Holy Cow

[358 winchester]

I just got a letter from Capital One saying that my interest rate was going to go up.
At present I have a 11.4% on the unpaid balance, the increase would be determined by adding 26.15% to the prime rate on the 25th of each month. So if you add 3.25% to the 26.15% they would be charging me 29.4% from now until next month. I call the phone number in the letter and they explained to me that with all the delinquent accounts and the current economy they had to have an increase. I explained that I have never been late with a payment and that said
"That is true Mr. Lee but lots of others have so we are going to increase all the accounts"
I then and there canceled my credit card and told them I would pay them off at the 11.4% or they could kiss my tail. All of this will effect any charges made after April 17 2009 and we wouldn't billed until January 2010. I still canceled my card.
If them fools think I am going to pay more because some other guy doesn't pay his bill they have lost their ever loving minds

[Marlin T]

That is just plain insane and just as wrong.

[pinecone70]

Bravo for canceling that account, they won't have much business if they do that! Extortionists.

[358 winchester]

The lady I was talking with said all CC companies will be doing the same thing, we will see. But you can bet I will not be using any credit card. Cash and carry or barter and run!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[rosierita]

Originally Posted by 358 winchester

The lady I was talking with said all CC companies will be doing the same thing, we will see. But you can bet I will not be using any credit card. Cash and carry or barter and run!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

bank of america did that to us in august! the card got cancelled, it took us a while, thanks to the farm, to pay it off... but its a done deal now.

[jacksonco]

The banks are getting all that free goverment money and at the same time are sticking it to us. You think that it would not be permitted if the govermnt has a stake in the bank.

[Mjolnir]

It seems that everything that has occurred economically since Obama's election is aimed at reducing everyone (or at least the majority) down to the level of being impoverished. Sounds like the makings of communism/facism to me.

[BobMcG]

Originally Posted by jacksonco

The banks are getting all that free goverment money and at the same time are sticking it to us.

Yeah, government money alright.... as in OUR freaking money. That's right, they're being handed OUR money and then sticking it to us!!!!

Freaking SLIMEBALLS! All of 'em!

[cycloneman]

Originally Posted by BobMcG

Yeah, government money alright.... as in OUR freaking money. That's right, they're being handed OUR money and then sticking it to us!!!!

Freaking SLIMEBALLS! All of 'em!

Yes sir. First they took big commissions to sell bad loans. Then they were bailed out by us. Now their using our money to buy our gold. Haven't you seen all the cash for gold commercials on tv. Gold is the hedge aganist inflation. Buddy whlie your off working your tail off to do the right thing there has been a monster out there. hmmmmmm And dont be fooled by the left wing that says the debt will be cut in half by 2010 or 11 whatever. They spent so much so fast there is no way the american worker can ever stop what is going to happen. Wall street guys ain't stupid. The market does not like this administration. If some distaster were to happen, and the people of america all of a sudden become any more gun shy to spend money you might just want to roll over and die. I heard on one the of the shows last night, Hanity I think, that as projected the govt will grow by 54% by the end of 2010. Feel free to correct me if i am wrong. I know this, to devalue the dollar like this so fast is going to cause more problems in the near future.

I believe that to be a president one should have a masters in economics, have run a sucessful comany, and been in the military. But then again i keep getting told that i am an A$$****.

[BobMcG]

Originally Posted by cycloneman

I believe that to be a president one should have a masters in economics, have run a sucessful comany, and been in the military. But then again i keep getting told that i am an A$$****.

What you're getting at is that a person should actually be "qualified" to even run for the office of President, unlike the current occupant of the office?

[icm856]

I have a Chase Card with a 11.24% APR and I was thinking about calling them up to see if I could get my APR lowered. If I don't get it lowered to 10% or below I'm going to cancel my account with them.

I wish I could get 10% on my investments let alone 11.24%.

[Pistolenschutze]

Originally Posted by 358 winchester

The lady I was talking with said all CC companies will be doing the same thing, we will see. But you can bet I will not be using any credit card. Cash and carry or barter and run!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

They are Ron. My wife's two card companies did the same thing and she was as furious as you are. She has a perfect payment record and they still raised the rates to ridiculous levels. Makes me glad I refuse to use, or even hold, any credit cards. All credit card companies are parasites in my humble opinion.

[armedandsafe]

I have never had any credit, except for utilities and one house purchase at foreclosure. First wife stopped paying on that while I was in Alaska and didn't bother to tell me. I have never had a credit card.

I now have a debit card through the credit union. I do use it online, but carefully, through proxies. I am now thinking that, not having any credit, was one of the best decisions I ever made.

