Prepaid Cards are Actually Cheaper Than Bank Cards

Prepaid card businesses are once again being criticized by the Consumer Union, labeling it as a “bad deal” for customers. But the industry responds to the critics with conviction, saying that their loans cost lesser compared to banks.

Banks still continue to offer clients with debt-free accounts with their debit cards, and if you are responsible enough to handle your account, then it is the best value you can have for your money. There are banks like the First National Bank, St. Louise Community Credit Union, Royal Banks, Peoples National Bank, PNC Bank and many other banks that are based in St. Louise that still offer these no-fee checking account.

But if you are unable to qualify for these due to your credit history then, having a prepaid card can be the best alternative for you, although you have to pay for it of course.

Credit Unions always complain about the fees that seem to never stop coming when they open a prepaid card account. According to the complainants, they are only informed about a few fees when before they signed up for a card.

The fees would include a $3-$14.95 activation fee, monthly dues of $1.95- $9.95, withdrawal fees that range from $2 to $ 2.50, even inquiring your remaining balance would charge up t0 45 cents to a dollar. There are even those cards that would require you to pay a fee when you buy drinks or inquire in their customer hotline. About one third of prepaid cards even charge customers if they do not use their cards for a long time.

If all these small fees are accumulated then we could really see that these prepaid cards do require a lot of money to own and keep. But according to Bretton Woods consulting firm’s study, checking accounts have bounce checks that amounts to about $25 to $30. If Consumers Union actually considers these fees then it would mean that prepaid cards are cheaper compared to financial institutions like banks.

This is an important fact to consider since these prepaid cards are already taking the role of bank cards for millions of citizens in the United States.

Prepaid cards are like debit or credit cards which contains the amount of money that a costumer has deposited in it. Majority of then have the MasterCard and the Visa logo imprinted, owners can have their paychecks or other retirement pensions liked directly to the card, they can also reload with it cash.

Citibank and Jet Airways’s 13 Year Alliance Comes to an End

Jet Airways Ltd recently had to say goodbye to their 13 year credit card partner, Citibank. The bank has decided to have its own airline credit card and saw no further need to continue its credit alliance with the Indian airline company.

This decision was further established through the realization that airline industries had difficulties in keeping their customers loyal to only one airline company. This is according to Citibank India’s business manager Anand Selvakesari.

He further denied the allegations that the decision of the company was affected by Jet Airways’s current problem in the industry. According to data, the airline industries in India have been suffering from great losses in the past 3 years due to the continuing rise in the prices of fuels, airline companies’ stiff competition and the high airport fees.

According to the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation, Indian airline companies are going to be posing their accumulated loss of about $1.3-1.4 billion in their capital this calendar year

Jet Airways also has a low cost airline subsidiary called JetLite which increases the probability of the company to acquire customers.

Jet Airways also released a statement that they are planning to arrange with other banks to have a broader range of customers. This alliance was one of the oldest and longest that Citibank had in the country.

In 2007 the bank’s credit cards had declined from 3.2 million to only 2.2 million but it is consistently trying to regain its losses and improve their loans.

ICICI Bank Ltd, the greatest rival of the bank had an alliance like Citibank’s and Jet Airways with Kingfisher Airways. But Indian airline carriers are starting to open their doors to other financial partners to appeal to the masses and making their range of customers broader. This is move will be saving their airline industry from falling to even deeper peril.

Closing Credit Card is Also Not a Good Idea

There are credit card holders who are letting their cards go inactive or just letting them cool off. This is their means to avoid the urge of spending. But the question is, how does this act affect the credit score of card holders?

Those who are not using their cards resort to bring cash when they walk around or they choose to use their debit cards in purchasing items. They reserve their credit cards for emergency needs like for instance buying a plane ticket and paying hotel expenses when they travel. This action step is good because if you allow your balance to increase, it will be damaging to your high credit rating and it will also create problem in your finances due to the higher interest rate that will be charged to you. Having high balances will make it difficult for you to secure financing for bigger project in the future like buying a house.

