Credit-Card Promotions Improving, And Here's The Proof...

Citi® Credit Cards

The Fed lifted the U.S. Prime Rate from 3.25% to 3.5% at the end of last year.

While the U.S. economy is still not as healthy as it should be this far into the post-Great-Recession recovery, the Federal Reserve may still opt to raise short-term rates again as soon as the December 14, 2106 FOMC monetary policy meeting.

And when the Fed demonstrates confidence in the U.S. economy, big banks tend to respond by making their loan products more attractive.  American banks are more profitable when the short-term interest rates controlled by the Federal Reserve rise.

In the credit-card zone, I'm seeing the return of some very consumer-friendly promotions, including extended zero percent introductory APR offers, on both balance transfers and new purchases, and balance transfer offers that don't charge balance transfer fee.

I'm old, and I'm a very responsible borrower, so I always expect the banks and credit unions with which I have an established relationship to offer me nothing but the best. 

According to Equifax®, my FICO® credit score is 814 out of a possible 900.  A brief, FICO credit-score history is a new feature I noticed when I logged into my Citi® credit card account today.

My FICO® Credit Score - Brief History

What My 814 FICO® Score Means To Lenders

FICO® Scores At A Glance

Right now I'm taking advantage of three concurrent Citi promotions with my Citi® Dividend World MasterCard®:

• 0% APR on all new purchases until June 1, 2017.
• 5% cash back on purchases I make at department stores (Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s, Dillard’s, Kohl’s, Saks Fifth Avenue, etc.) and includes the electronics retailer Best Buy, which suits my geeky lifestyle just fine.  This particular promo lasts from October 1 through December 31, 2016.
• And last, but certainly not least, I am currently getting 5% cash back on all online purchases I make with my card, until November 30, 2016.

I understand the timing with the above incentives, with the holiday shopping season in the offing, but I won't be doing much spending.  I'm not rich, and I never spend for the sake of spending. 

Move Free® ULTRA

But I did use my Citi card to purchase some Move Free® ULTRA Triple Action Joint / Cartilage / Bone supplements, which the CVS.com website had discounted at buy one, get one free.  I'm an avid quad skater, and my knees have been complaining so much lately that I had to find a solution.  Move Free ULTRA has lots of very positive reviews online.

I like to use my Citi card every once in a while, just to let the folks and computers at Citi know that I'm interested in keeping the card alive.  The card offers the kind of value I appreciate, so I don't want some algorithm and/or employee to close my card due to inactivity. 

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Citi® Quick Lock

Citi Quick Lock

Citi® Quick Lock: A new and very welcome feature for my +Citi MasterCard®.

And because it is my habit to test everything, I tested it, and it worked perfectly.

I received a very rapid email from Citi when I locked and unlocked my card.

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I have a business debit card with Chase®, and it would be great if the powers at Chase added this feature to it.  The card is connected with my business checking account so security is of the utmost importance.

And ditto for my Bank of America® business credit card.

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Somewhat unrelated, but I just want to add a strong kudos to +Bank of America, because during the worst of the 2008 banking crisis and the subsequent Great Recession, my favorite of America's big banks exercised decent and responsible banking with my credit-card accounts.  They did not:

• Lower my credit limit(s)
• Cancel my active account(s)
• Force an interest-rate increase

During the worst of everything, my FICO® credit score either continued sideways or moved up, so I did not appreciate being treated like a subprime borrower by other credit-card banks, some of which no longer exist (go figure.)

Here's what my credit scores look like right now, provided by CreditKarma: TransUnion (808) and Equifax (811.)

Credit Scores

 Responsible banking.

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Discover Lowers Balance Transfer Fee from 4% to 3% On Two Very Popular Cards

Right now, the two most popular cards we recommend are both issued by Discover. They are the:

• Discover 18 Month Promotional Balance Transfer card, which offers 0% intro APR on transferred balances for 18 months, and zero intro APR on new purchases for 6 months
  
  
• Discover® More Card - 15 Month Intro Period card, which offers 0% intro APR on transferred balances AND new purchases for 15 months.

Transfer a balance to either card above, and you used to be subject to a 4% balance transfer fee. No longer. The transfer fee has been lowered to 3% for both cards. You have 6 months to take advantage of the 3% transfer fee -- plenty of time. After that, if you want to perform a transfer, the fee is 5%.