Pops

[hkruss]

Here is one other stupid, irrational thing. Did you know that if you close a credit card account, it has a NEGATIVE effect on your credit rating? You would think that it should not affect your rating one way or the other, but it does...negatively!!! This info came from one of the big three credit reporting agencies, and I found it while checking out my once a year free credit report. They recommend you keep all accounts open and if you pay them down or off, to occasionally use them just to keep them active. Also, some credit card companies will close your account if you haven't used them in a long while, again, having an adverse effect on your credit rating! I fully understand your outrage, 358, but if you ever finance something in the future,(house,car etc...), you need to know this.
Personally, I hope you're filthy rich and you will let me come spend weekends at your seaside mansion! (I'm an hour away!)

All kidding aside, yeah, credit card companies SUCK,SUCK,SUCK !!!!!! Common sense does not apply. Apparently, we are living in bizarro world!

[markfh]

All I gotta say is... Dave Ramsey

Everybody should have to listen to him until they understand how they're getting ripped off.

[markfh]

Originally Posted by hkruss

Here is one other stupid, irrational thing. Did you know that if you close a credit card account, it has a NEGATIVE effect on your credit rating?

If you save up to buy things or have a big enough down payment for a home you don't need a credit rating.

[pickenup]

Get one that pays "cash back."
Pay it off "in full" every month.
Enjoy your BONUS.

[hkruss]

Originally Posted by markfh

If you save up to buy things or have a big enough down payment for a home you don't need a credit rating.

You hit it on the head!! That is the approach Americans should take! Unfortunately, too many people have been in, 'gotta have it NOW mode' for too many years. This heavy reliance on too much credit is why we are where we are as a nation!

[ponycar17]

I had a Capital One card with a Zero balance that I had used in college and it had a 9.9% Fixed APR. One day, after probably 6 years of having the card CO sent me a letter that the rate was going up to 20%+ (don't remember exactly) and I couldn't figure any reason except that my credit limit was high and they wanted me to cancel my card so that they could offer that line to someone else. I had never been late either, and had a great credit score on top of that.

They didn't seem to care at all that I canceled the account. Of course it didn't bother me either...

It's a good idea to NOT rely on one source of credit. Numerous available credit lines are a good thing to have if you keep a balance on any one source. The reason is for situations like this. With another free line of credit available, you could simply transfer the balance and flip them the friendly finger. Of course, with many lines open one has to exercise self-control not to run up the balance on each one. That defeats the purpose...

Another point is that when securing your credit lines, do so with a credit union if at all possible. Right now, credit unions are VERY secure because they don't operate liberally like most private banks. The chance of this sort of thing happening with a credit union is almost non-existent at this point in time. My wife has only worked with credit unions so far in her career and we only bank with them.

[delta13soultaker]

358 winchester, Sorry to hear you're having to do that. I also decided I'm done with credit. If I can't save or trade in to buy, it's not important enough to own.

My uncle works for the IRS. He's retired Navy, conservative, a highly successful man, and has a great sense of humor. I love him like a father.

He's a very savvy guy with the $$.

I keep running things by him, mostly the economy stuff that's on the news. Today he told me we're going to see a very big rise in inflation. He said we're teetering on the edge right now.

I asked him are we talking collapse etc down the road or what. He said, "Remember when your grandfather used to compare things to the Great Depression?"

[Deathbunny]

Well, the situation sucks -- but it IS fixable.

First, whenever a credit card tries to jack your interest, call and ask to keep the current rate. They'll say no. (Always.) Ask, calmly, to speak to either their supervisor or the senior accounts manager. THAT'S who has the leeway to keep your old limit/APR/ whatever. Usually, they can be convinced to keep you as a customer. Just be prepared to argue (calmly) and be patient. I've argued 3 different cards into better rates, so it can be done.

Second, if you close an account it doesn't necessarily affect your credit rating. It depends on how many credit cards you have, how much debt you're carrying, etc. If you're really worried, shred the card. The account stays open but you don't have to deal with the BS.

Last, but not least, never use a credit card for credit -- only for conveinience. Credit card companies are in it for the $, not our benefit.

[Mr. Nameless]

I bet about 15,000 accounts were lost because of that same reason

[RunningOnMT]

This could almost be another thread but did you ever think how much policies today are based on unjust or unfair principles we learned as kids? For example, back in the third grade, one or two kids are misbehaving and the whole class misses recess. May be a silly analysis but it seems to me that many absurd policies are based on peoples inability to think logically...and I have to conclude that many have been trained that way.

I applaud you for cancelling your account.

[Mr. Nameless]

really wat they try to do is get everyone against that oneperson so they dont do it again and get to keep their friends instead of losing them, its psycological warfare my friend. Obviously its not gonna work seeing as how no one knows who the people were that arnt paying

[SouthernMoss]

I couldn't tell you what the interest rate is on my credit card is. It doesn't matter, because I never carry a balance over. Never. So I'm getting the use of their money for the 2-4 weeks between the time I make a charge and the time the bill comes due. Take That, credit card companies!!!



ETA: Actually, I get the use of their money for longer than that if I time it right. My billing cycle closes on the 23rd, so if I made a charge on the 24th of Feb, I wouldn't have to pay it off until the 16th of April!