But consumers must also be aware that there are also disadvantages in allowing credit cards to gather dust most especially for starters. Credit history plays a very important role in earning points. If the card holder carries modest balances and uses his card frequently and pay his bills on time, this will earn points for him or her. This is where the frequency of using credit cards can make a difference when it comes to earning points.

The company issuing the card is making no money if the card is not used because it carries no balance. The company does not earn from the small annual fee that the card holder is paying. In order to woo card holders to use their cards, they will spend for promotions and this is an expense on their part. But eventually if the card still remains inactive, the card issuer will decide to close the account. If the company decides to close the account, there is no need for notification according to the Equal Credit Opportunity Act.

It is also not advisable to close accounts that consumers have paid off. It will be unfavourable to your credit score. So keep your accounts open and use them from time to time to keep them active and earn points for your credit score.

Why Having Good Credit is Better

For many Americans, their credit score is really starting to become the driving force of their lives.

Having a good score makes you accessible to many financial opportunities, while having a bad score only adds burden to your financial life.As early as the age of 16 until they are retired at 63, many citizens depend on their score for different reasons, and these are the top three reasons why they should.

First, those with the unblemished and perfect scores easily get employed. Majority of employers would run a thorough credit check on their potential employees, especially if the job is involved with the government.

If for example, there would be a job hiring for computer engineers in the government, those who would get the job must have a Top Secret clearance level, which is attained after the person’s ten year background is thoroughly checked by the authorities. Once it has been found that the person has been bankrupt, or had problems in his credit companies or suffers from bad credit then, it is very unlikely that he will obtain the career.Private companies would often look at the credit scores of their applicants to determine the best person for the job. A bad credit score does not speak very well about you.

Second, bad credit also means you would be paying a greater amount of money for every purchase you make. In one point of time, citizens would really have to get a loan whether it is for an automobile loan, a lease for an apartment, or even for the capital of their business. The credit score of a person is what determines his eligibility to get a loan. However, even if your credit score is fair, you could still be forced to pay a higher interest rate for the amount you borrow.

Finally, your rating would also impact where you could have a home. Property owners always run background checks on their potential clients, that is to make sure that they are responsible and they could pay on time.

Landlords would often decline those clients with bad credit because of the high possibility of missing payments and late payments. Some places that allow clients with bad credit to rent would often charge a higher interest rate and a high initial deposit to make sure they do not lose capital revenue. But there is a very high probability that those who have bad credit will only be landing a crappy apartment.

Do not let bad credit ruin your future. Take control and turn your life around now while you still can.

Poor Kids Get Robbed of Private School Credit

The credit loan for poor children supplied by the federal government is being abused by some affluent families. The New York Times has unmasked this sully reality of breach in the tax education credit. The main intention of the credit was to supposedly provide for the less fortunate citizens to allow their children to avail private education. However, it has been a proven fact that it is now an avenue for parents of children who had availed private education to get the benefit for their children.

Only kids who have enrolled in public schools and the law were specifically crafted to differentiate “enrolled” and “attended”. According to the State Representative of Georgia, Mr. David Casas the law specifically used the word enrolled and not attending so that the scholarship could be availed by private school students.

In one of the meetings, parents were dubious of the idea and raised the idea as a scam. Once, a concerned parent questioned the law if it would qualify a student that has been attending a private school but also he enrolls in a public school just to avail the benefit. The child will be enrolled in two schools but he is attending the private school, the law only required the recipient to be enrolled in a public school and it said nothing about attending.

Though Mr. Casa reassured the parents that the program was not a scam, it is very clear that this requirement is a terrible idea and will blow up in the company’s faces in the near future. Currently, there are many programs like this that is operating across eight different states in the United States. The program costs $350 million of the states’ funds which has been paying for the education of students who attend religious schools and scholars for football.

The headmaster of the Covenant Christian Academy based in Cumming, Ga, Mr. Jonathan Arnold shares his dismay as he reviewed the names of current students who availed the scholarships.