Credit Card Game

Credit Card Game

While reading and writing about Oprah’s Debt Diet, I discovered one of the main reasons people are in the amount of debt that they are is due to falling into the Credit Card Trap. I refer to it as a trap, because once you are in, good luck getting out. According to David Bach, author of Automatic Millionaire states “the best way to get out of debt is to learn to play the credit card game.”  “You are how they make money; chances are they will be willing to work with you.”  To play the credit card game, you have to understand what offers (traps) to avoid and what to ask for. Simply calling the companies and talking to them about lowering your interest rates or waving late fees can work if you are persistent and always speak with a supervisor. Another hidden trick Credit card companies use to gain capital is the hidden fees. Most people know if they make a late payment to the credit card companies the interest rate on the monthly bill will go up, however what most people do NOT know is the credit card companies can and will raise your interest rate not only if your payment is late to them but also if it is late to any other company. So watch out for the hidden fees. Credit card companies want your money so they trick people into paying the minimum amount possible,to gain more money through interest rates. When you receive your bill in the mail each month and it only asks for the minimum payment: PAY MORE. What most people do not understand is if you ONLY pay the MINIMUM payment per-month; depending on the size of the bill it will be almost virtually be impossible to pay off. According to Jean Chatzky author of Pay It Down! Debt-Free on $10 a Day, the key is to pay more than your minimum payment. By applying $10 a day against your $8,000 credit card debt (at an interest rate of 16%) you'll be debt-free in 33 months. Lastly, if an offer seems to good to be true. It is. Nothing is ever going to be free, its as simple as that. When the credit card compaines say 0% interest for the first 12 months, most consumers and thinking. 'okay, this is a fantastic deal, i get to use someone else money for free.' Think Again. Its called a variable interest rate. This allows compaines to increase interest rates, at any given time, for any  given reason. Usually if it starts off incredible low, when the interest rate increases it usually sky-rockets. When it comes to credit cards, they can be very helpful, but only if you know how to play the game.

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