Skip to Content

Best credit cards? Don't make it complicated!

More
Text SizeAAA

Filed under: Credit cards

New credit card regulations are having a trickle-down effect on all consumers who shop with credit cards -- even those who don't carry balances and therefore weren't the intended targets for protection from unseemly and predatory practices.

Bank of America announced Tuesday that it will begin charging annual fees ranging from $29 to $99 starting next year. The fees will be targeted at customers in good standing who don't carry a balance -- i.e. the customers who don't pay interest and fees to Bank of America.

Consumer Reports has some helpful tips
on finding good deals on credit cards, but here's the principle that I think most people would benefit from following:

Do NOT look to your credit car to make you wealthier. Look for one that won't make you poorer.

Signing up for a card with absolutely no annual fee and then paying off the balance every month is the surest way to prevent your credit card from harming your financial life. There are a lot better ways to make money than rewards points, and whatever you gain from those air miles will likely be more than made up for in the extra spending that comes from paying with plastic.
Subscribe to Walletpop

Add your comments

Please keep your comments relevant to this blog entry. Email addresses are never displayed, but they are required to confirm your comments.

When you enter your name and email address, you'll be sent a link to confirm your comment, and a password. To leave another comment, just use that password.

To create a live link, simply type the URL (including http://) or email address and we will make it a live link for you. You can put up to 3 URLs in your comments. Line breaks and paragraphs are automatically converted — no need to use <p> or <br /> tags.

How to Serve Cheese
Everyone loves cheese, but do you know how to compose a cheese plate? What cheeses go well ...
Too Many Sweets Will Impair Your Immunity
It doesn't matter what time of year it is, sugar and sweets always seem to be in abundance. Cookies, ...

Gina Roberts-Grey
Gina Roberts-Grey Filed under: Extracurriculars, Health

$89 pizzas a hot seller for Ganja Gourmet

What do you get when you mix the culinary skills of Emeril Lagasse with a favorite ooey-gooey treat of the 70s (AKA pot-laced brownies)? The Ganja Gourmet, of course. Now those with a prescription ...
Charles Feldman
Charles Feldman Filed under: Real Estate, Mortgages

Simple tips for when to refinance your mortgage in 2010

We keep hearing about all those homeowners who want to get their mortgages refinanced but can't, but we seldom hear much about the wisdom of whether or not you should seek to refinance in the first ...
Ron Dicker
Ron Dicker Filed under: Recession, Economizer

Welcome to the gold party craze: A new day pawning

Sometimes when Amber Watson-Tardiff comes across a single cuff-link or a massive tangle of chains in her jewelry box, it occurs to her that it might be time for a gold party. Like many people who ...
Aaron Crowe
Aaron Crowe Filed under: Saving Money, Shopping, Economizer

What to do with those unwanted Christmas gifts

The Christmas gifts have been unwrapped and all of the good stuff has been played with. And alone under a pile of wrapping paper sits the hideous sweater from a sweet aunt who doesn't know any better. ...

Headlines from WalletPop Partners