Obviously, the lower transfer fee makes these cards more competitive. But I think Discover is going to have to bring back their 24 Month Balance Transfer card, which offered zero intro APR on transferred balances for a full 2 years, if the company wants to stay ahead of Citi® in the balance transfer game (Discover pulled their 24 Month Promotional card from the market back May.)

Right now, Citi has no less than four credit cards that feature zero percent intro APR on both transferred balances AND new purchases for 21 months, with a transfer fee of 3%. Very competitive. These cards are:

• Citi® Diamond Preferred® Card
• Citi® Platinum Select® Visa®
• Citi® Platinum Select® MasterCard®
• Citi Simplicity® Card

So don't be surprised if Discover reintroduces an ultra-long duration, 0% balance transfer card, or a "no balance transfer fee" 0% card, or a card that combines both competition-trumping benefits, in the near future.

Chase recently upped the ante by introducing a version of its Slate card that features zero percent intro APR on transferred balances for 15 months, with no balance transfer fee. You can find this card at the top of this page.

Despite the increased competition, Discover remains the top choice for visitors who apply for credit accounts via this website. Discover's reputation for offering exceptional customer service ⁽¹⁾ is very appealing to all types of credit consumers. And it doesn't hurt that Discover has (arguably) the best cashback rewards program in the industry.

All of the above cards will be very popular from January through March, as Americans do their best to minimize debt related to holiday shopping. Christmas spending is great for the economy, and it's great for all the kids in your circle of family and friends. But try to take it easy. All things in moderation. The housing sector is still weak, unemployment still elevated and growth remains anemic. If your financial situation is great, then by all means spend away and enjoy all the juicy rewards that credit cards have to offer. If not, then please think twice hard before you upgrade that iPhone or that XBox 360.

As the economy slowly but surely thaws over the next three quarters, credit-card deals will get more and more consumer-friendly...no doubt. Stay tuned, and have yourself a superlative holiday season.

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Important News Regarding The CitiBusiness® Card

CitiBusiness® Credit Card

Some good news and some bad news to report today.

The web surfers who visit this site like the business credit cards offered by Citi® a lot. Why? Because, heretofore, with all the Citi business credit card we've been recommending at this website, you could transfer non-Citi credit card balances at a zero percent introductory rate, and pay no transaction fee on the introductory balance transfers. The feeless, 0% balance transfer characteristic of these cards has helped to make them the most popular cards on this website.

OK, so first, the bad news. The CitiBusiness® credit card has recently been reconfigured by Citi, and now charges a fee on all balance transfers, including the introductory ones.

Actually, this news isn't so bad when weighed against the good news, which is that Citi still has 5  business credit cards to which you can transfer credit card balances at 0% intro APR, and pay no fee for the privilege. The cards are:

• The Citi Professional^SM Cash Card
• The Citi Professional Card
• The Citi Professional Card with Thank You^SM Network
• The CitiBusiness Card with Thank You Network
• The CitiBusiness PremierPass^SM Card

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No Balance Transfer Fee Credit Cards Still Obtainable Despite Credit Crunch

Credit Cards

The credit crunch that's been causing problems in American credit markets has been affecting all classes of Americans, from billionaire Wall Street insiders trying to finance huge corporate takeover deals to middle-class consumers looking for attractive deals on loans and credit cards. With the housing market still languishing and many seasoned economists declaring that the American economy is already in a recession, it seems that 2008 is not going to be a good year for many Americans, from a money and finance perspective. The Federal Reserve has been responding to turmoil in domestic financial markets and the slumping economy by cutting short-term interest rates, but there is no way to tell when or if these Fed actions will jump start the economy. Slowly but progressively, banks have been approving fewer and fewer credit card applications since the subprime debacle began at the end of last summer. Thankfully, however, applicants with strong credit profiles can still get approved for high quality credit products. Moreover, in the American market today, financially secure individuals can still find 0% introductory annual percentage rate (APR) balance transfer credit cards that don't charge a balance transfer fee, even with certain small business credit cards.

On the consumer side, feeless, 0% balance transfer deals are still being offered by some of America's most reputable financial institutions, including the Bank of America® (BofA), American Express® and the Pulaski Bank &and Trust Company. Web surfers looking for business credit cards which combine 0% intro APR on transferred balances with no balance transfer fee can choose from a healthy selection on offer from Citi®.

