Your Credit Cards Guide

Instant online approval credit cards are great because you can apply for them without leaving your home and receive it in only few days. Once you receive the card you will be instructed to call an automated number in order to activate it. After that, it will be activated and ready to use.

If your credit is good the approval will be fast and easy without any hassle. However, if you have a bad credit history you will get an instant “declined”. In between these two extremes are many who will be told their application is being reviewed. That means a real person will look at your application and decide whether to approve your new account or not.

If your application is reviewed, chances are it will be approved but perhaps at a lower credit line than you requested or with an interest rate higher than was advertised. Don’t let the excitement of being approved overwhelm your common sense.

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American consumers took on more credit card debt in October, according to the latest G.19 statistical release from the Federal Reserve. That marks a rare in post-Lehman America back-to-back monthly increase, following an upward revision for the Septembers total, which was initially reported to have decreased by one percent, but is now updated to show a growth of 0.6 percent.

Non-revolving consumer debt in the U.S., however, grew by more than expected for a second consecutive month, even as the August number, which already was its biggest drop in three years, was pushed down by another percentage point. As a result, the aggregate outstanding consumer debt also expanded in October by more than anticipated.

The total amount of outstanding U.S.

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Declining to carry cash will be no excuse for withholding donations this holiday season. The Salvation Army can now accept credit card charges in select locations. With the help of Square, passing a red kettle without contributing will fill shoppers everywhere with guilt and shame. Before, you could pretend not to have cash and onlookers could only assume you were heartless. Now, they’ll know you’re heartless.

How they’re doing it

Square is a tiny magnetic-stripe reader that connects to your smartphone through its headphone jack. Coupled with a downloadable app, it converts your phone into a portable credit card terminal. Square charges 2.75% of every transaction to pay for the service, which isn’t unreasonable.

Square is the first device to put the power of plastic into the hands of the average consumer. You don’t have to operate a business to receive payments. Anyone wi

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UNITED STATES — Before you send your child off to college, you might want to sit them down and discuss the dangers of credit cards. Many unsuspecting students fall prey to credit card debt because they lack the proper education regarding financial responsibility. It’s also the reason why big credit card companies camp out on college campuses.

Though college students can’t legally apply for a credit card without parental consent unless they are 21 years old or older, that doesn’t mean that credit card companies aren’t allowed to market them on college campuses. Why is it so easy for credit card companies to hang out on college campuses? Most colleges receive a monetary kickback for their kindness. In fact, the Penn State Alumni Association received more than $4.2 million in marketing dollars in 2010.

Don’t assume that your kids will be taking a college course on financial responsibility and credit cards. Teach them the rules before they leave the house. From the lo Read more…

Verdict: BCU offers an impressive range of choices with their Visa Platinum card. The regular version of this credit card features a non-variable rate as low as 8.5%, no annual fee and travel benefits. The other two versions add a rewards program for no additional cost. The cash back version of the card is the only one with a variable rate but it allows the cardholder to earn up to 2% cash back on purchases. Overall, this credit card is a great option for most consumers who want to be rewarded for spending or want a card that is free to carry and has no hidden fees. Because the APR may be very high for those with poor credit, however, this card is not a good choice for those who carry a balance month to month.

Overview: The Visa Platinum card from BCU has three distinct versions: the Platinum, Platinum with CURewards and Platinum with Cash Back.

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For all the recent talk about greed and moving money away from big banks, especially with unpopular debit card fees and rising savings account fees, there’s one thing banks are doing that may take you by surprise: cutting fees.Which Fees Are Being Cut?According to the Wall Street Journal, the big fee on the chopping block lately is foreign-transaction fees.  As a rule, if you use a credit card overseas, you’ll pay a fee to offset the costs of using two separate transaction networks, usually between 2 and 3%, especially as Europe has very different security protocols.  That’s not true anymore: Discover, Chase, and Citigroup have all completely axed those fees.Also seemingly approaching extinction is the balance transfer, which banks are starting to do away with if customers meet certain conditions, like transferring balances within the first thirty days after you open a new card with them.  Only Chase has done it so far, but other banks are considering it, and other fees might not be far behind.Just as surprising is the rise of rewards programs, at least in certain sectors.  Even as rewards programs are being cut for some customers, new and surprising ones are coming out.  For example, several companies, like Capital One, are offering rewards incentives when a customer switches balances. Some a

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