Always Pay By Credit Card To Protect Against Airline Bankruptcy Loss

By MoneyBlueBook

The scenario I am about to paint is very real. Let's say you are planning for a dream vacation. Or maybe it's your honeymoon and you are eager to fly somewhere romantic and spend a week at some remote tropical destination. Or maybe you are splurging for an exciting few days on a luxury cruise ship. Either way, rather than booking your travel reservations through a traditional travel agent, you decide to do it yourself through an online discount travel broker such as Expedia, Travelocity, or Orbitz. You don't like to use credit cards so you decide to pay your reservations using a debit card or even by check. A month passes and now it's only a week before your scheduled trip. Suddenly you get a phone call or an email advising you that your travel plans have been halted indefinitely because the travel agency that scheduled your itinerary has declared bankruptcy or gone out of business. Maybe it's not the travel agent but the airline or cruise ship company that has gone bankrupt. The chances of that happening may be slight, but the consequences can be financially disastrous. That's why it's important to protect your upfront reservation money by using credit card payment. Under the Fair Credit Billing Act (FCBA), credit card consumers who purchase with a Visa, Mastercard, or American Express card are afforded substantially more purchase protections then those who make payment using cash, money orders, or debit cards. These days, airline credit cards also offer a wide variety of

By MoneyBlueBook

I think most people are aware to a certain degree that it's important to maintain a healthy credit score. To financial institutions, mortgage brokers, landlords, and even employers, it's a quantifiable measure of your reliability when it comes to money. The formulated number represents your credit worthiness and the degree to which you are able to take on debt. Most banks and lenders utilize your credit score to determine how much interest they must charge you to compensate them for the risk of extending you credit. It impacts everything from applying for a home mortgage loan to getting approved for a routinebalance transfer credit card. The lower the score, the higher the risk, and thus the higher the interest rate imposed to compensate for the likelihood of default. Especially during a time that the credit markets are getting battered, it's more important than ever to know your credit situation. It never hurts to keep tabs on your report, and to find ways to improve your credit score, since you never know when you may need to call upon your good credit. Remember, monitoring your own credit report is not considered a hard credit check, so you don't have to worry that it will hurt your credit score.

To combat the rise of identity theft and to give people more control over their credit lives, the Fair Credit Reporting Act offers consumers access to one free copy of their credit report every 12 months from each of the nationwide credit reporting agencies - Equifax,

By Joe Taylor

When credit card issuers faced the 1-2 punch of an economic crisis and new regulations, it seemed like 0% balance transfer offers landed on the endangered species list. Now that banks are flush with cash and ready to lend, it's time to start saving money by paying down debt with no interest.

Why balance transfer offers?

A few years ago, I loved making free money by requesting zero percent introductory APR balance transfer checks from new credit cards, then depositing them into high interest savings accounts until just before the point where I'd have to start paying interest. The banks must have gotten tired of giving me all that free cash, since those kinds of deals have completely disappeared. It's no longer profitable for banks to let consumers surf balances from card to card without a little friction. Therefore, even the best 0% introductory APR balance transfer deals require you to pay up to 5% as a flat fee.

Still, the balance transfer process has become easier than ever for consumers who really do need to save some money on...

By Joe Taylor

Credit cards don't have to force you into debt. In fact, if you use them the right way, credit card rewards can actually earn you money. Over the years, I've tweaked my spending so I use credit cards to pay for everything. That way, I rack up a frequent flyer bonus, a cash back rebate, or special perks with every purchase. I like to review what's in my wallet from time to time, replacing cards I don't use that often with new accounts that offer special signup bonuses.

While I still carry a few wads of emergency cash around, it's easier than ever to run most everyday purchases on rewards credit cards. Check some of these...

By MoneyBlueBook

Business credit cards have grown to become a commonly accepted and practical way for small startup businesses to acquire access to needed venture credit. Not only do they offer benefits unique to business office and supply demands such as higher credit lines, better credit card rewards, and more versatile expense tracking, they offer also the opportunity for growing businesses to build up their business credit history. This is important because one day the business may need to draw upon that developed business credit history to acquire corporate loans.

Individuals Can Apply For Business Credit Cards With Their Social Security Numbers

What many consumers seemingly overlook is that business credit card benefits can be available to them as well and are not reserved for complex business entities alone. Card applicants don't have to be part of a corporation or a limited liability company (LLC) to qualify. Ordinary individuals can go into business for themselves and establish their business operation as a sole proprietorship. If you are self employed, a freelance worker, or an independent contractor like myself, you may very well be operating as a sole proprietor already. In the eyes of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the government, and credit card companies, the individual and his or her sole proprietorship business are one and the same for legal and income tax purposes. The only significant difference is when it comes to record keeping and business tax deductions. As sole proprietorships are entitled to write off their business expenses against their income, most are encouraged to

By MoneyBlueBook

Updated List Of The Best Supermarket and Grocery Credit Cards To Save Money On Groceries (And Offset Higher Food Prices)

With rising gas energy prices and increased food demand from developing countries comes an unfortunate result - higher food prices. Common grocery staples like milk, eggs, and wheat products have seen a noticeable rise in prices lately. Higher prices at the supermarket is leading to an increase in grocery spending for many. Those with large families and children are finding their food budgets being stretched to the limit. However, there are alternative and supplemental ways to save money on groceries beyond the usual reliance on price comparison shopping and clipping grocery store coupons. There's nothing wrong with relying on coupons and price comparison, however, the regularity of those money saving deals are often unpredictable. They are not dependent on what you or your family need at the time, but rather on the supply and demand assessments of supermarket chains.

Benefits Of Using Grocery Store Credit Card Rewards To Save Money On Supermarket Food Prices

If you are a responsible credit user, have you considered the usage of dedicated grocery credit cards to save money at the supermarket? Most major credit card issuers have tagged grocery stores as a major promotional focus of their credit card reward programs. To encourage consumers to use grocery store credit cards, card issuers are offering a wide array of high cash back rewards and rebates for supermarket related purchases. In fact, along with gas stations and drug stores, grocery stores are often