Searching through credit card applications is confusing.  That’s the way most credit card companies want it to be.  In order to get a rough idea of the credit card you will get if approved, you often have to weed deep into credit card application fine print. 

However, some credit card companies offer clearer applications that others.  These are the best credit card applications and very few companies provide them.  Here are two companies that actually offer straightforward terms.

1.)  Capital One:  Capital One offers the best credit card applications.  While they may not always offer the absolute lowest interest rate or the absolute longest 0% rate period, they tell you what you are going to get. (more…)

The difference in the quality of credit card offers between 2009 and 2010 is substantial.  Many credit card companies have increased long term interest rates substantially, with some credit cards offering rates as high 17% to consumers with very good credit.  Others are offering rates in excess of 20% to applicants that don’t meet the highest credit qualifications.

Find a good 0% APR credit card is also much more difficult in 2010 than it was a year ago.  Some companies are offering 0% rates for 12 months on balance transfers and six months on purchases, while others are not offering promotional rates on balance transfers at all.  Balance transfer fees have increased as well, as more companies are now charging 4-5% transaction fees.  Even with these fees, 0% balance transfers remain among the best type of credit card deals, especially for people with credit card debt. (more…)

The Citi CashReturns (SM) Card is popping up in a number of new commercials.  The commercials focus on the cashback rewards program offered by the card.  Here, we will examine the Citi Cash Returns reward program as well as important interest rate information.

At present, the Citi Cash Returns card is offering a 0% APR on balance transfers for up to 1 year, as well as an APR of 10.24% for purchases(accurate as of 4/18/08).  This APR for purchases is well below average for cash back rewards credit cards, which tend to charge higher APR’s to offset the cost of operating a cash reward rebate program.

Earning cash back with the Citi Cash Returns card is a pretty straightforward process:  you earn 1% on all purchases.  Additionally, at the end of your first year as a cardmember, you receive a 20% bonus, effectively raising the cash back rate to 1.2%.  Cash back rewards are automatically dispersed via check once you have amassed $50.

You can learn more about the Citi Cash Returns card by viewing the online application.

Similar Cash Back Credit Cards

Below is a list of related cash back credit cards:

The Citi Professional Cash Card:  Earn up to 3% cashback

The Discover Open Road Card:  Earn 5% cashback on gas purchases

The Citi Dividend Platinum Card:  Earn 5% cashback at gas stations, supermarkets and drug stores, convenience stores, and utilities including cable for 6 months and 2% thereafter.

You can also view all current cash back credit card offers on our main site.

There are a number of ways to pay taxes with a credit card.  However, there are two expensive consequences of doing this.  Here, we will explore the hidden fees attached to paying taxes with a credit card.  At the end of this article, there will be a list of 0% APR cash advance credit cards that can help you save hundreds of dollars if you choose to pay your taxes with a credit card.

THE PROBLEM:  The most straightforward hidden fee you will incur by paying your taxes by credit card is a 3% cash advance fee.  This fee, which has no dollar limit, will cost you $30 for every $1000 you pay in taxes.  Unfortunately, there is no way around this fee.  All credit cards charge a 3% cash advance fee.  It is, however, important to keep this in mind.

Now, the complicated part.  As someone who has spent way too much of his life reading credit card fine print, I consider myself privvy to all of the nasty tricks credit card companies play.  And the trick I am about to explain is by far the worst.  Here’s the basic deal:  all payments you make to your credit card apply to the balance with the lowest interest rate.  So let’s say you have a $3000 balance on your credit card from purchases being charged a 12% interest rate and you take a $3000 cash advance.  A typical cash advance interest rate is between 22% to 27%.  Therefore, if you send in $3000 to pay your bill, you will pay off the low rate balance and be stuck paying 20% interest on the cash advance you took to pay your taxes.

The Solution:  While the number of these offers is limited, there are a handful of credit cards that offer a 0% interest rate on cash advances.  This rate lasts for up to 1 year.  With a 0% APR cash advance credit card, you can easily save over $600 on interest, plus prevent the headache that comes from using your previous credit card.

If you’ve already used a credit card for a cash advance and are paying astronomical cash advance interest rates, you may want to consider a credit card that offers 0% APR balance transfers.  With one of these credit cards, you can also save hundreds of dollars on interest.  You can compare all balance transfer credit cards in the balance transfers section of Smart Credit Choices.  Also, below is a list of the top three offers:

Getting a 0% APR for 1 year on both purchases and balance transfers is not as easy as it used to be.  In January of 2007, just about every credit card company issued at least one credit card with a 0% APR that applied to both types of transactions.  As of march 14th of this year, the number has dwindled dramatically.  Currently, both Chase and CitiBank issue credit cards that offer 0% interest on purchases and balance transfers.  The remaining issuers either offer a 0% APR on either purchases or balance transfers, or 0% rates that are less than one year. 

Bank of America also issues a number of credit cards that offer a 0% APR on balance transfers and cash advances.  However, they do not offer a card with a 0% APR for 1 year on purchases and balance transfers.

Discover offers a tiered structure of 0% for 1 year on balance transfers and 0% for 6 months on purchases. 

American Express still offers one card with a 0% APR on purchases for 15 months, but no cards with 0% deals on purchases and balance transfers.

Overall, the movement away from offering consumers a 0% APR on purchases and balance transfers is a disturbing trend.  Hopefully, the credit card companies won’t strip us of all the good offers.