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<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Ok, I can’t resist offering my
twelve cents. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>(Peat, I just got a notice from USAA,
through which I have my Visa, that they are raising their foreign transaction rates,
so I think this is happening across the boards. USAA is usually pretty slow to
raise fees.)<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>I have a couple of credit cards: Visa,
Discover, MC and have had many over the years. I generally use all of them as
charge cards (pay off balance every month) rather than true credit cards (keep
a balance), so I care most about features and having no annual fee rather than
interest rate. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>I have also played the balance transfer
game a few times—moving a balance from one card whose 0% introductory
rate is about to expire to another card who is offering 0% interest. You have
to be very careful researching the fees when you do this and vigilant about
moving the balance before the 0% goes up. They won’t send you a reminder
about the expiration of any program or introductory rate! As was mentioned in
other posts, you shouldn’t buy things with a card that carries a balance
from a transfer. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>As was also mentioned, you can generally
negotiate with any card on the interest terms for transfers, cash advances and
other fees or programs. Say what you want or ask for something that a
competitor is offering and see whether they can accommodate you. Threatening to
cancel a card is a pretty big negotiation tool. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Discover works a little harder because
they have less market share. They are not as widely accepted as Visa & MC
but are still very widely accepted domestically. They currently have a premier (or
platinum or whatever) program in which they offer 1% cash back for most
purchases and 5% back for gas and groceries. You can apply the cash in chunks
of $20 to paying your balance or you can redeem. No annual fee. I don’t
know what the interest rate is because I pay off the balance every month.
Paying the bill online is pretty straightforward, and I’ve never had any
trouble with their customer service. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Discover also offers the Motiva program: <a
href="http://www.discovercard.com/motiva/">http://www.discovercard.com/motiva/</a>.
You get an extra bonus for paying on time six months in a row. I’m not in
this program, but it looks interesting.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Because of the more limited acceptance you
should have a Visa or MC in addition to Discover. Same thing with American
Express. AmEx is pretty well accepted in the East and in Europe, but not so
widely out here.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>I’ve been thinking about getting an
AmEx small business card because of their great reward system. (I’m
self-employed.) A true AmEx card has to be paid off every month, but now banks
are offering AmEx credit cards. In that case it’s just like getting a
Visa or MC through that bank, and you would be offered the bank’s rewards
program rather than AmEx’s. The benefit I guess over getting MC or Visa
from the bank is the cache of AmEx as a fancy card. The real AmEx cards usually
have an annual fee. The bank ones I don’t know.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Bank of America WorldPoints reward program
is OK but not remarkable. BofA acquired this reward program from MBNA (a
horrible bank) a few years ago. At that time the redemption merchandise was not
very interesting (I had an MBNA card), but you could always redeem for gift
certificates at Amazon or Eddie Bauer or the like.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>The affinity (donation) cards can be good.
I’ve had them at different times. Check on the issuing bank. Sometimes
you have to weigh the goodness of the benefitting organization against the
evilness of the bank (like when MBNA acquired the Working Assets credit card,
much to WA’s dismay. WA couldn’t get out of the contract. But now
BofA owns MBNA, which isn’t as bad.) I believe that the REI Visa has
gotten very high marks on social responsibility.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>There are sites that rate credit cards on
conventional terms and on SR issues. Consumer Reports usually has good general
advice about CCs and personal finance: <a
href="http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/money/index.htm">http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/money/index.htm</a>.
Coop America can also be a good source for info. This article is a few years
old, unfortunately: <a
href="http://www.coopamerica.org/pubs/realmoney/articles/creditcards.cfm">http://www.coopamerica.org/pubs/realmoney/articles/creditcards.cfm</a><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>One other thing, kind of related: DO NOT
GIVE GIFT CREDIT CARDS! It’s hard to use the whole amount unless you buy
something more expensive and pay the balance with cash, which can be awkward.
The $3.50 or $6.72 that’s left on the card then gets eaten up by the
‘maintenance’ fees after six months. Just write the person a check
or give them cash.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Thanks for reading!<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Erin<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=1 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
7.5pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>----------------------<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=1 color=navy face="Copperplate Gothic Bold"><span
style='font-size:7.5pt;font-family:"Copperplate Gothic Bold";color:navy'>Erin
Milnes<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=1 color=navy face="Copperplate Gothic Light"><span
style='font-size:7.5pt;font-family:"Copperplate Gothic Light";color:navy'>Branding<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=1 color=navy face="Copperplate Gothic Light"><span
style='font-size:7.5pt;font-family:"Copperplate Gothic Light";color:navy'>510.444.6768</span></font><font
color=navy><span style='color:navy'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><a href="mailto:Erin@TheBillyBoys.com"><font
size=1 face="Copperplate Gothic Light"><span style='font-size:7.5pt;font-family:
"Copperplate Gothic Light"'>Erin@TheBillyBoys.com</span></font></a></span></font><font
color=navy><span style='color:navy'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 color=navy face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;color:navy'> <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=1 color=navy face="Copperplate Gothic Bold"><span
style='font-size:7.5pt;font-family:"Copperplate Gothic Bold";color:navy'>The
Billy Boys</span></font><font color=navy><span style='color:navy'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><a href="http://www.thebillyboys.com"><font
size=1 face="Copperplate Gothic Light"><span style='font-size:7.5pt;font-family:
"Copperplate Gothic Light"'>www.thebillyboys.com</span></font></a></span></font><font
size=2 color=navy face="Copperplate Gothic Light"><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:"Copperplate Gothic Light";color:navy'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><a
href="http://www.myspace.com/thebillyboys"><font size=1
face="Copperplate Gothic Light"><span style='font-size:7.5pt;font-family:"Copperplate Gothic Light"'>www.myspace.com/thebillyboys</span></font></a></span></font><o:p></o:p></p>
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