Credit card issuers generate up to 75% of their income from credit cards annually. What does this mean to us? We are helping line their pockets each year by not being familiar with the fees, interest and terms in our written credit card agreements.
Now, I have seen a lot of credit card agreements and it seems you'll need an attorney to decipher what they are trying to say; so, here are things you should look for specifically:
*How and when interest is calculated – when you charge something, on the balance carried over to the next billing period, etc
*Fees – is there a transaction fee, late fees, over-the-limit fees, pre-payment penalty fees, annual fees, etc
*Grace Period – do you have one and if so how long
if the contract is not clear; call the credit card company up.
According to the Truth In Lending Act, the credit card issuer must disclose the Annual Percentage Rate, interest rates, duration of grace period, how finance charges are calculated and more.
Hope this helps 🙂
