Thanks for including my post!

I have these same principals most times, but I broke my own rule recently (oops!). I'm not carrying a credit card balance, but only in the amount of $600.

It's my own fault, and I'm regretting it, because I hate having debt. I had to do some car repairs on top of spending, and it got away from me. It will be gone soon, and I'll know better for next time!

My mom was definately a compulsive shopper, and I don't want to go anywhere near there. I'm very careful with budgeting, but we all have our moments of weakness I suppose.

www.pennyseeds.com

I don't have a credit card. We have a debit card and that keeps the spending in check; because if it's not in the bank, we don't spend it. :)

It it about time that the Feds are addressing the credit card scams that are making financial institutions billions of dollars worth of profits each year and sucking the average American dry, but NOW, it is twice as important that the Feds address the banking businesses scams that cost the average American hundreds, if not, thousands of dollars in penalties and fees for non sufficient funds.  Banks can choose which check or transactions to process instead of processing them in the order in which the bank receives them.  Thus, banks can and usually do choose to process the transactions that will make your account bounce and by the time that the average consumer discovers their accounts are in the red or 'bounding' the bank may have already charged several hundred dollars in penalty and fees that add up quickly over time and leave the struggling American in deeper debt.  The banks can but choose not to process the transactions in the order they receive them because instead of just one transaction being assessed a penalty they can systematically manipulate each account to maximize their profits in assessing non sufficient check penalties and fees and at an average penalty of $37.50 plus miscellaneous other fees the cost for example of a one day movie rental from Redbox  that normally would cost $1.09 could cost the customer $85 in bank fees, because the bank can and usually will process the transaction not once but twice and another $50 for the Redbox bad check fee/assessment and the $1.09 for the one day movie rental for a total out of pocket cost of $136.09.  This is out and out robbery by banks and needs to be stopped ASAP....

Somebody should do something about the tricks some credit card companies are now doing:  They are charging you to pay your bill!  Yes, Centennial ( a company my son has a card thru) charges him $7 for using the internet and website to pay his bill, $12.50 if he sends it to them by Quick Collect, and $15 for over the phone or if he sends them a check...and all these fees are charged thru Western Union!

I was just talking to a service rep of Wells Fargo Financial National Bank to pay my bill and she told me flatly that if I pay my bill on the phone, I will have to pay a fee.  How much more insult and abuse will the American public be subjected to?  And these banking institutions have the nerve to ask for bailouts from taxpayers that they rob and insult?  Is this still America?

I am a former long time banker, and I can tell you first hand that banks have and will continue to find loop holes to over charge most of their customers. If you notice there were no dollar amounts noted in the article about new credit card fee regulations. Another new rule of not being able to transfer from one high interest card to a lower one is not to help the consumer. Beware of these new rules, some will help but there will be others that will dig deeper in your wallet. A word of advice; only charge what you can payoff when you receive your bill, and don't buy on a whim, but wait. This is difficult for most people, and this is why the banks will continue their outragous profits and most credit card user will continue to fall behind.

Another tip to include is how much time it took you to earn that item. If you are paid $10 an hour and the item cost $100, it is worth the 10 hours of work to earn that item. If the answer is yes, then you would figure out if you could afford it with those tips mentioned above. If the answer is no, do not purchase it.

www.onlinestorecoupon.com

I agree with Vicki, but I would change "how much time it took you to earn that item" to "how much time it took you to save for that item". Just because you have money to pay for something in cash doesn't mean you can afford it.  Some items are worth X months or years of savings and some aren't. For example, I have enough in savings to buy a new Ferrari, but I still cannot afford it. At the same time, if I needed to spend the same amount for a life-saving treatment for myself or a loved one, I could afford it. If all you have is $5000 in savings, you can afford to pay for your child's braces but you still may not be able to afford a new wide screen TV. It also depends on age and job security. A young single person with only 5K in savings may spend half or all of it on a trip or a TV, but someone with kids or someone older can't.

It's really common sense. I am actually always amazed when I watch Suze Orman show how people need to ask if they can afford something. IMHO - people should know it.

BTW - I don't see how this thread is relevant to credit cards issues brought up above. But really, it is free country. You don't like particular bank's practices, find another one. Don't use all credit card practices - don't get credit cards. If you get one, pay your bill in full: most companies don't charge for internet pay. If your issuers does it - find another one. Most companies also allow you to set up automatic payments for free. I've used credit cards for 25 years, have never paid interest or fees and have never had any problems. I couldn't care less for irresponsible math-challenged people who pay interest: practice some personal responsibility. I am also sick of people talking about a bank as if it is a single "entity" or a single person. Newsflash - banks employ thousands of people most of whom have nothing to do with lending rules. If bank's profit suffers, it's not top executives who set up rules that suffer, it's a simple teller that takes your deposits that may lose his or her job. Also, next time you call to complain about a fee, remember that the person you talk with isn't the one who set the rules, so shouting at this person will do nothing. If you are nice and polite, they may actually forgive one late payment.

It's about time someone in Washington took notice to all of the complaints about these credit card companies.  We were also victims of an unjustified rate increase and it took a complaint to our States Attorney General to resolve this.  One question I have though is why are they waiting until July, 2010 to make this effective?  Couldn't it be like right now?