Your Credit Cards Guide

What is going to happen when you turn in that credit card application or the mortgage loan app? I have been there. You know your credit score. You know your credit report is clean. You have worked hard to make payments on time but there is always that one or two things on your report that do not allow you to qualify for the big loan needed. What is a good credit score? The only answer to this is, a good credit score is the one thats good enough for the lender you are applying to.

Lenders set their own rules on what is a good enough credit score and what is not to get a loan through that specific lender. However, the credit bureaus do provide some indication of what a good score is.

Read more…

I am leaving on a trip to Europe this summer, and Ill be traveling for three weeks. I have a credit card. Can I use it in Europe? What about my debit card if I need to get money out? Im going to England, France, Italy and Germany. How much cash should I bring? And how much credit should I bring? Mark

Heres my first piece of financial advice when traveling: Bring half as many clothes you think you need and twice as much money. That especially holds true for the countries where you will be, since Europe is très cher (very expensive) for Americans right now.

Although not all vendors will accept them, American credit cards as well as debit cards can come in handy in foreign lands. They can be a safe and convenient way to pay for things. Whats more, anything can happen while abroad, and sufficient borrowing ability will help you prepare for unexpected expenses and emergencies.

Read more…

Here at NerdWallet, we’re big fans of the Starwood American Express. Because of its estimated 2.3% reward returns, we feel comfortable calling the Starwood our favorite hotel credit card. But in case you weren’t quite convinced, Starwood Preferred Guest just announced a few tasty sweeteners to incentivize travelers to climb the SPG rewards ladder. Here are the new additions to one of our old favorites:

• Gold Members receive a welcome gift upon check-in. Choose between free in-room Internet access, a complimentary beverage or a small Starpoint bonus.
• After 50 nights in a calendar year, enjoy 10 “Suite Night Rewards” for upgrading to a standard suite or premium room.
• After 75 nights in a calendar year, earn accelerated rewards at a 4-points-per-dollar base rate and gain the ability to choose your check-in time.
• After 250 eligible nights and 5 years of elite status, receive lifetime gold status.
• After 500 eligible nights and 10 years of platinum status, receive lifetime platinum status.

The new upgrades are tailored to benefit Starwood’s most loyal and frequent guests. Elevating

Read more…

PayPals move into physical retail territory has received plenty of media attention, and for good reason. It is not every day that Visa and MasterCard are challenged in such a direct fashion in their own back yard. And the credit card networks should better take PayPals challenge more seriously this time around than they did a decade ago, when their arrogant oversight allowed eBays payment processor to grow to a huge size in the person-to-person and online payment processing segments of the market right underneath their noses.

The story is nuanced, as even if PayPal does manage to grab any meaningful chunk of the physical point-of-sale (POS) market, about half of its transactions will still be processed on bank cards (the majority of them bearing Visas or MasterCards logo).

Read more…

Verdict: The SAFE Platinum card has many benefits to members of the credit union. The card offers a generous credit limit up to $20,000 and is free to carry. The rewards version also offers points for every $1 spent, so frequent shoppers can earn rewards that never expire. This card does offer a 1.90% intro APR for six months, which may be put to good use for financing a large purchase. Unfortunately, both versions of this credit card have a rather high APR that is up to 17.90%. There is also a penalty APR of 23.90%, which is much higher than average. Despite not having an annual fee, this card should be avoided by anyone who carries a balance.

Overview: The SAFE Credit Union extends membership to anyone living or working in many California counties such as Sacramento and El Dorado. Along with other financial services, the credit union offers two personal Platinum Visa cards to members.

Read more…

Have you ever been unfairly sued by Chase Financial Services for your unpaid balance? You might have a stronger case for dismissing the lawsuit than you think. This past Tuesday, American Banker reported that JPMorgan Chase and Co. just happened to quietly, unobtrusively and completely stop issuing new credit card lawsuits. While that doesn’t seem like much help to anyone who is currently fighting Chase in court, the implications of the decision are interesting.

Why would Chase suddenly dismiss all of their in-house lawyers, who, just months ago, were earning the banking giant hundreds of millions of dollars in delinquency judgments and then pawning them off to third-party collectors? Well, there could be a couple of reasons.

It could have something to do with the fact that state courts around the country are dismissing many of Chase’s claims due to sloppy or fraudulent paperwork.

It could also be related to the robo-signing scandal currently plaguing JPMorgan’s mortgage division. You k

Read more…