Looks like the days of a fixed credit card are jusssssst about over.
Full disclosure: I have several credit cards with a variety of companies. My cards that are with Chase (aka JP Morgan) all sent me a notice in the past month strong-arming all cardmembers that 1) if you owe a balance, your rate is going up 2) we will bend you over and *$(& you in the arse if you use a balance transfer by charging you 5% of the amount 3) If this pisses you off, close out the account and pay us back.
On the other hand, Home Cheapot increased my credit line by 1500 bucks. Lackluster sales, maybe?
Advanta, which issued cards to small businesses, shut down their company altogether and just wants you to please pay them back. Capital One may be next, which is why they absolutely HAD to buy MD based Chevy Chase Bank.
The days of leveraging credit card advances and playing the balance transfer game. The entire American economy and most of its population (including this author) all fell for the trap of debt and overleverage at some point and in some manner.
I know a lot of people complain about American Express. I do not have a full-time job. My husband makes a decent (but not wonderful income). I have several credit cards and excellent credit and I recently opened an American Express card. They only gave me a $2K limit. Several of my other cards have available balances of over $20K. I waited a few months and asked AMX to raise my limit, they declined. Then I asked again last week and they bumped it up to $3K. Are they getting more lenient? I asked Home Depot to raise my limit and they did, too. I am getting ready to purchase a property to flip - - and the moons seem to be aligning! I am a big fan of private money, but it is nice to have the available credit wating in the wings.
ReplyDeleteAdvanta killed my 27K credit card completely...they just shut down. Amex dropped me from 18K to 4400 limit. Keep in mind that if you ask for an increase and they turn you down, that affects your credit score. Private money is getting scarce too as people are hoarding their cash and running away from real estate investing. Its a good thing as seller financing is probably only a year away from being back.
ReplyDelete