Credit Card companies becoming nicer?

It's Sunday afternoon and I am catching up on my email newsletters.

Greg Moore's newsletter is one of those I subscribe to. He is the author of the Wealth Building System
'DebtIntoWealth -- Lessons from My Journey to Debt Freedom'. Greg was introduced to me by one of the nicest guys in a tough field - helping people get out of debt - Dave Ireland.  Dave started a company 15 years ago, 'Invest in  Your Debt' and has personally guided me around many of the  dangerous and unscrupulous companies in that industry.

Greg wrote about the new credit card called the 'Purity Card' :

"Now you can get a No Annual Fee, No Overlimit Fee, No Late Fee, No Balance Transfer Fee, No Cash Advance Fee, 9.99% Fixed credit-card".

WARNING:  Don't judge this book by it's cover!

Here's what Greg had to say. (Let me know if it scares you too.)

"True, there aren't any penalty fees for being late, for example, but being late triggers their Penalty Interest Rate. That fixed 9.99% rate will skyrocket to a whopping 31.82%!"

"On a $5,000 balance, your interest cost would leap from $42/month to $132! That's $91 more per month for being late. No penalty fee... just 100% more interest."

"Makes you want the old $39 late fee back. Of course, even one late fee can trigger penalty rates from most credit-card providers, so, either way, you're toast."

"Oh, and that FIXED 9.99%..."

"You understand that the terms of your account, including APRs, are subject to change. APRs are not guaranteed and they may change to higher APRs. Fixed APRs may change to variable APRs  and vice versa."

"I still maintain, the best way to win, is not to play the debt game."

Ask your 'Trusted Advisor' if this is the best way for you to win.

Alex

PS  You might want to consider doing what I try to do - surround myself with "Trusted Advisors".

'Trusted' in this situation means to me that the Advisor does not have an agenda that might cause me or my loved ones  harm.

'Advisor' to me means someone who understands both sides of the issue -clearly - and explains the reasons for his preferences.

It's reminds me of my English teacher in high school who trained our debating teams. We worked together with our teammates, as would any team, to come up with questions, rebuttals and conclusions that would help our team win; but we knew that at any moment our teacher would say, "OK - switch sides" and we had to defend the other side of the argument.

When we had to "Switch Sides" even using tricks like the following didn't help.

1. Exaggerate your opponent's statement into an absurd absolute.
2. Make an inappropriate analogy.
3. Change the topic to something easier to defend.
4. Claim victory.

Knowing, understanding and being able to defend both sides of the argument is essential in my definition of a true 'Trusted Advisor'.

I would love to hear your definitions.

Alex Weiss, Co-Founder

www.WealthBuilderUniversity.com

Comments

[RCD]

Wow, that Purity Card is incredible. I knew that credit card companies tried all sorts of ways to hide fees and charges but thats amazing. Cards like that are a serious problem for consumers - I'm sure that most people who sign up for credit cards don't read all the fine print and this is a perfect example of how they can be deceptive. A group I work with has a great website at www.interchangefees.com where they share how the credit card companies are using other hidden fees like interchange that are also hurting consumers. The profits the credit card companies are making off of all of these fees is really worrisome - but that Purity Card is the craziest I've heard of. Thanks again for sharing that.

[Alex Weiss]

Sorry I didn't catch your name RCD, in you email.

Thanks for your feedback. It is appreciated.

You have raised one of the primary issues we want to address at WealthBuilderUblog.com and at WealthBuilderUniversity.com - people making decisions before knowing all of their options and potential repercussions because of their actions.

Let us know if there are other topics you would like for us to discuss.

Good luck and good health.

Alex

[RCD]

www.unfaircreditcardfees.com should definitely work. I think they share that the average amount a family pays a year in interchange fees is over $300 - while the credit card companies are making over $30 billion, its amazing how much the industry makes off them now. Reward programs are designed to get consumers to make the type of purchases where credit card companies can make the most fees - which is lots of small purchases like gas and groceries. And apparently fees are really hurting small businesses too when we use cards - this summer gas stations really took a hit in profits because cards are so popular now. Hopefully the more news out there the more likely some transparency will finally come to this industry that desperately needs it.