"We've been getting emails from consumers who have been writing us about manifestations of the liquidity crunch that have been causing considerable pain for both American banks and individuals trying to find favorable credit deals. Cardholders have been complaining most about seemingly random credit line decreases, ever for customers with perfect or near-perfect credit. A cardholder who has an excellent credit history but who also has a high debt-to-credit ratio may be targeted by their bank for a credit limit decrease or an interest rate increase, since banks are worried about consumers who may be relying too heavily on revolving credit. It's never a good idea to have a high balance on a credit card. Consumers should use credit cards to take advantage of rewards programs and zero APR offers, and for emergencies. The consumer who tends to carry a balance from month to month may be headed from trouble in this economy," said Brown.

"The only positive consequence of this sagging economy is that the Fed has been responding to it by lowering short-term interest rates. These moves by the Federal Reserve have made obtaining and paying off loans and credit cards easier," Brown added.

Since mid-September of 2007, the U.S. Prime Rate has been lowered from 8.25% to the current 5.25%, thanks to interest-rate cuts by the U.S. Federal Reserve. Since most variable-rate credit cards -- and many other types of loans -- are indexed to Prime, most consumers and business owners who have been making payments on these loans and credit cards have been enjoying reduced APR's. Any consumer with a variable-rate credit card indexed to Prime who hasn't seen a decrease in their APR over the last 6 months should contact their bank and ask for a lower rate, Brown advises.

Some credit cards and loans are indexed to the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR). Since LIBOR tracks very closely with America's benchmark, short-term interest rate -- the Fed Funds Target Rate -- individuals and business owners with loans or credit cards indexed to LIBOR should be enjoying lower payments as well.

The Federal Reserve is expected to cut short-term rates again when the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meets for its next monetary policy meeting on April 30, 2008.

0% intro APR credit card offers are ever-evolving. Brown urges consumers to visit the blogs at the  FedPrimeRate.com website to stay informed about the latest news and tips from the credit card industry and to read reviews of newly released credit cards. Brown welcomes any and all questions and comments, which can be emailed from either site's email form.

"The banks make a lot of money with credit cards, so they still want to fill consumers' wallets with their plastic despite ongoing troubles in the credit markets. Individuals who are interested in getting the best possible deal with a consumer card, business card or any other type of loan should be sure to keep their credit score high, pay all their bills on time and try to keep their debt-to-credit ratio at around 30%. Consumers who plan on spending money on a major purchase should try their best to pay cash. If an all-cash payment isn't possible, consumers should apply as much cash as possible to the purchase, and put the rest on a credit card that has a high credit limit, a zero or low APR and a generous rewards program," Brown concluded.

Source

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Important News Regarding The Citi® Home Rebate® Platinum Select MasterCard®

Citi® Credit Cards

If you're looking for a 0% balance transfer credit card, and you don't want to pay a transaction fee for transferring credit card balances, then the good news is that there are still plenty available. The bad news, however, is that the Citi® Home Rebate® Platinum Select MasterCard®, while still available, now charges a balance transfer fee for all balance transfers. This news is significant because the Home Rebate card was the last 0% "no fee balance transfer" card that offered an interest-free period of 12 months; currently, the all other cards offering free, 0% balance transfer deals have an interest-free of no more than 6 months.

Now don't get the wrong idea. The Citi Home Rebate card is still an excellent credit product offering great value, and you can apply for this card right now if you want to. You can still transfer a balance at 0% intro APR for 12 months, but you'll be charged a balance transfer transaction fee: 3% of each balance transfer with a minimum fee of $5. This card has been the #1 ranked credit product (based on both applications and approvals) at this website since the fall of last year.

I like the Home Rebate card because it has a very attractive rewards program that helps cardholders pay down their mortgage balance faster and build home equity. The American housing market probably won't improve until late 2009, so, for many, any help with getting ahead can make a real difference.

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New Card Added: The Home Advantage World MasterCard

Citi® Credit Cards

Recently added a new Bank of America card: The Home Advantage World MasterCard® with WorldPoints® Rewards. This card is similar to the Citi® Home Rebate Platinum Select® MasterCard in that accumulated rewards dollars are used to pay down a cardholder's mortgage balance.

