How to Avoid Annoying Annual Credit Card Fees

When it comes to saving money on your credit card spending, one of the best ways to do so is to reduce or even eliminate credit card fees all together. The fact is that many Americans are subject to extensive credit card bills because they are paying fees that they could easily avoid. In fact, you could avoid credit card fees entirely if you choose the right types of credit cards and practice smart credit card use.

Avoid Annual Credit Card Fees

Unfortunately for consumers, there are more credit card companies then ever before that charges their customers an annual fee. Despite this, there are still an abundance of annual free credit card issuers that are available to consumers. Before you choose a credit card that comes with an annual fee, it’s a good idea to look into your free options first to see if one fits your financial situation. You should only accept credit card offers with annual fees if you have no other options.

Avoid Foreign Transaction Fees

This type of credit card fee tends to be very controversial. Credit card companies exchange currencies using interbank exchange rates. However, these charges are placed on any sort of transaction that is made outside of the United States, even if U.S. dollars are used. The problem is that the majority of credit card issuers tack on a foreign transaction fee that can range from 3 to 5% to this charge. Luckily you can easily avoid these foreign transaction fees by choosing a credit card that does not charge this type of fee. There are a growing number of companies that do not charge this fee including Discover and Capital One.

Avoid Late Fees

In the majority of cases when you own a credit card you must be responsible for making your payments in a timely fashion in order to avoid any sort of late fee. To avoid ever making a late payment by accident, it is a good idea to set up an automatic payment plan. This will ensure that your credit card bill doesn’t go unpaid simply because you forgot to make a payment. On top of this, by paying your credit card bill electronically the risk of a check getting lost in the mail no longer exists. It is true that there are some credit cards that do not have any late payment fees, however be aware that just because there are no late payment fees on a card does not mean that it is an excuse to pay your credit card bill late.

Avoid Cash Advance Fees

The majority of credit cards come with a cash advance fee. This fee is usually 3% of a minimum of $10. On top of cash advance fees, many credit cards will also come with a higher APR on any type of cash withdrawal. In order to avoid paying cash advance fees, it is quite simple—don’t use credit cards for cash advances. In order to avoid the temptation of withdrawing cash from your credit card it’s a smart move to avoid setting up a PIN code on your card so that it is impossible to do so.

Avoid Balance Transfer Fees

Most cards that come with a 0% APR financing on cash advances do come with a balance transfer fee that can be as high as 5%. To avoid this fee when you have to finance a purchase using a credit card then it is a good idea to utilize a 0% offer on any items that you purchase before you purchase them and avoid using a balance transfer after the fact.

Finances - 12 Dec, 2013 - No Comments