, Discover, or American Express card. This sounds intuitive, but you’d be surprised how often consumers fill out applications for what they think is one type of card and receive a totally different card in the mail shortly thereafter. To be fair, card type is not always specified in advertisements for credit cards. (i.e. the Capital One Rewards Card).
2. Annual percentage rate. This is arguably the biggest determinant for deciding which credit card is right for you.

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Florists around the country are scrambling as they deal with a flood of delivery orders and Mother’s Day 2012 preparations. As the most popular day for floral retail sales, even outweighing sales from Valentine’s Day, finding flowers for Morther’s Day at a reasonable price may prove challenging for some consumers with a tapped-out savings account.

Despite tight budgets this year, consumers are expected to spend an average of $152.52 on moms, an increase over the $140.73 spent on average in 2011, according to the National Retail Federation’s (NRF) 2012 Mother’s Day Consumer Spending Survey.

The survey confirmed that the leading item being purchased to make mom feel special are flowers, with 66.4 percent of Americans planning for this purchase.

With designer floral arrangements being advertised by big-name wire services at upwards of $50 (not including additional deliver fees and other tacked-on charges), you’ll need the inside scoop on how to treat mom on her special day without sacrificing the rent.

Mother’s Day Flowers for Less

To get a hold of affordable Mother’s Day flowers, you’ll have to get creative. Here are a few con

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Banks commonly issue debit cards with an associated checking or savings account. Debit cards allow customers to withdraw and deposit funds into the associated account using an automatic teller machine.

Many banks now issue debit cards with a Visa or MasterCard logo. This type of debit card functions in a similar manner to a prepaid credit card, allowing users to make purchases from merchants that accept Visa or MasterCard.

The primary difference between a prepaid credit card and a debit card displaying the Visa or MasterCard logo is that the prepaid credit card is not directly associated with a checking or savings account.

Aways request a four-digit PIN number for your debit card. Many banks assign PIN numbers ranging from four to eight digits.

Foreign ATMs, however, will typically not accept debit cards that do not have four-digit PINs.

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