I like these two cards. As long as the cardholder can pay his or her entire balance in full at the end of each month, these cards can really help homeowners improve their mortgage situation and, by extension, their finances in general. By paying down a mortgage balance with extra payments, or in this case with accumulated rewards dollars, homeowners can:

• Build home equity faster. This is crucial in the current U.S. real estate environment. The more equity you have in your home, the less likely you are to run into problems if at some point you want to sell, refinance, or get a second mortgage (a home equity loan or a home equity line of credit.) FYI: a number of experts have recently predicted that the American real estate environment won't improve until 2009.
• Lower the total amount of interest that will be paid on the loan. If you take the example of a $250,000 mortgage with a 30 year term and a typical interest rate, the savings can be in the many thousands of dollars. It's amazing how these things add up over time!
• Payoff a mortgage faster. This is optimal for anyone with a mortgage, but especially optimal for homeowners who plan on using the equity in their home to help fund retirement.

Currently, the fee for transferring credit card balances to the Bank of America Home Advantage MasterCard is 3%, with a minimum of $10 and no maximum. However, the card offers a 12 month, 0% Introductory Annual Percentage Rate (APR) on Balance Transfers and Cash Advance Checks.

With the Citi® Home Rebate card, you can transfer credit card balances at 0% Intro APR for 12 months, and, currently, you don't have to pay a balance transfer fee for the initial balance transfer.

Enjoy!

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Credit Card Popularity Rankings for March, 2007

Here are the popularity rankings for the cards we recommend here at www.FedPrimeRate.com for March, 2007:

Credit Card Rankings

Just a reminder: the above rankings are based on both applications and approvals for the credit cards we recommend at this website. The information can be very useful for anyone shopping for a credit card.

The Discover Platinum card once again tops the lists, which is no surprise considering the benefits.

The Citi® Upromise® card is likely to become a lot more popular in the coming months, not only because using the card is a great way to start saving for college, but also because you can now transfer your non-Citi credit card balances to the Citi Upromise card and pay no interest on the transferred balance for 12 months, with no balance transfer fee. Good stuff!

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Citibank (Citi) Business Credit Cards Featuring No Fee Balance Transfers

Citi® Credit Cards

Zero percent credit card balance transfer offers are very popular right now -- especially feeless balance transfer offers -- and it's easy to understand why. Why would anyone pass on a chance to save on interest charges for up to 12 months?

The good news for business owners is that many business credit cards have excellent zero percent introductory annual percentage rate (APR) balance transfer offers associated with them, and with some of them you won't have to pay a balance transfer fee.

Recently, the good folks at Citibank removed the balance transfer fee from the 0% balance transfer offers associated with some of their business credit cards. You can't do much better than a feeless balance transfer offer, and, right now, certain Citibank business cards feature a 12 month interest-free period on both transferred balances and new purchases -- like the CitiBusiness Card®. Bottom line: credit card deals don't get too much sweeter than that!

Other Citi® business cards which currently feature the option to transfer credit card balances at zero percent with no balance transfer fee are:

• The CitiBusiness Card with ThankYou Network
  
• The Citi Professional Cash Card
  
• The Citi Professional Card
  
• The CitiBusiness PremierPass Business Credit Card

Of course, the terms and features associated with the above-listed offers can change at any time, so be sure to read any and all credit card terms and conditions carefully before applying for any card recommended here.

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A Balance Transfer First For Me: From One Business Credit Card to Another

A balance transfer first for me: I decided to take advantage of a 0% APR balance transfer offer to transfer my entire CitiBusiness® Platinum Select business credit card balance (about $4,000 ) to a new Bank of America Platinum Visa® business credit card.

After receiving the solicitation in the mail yesterday, I applied for the Bank of America card online, and I was approved for a $15,000 credit line--plenty of breathing room, so I don't have to worry about looking "maxed out" after transferring my Citibank balance.

What a great country: in a matters of seconds, I've eliminated interest charges on my entire business-related debt until December, 2006. Me likey'! And if all goes well, I may be able to pay off the entire transferred balance by December. Wish me luck!

Don't get the wrong idea here: I'm not transferring my CitiBusiness credit card balance because of problems with the card--no, I'm only doing it to save on interest charges, plain and simple. If you are in the market for a new business credit card, you should check out the CitiBusiness® Platinum Select credit card. I've had mine for years, and I've been very happy with it. And right now, you can get 0% APR on balance transfers for 12 months with the CitiBusiness® Platinum Select® card (of course, I'm not eligible to take advantage of this great offer since I already have a CitiBusiness® Platinum Select card in my wallet.)

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Consolidating My Debt While Avoiding Interest Charges: Zero Balance On All but Two of My Credit Cards

I recently transferred a few balances in order to consolidate my credit card debt and take advantage of some great lower interest balance transfer deals. Once again, I used a "2.99% until the transferred balance is paid in full" promotional offer that was presented to me by the folks who manage my Citibank Dividend Platinum Select® Card, simply because it was the best deal I could find at the time (Discover is still sending me offers of 0% APR on transferred balances, with the interest-free period recently extended until June 2007--which is a fantastic offer--but I'm still not sure about using Discover, and I really shouldn't be opening a new credit card account. I think I have too many as it is!)

Within a couple of weeks, I will have a zero balance on all my credit card accounts save two, which makes me happy: it means that I have far fewer accounts to monitor, thus reducing the number of did-I-forget-to-make-a-payment-on-one-of-my-credit-cards-this-month? panic attacks, I hope. These days, if you're late on a payment, or skip a payment, you not only get in trouble with the credit card account in question, but all your other creditors can raise your APR's as high as 29% (not all do, but they can); they may also nullify any promotional APR's related to any balance transfer deals you've signed up for, which for me would translate to a nightmarish escalation of debt. It's called Universal Default, and it's perfectly legal.

Stay tuned for more on my adventures with credit card balance transfers!

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Latest Citibank Offer: 2.99% APR Until Transferred Balances Are Paid In Full!

Sometimes, this credit card balance transfer game can get very, very frustrating.

Today, I received balance transfer offer in the mail from Citibank: 2.99% APR until transferred balances are paid in full! A fantastic offer, considering the fact that the current U.S. prime rate is 7.25%, and will probably be going up next week. But I don't think I'll be able to take advantage of this offer, darn it (read on for the reason why.)

In the letter I received today, Citibank refers to itself as a "responsible lender," and to be perfectly honest I agree with that. The last time I took advantage of a Citibank balance transfer offer, the folks @ Citibank were gracious enough to raise my credit limit by a considerable amount, so that even when the transferred balance was added to my current account balance, the resulting balance was still less than half my credit limit, which looks great on a credit report (creditors don't like to see an account that's maxed out or close to being maxed out.)

OK, now for the bad news: I recently transferred a considerable amount to the very same credit card account that is associated with the above balance transfer offer. The deal was very similar to the above, except that the offered APR was 3.99% until the transferred balance is paid off. So now that I've transferred all the balances I wanted to transfer with the original 3.99% offer, I am now faced with a new offer that has an APR that is 1 percentage point lower.

Is the 1 percentage point a big deal? Sure it is! When you are dealing with many thousands of dollars, a single percentage point can translate to hundreds and sometimes thousands of dollars in savings in the long term, no doubt!

So I guess I have 2 options:

1. Call Citibank and see if they'll drop the APR on the balance I transferred from 3.99% to 2.99% (or maybe I should try for 1.99%! The worst that can happen is they'll say "no.")
   
2. Transfers my current Citibank balance away from Citibank, wait a few weeks, then transfer it back with the superior 2.99% balance transfer offer.

Makes sense for me to try the phone call first, but I am not very optimistic about option 1's chances. Wish me luck!

Please feel free to post comments about your own credit card balance transfer triumphs, pitfalls, anecdotes, etc. Your comments are welcome and appreciated!

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CitiBank (Citi) Offers New Business Credit Card: The Professional Card

The professional card? What the heck is that supposed to mean? Yeah, that's what I asked myself when I first heard about this new credit card being offered by CitiBank. Well, it turns out that it's a new business credit card that is targeted towards professionals (doctors, lawyers, etc.) who can use a card specifically for business spending purposes. Sounds good to me.

The Citi® Professional^SM Card boast some handsome features, like a very attractive 0% APR on credit card balance transfers for the first 9 months (nice!) The card also has a great rewards program:

• Get 3 ThankYou Points for every dollar you spend at restaurants, gas stations, on auto rentals and at certain office supply merchants.*
• Get 1 point for every dollar you spend on other purchases*
• Redeem your points for: air travel, statement credit, gift cards and certificates, merchandise or create your own reward.
• Plus get 10,000 bonus ThankYou Points after your first purchase that can then be redeemed for a $100 gift card.

Here are some other details about The Citi® Professional^SM Card:

• Categorized monthly statements and quarterly and annual summaries.
• A unique Online Expense Reporting Tool that helps you use your online statement to customize reports for billing or reimbursement.
• Access to dedicated Customer Service representatives who understand the needs of today's professionals.

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