Cheap credit cards – everybody’s dream. Right? It is if you’re like the majority of Americans and have a large amount of debt on your credit cards. Don’t worry though, it is still possible to find credit cards with good rates – you just have to know what to look for and what to watch out for.

Look for These Features

• Low Annual Percentage Rate – 9% is the lowest percentage rate currently available
• Required Monthly Payment – usually around 3% but not always the case. Watch out for higher monthly payment fees.
• Rewards – look for rewards that you will actually use – gas, travel, shopping points.
• Credit unions – tend to have the best deals for cards. Credit Unions are run by the members, so they have a vested interest in providing credit at very low rates. Because they are run by the members they are focus more on keeping their members happy and you can often get cheap credit cards through them. Banks worry more about keeping their investors happy.

Watch Out for Hidden Fees

Be sure and watch out for “hidden” fees. Credit card companies are required to put in writing all of their fees, but sometimes, they make them just a little bit hard to find in all of the fine print. Look for these common hidden fees.

• Annual fees – The yearly charge for the “privilege” of having the card. This fee can vary from $25 per year to $300 per year.
• Application fee – This is the fee that is charged when you apply to get a card. You may be charged as much as $10 to $15 per application.
• Cash advance fees – This is a fee for getting cash using your credit card. The fee is usually 1-3% of the advance
• Balance-transfer fees – A fee for transferring your balance. Most common rate is 1-3% of transfer.
• Finance charge – The fee for having a monthly balance.
• Penalty fees – Penalty fees for late payments have more than doubled in the past 12 years, from an average of $13 in 1995 to $28 this year, with some as high as $39.
• Late payment fee – for making less than your minimum payment $15 – $39 for every billing cycle you miss
• Over credit limit fee – for having a balance over your credit limit – $15 – $39
• Returned Check fee – having a payment check returned to your bank – $38.
• Phone Order Fee – charges for making payments over the phone, which can range from $5 to $15, even when the payments are on time.
• Universal Default – this allows the your credit card company to boost your interest rate if you make late payments on other accounts, such as car loans, mortgages, or other credit cards, even if you have a spotless repayment history on that particular card.

Other Fees to Watch Out For:

These fees are less common but you need to watch out for them never the less.

• Security fees
• Introductory rate
• Set up
• Return item
• Telephone ordering

Credit card companies are required by federal regulations to put all fees in writing. Read through all of the fine print. Often the information is in some sort of table. It will or should list all fees.
Use this checklist as a guide to finding cheap credit cards. By finding a card with the lowest rates and fees, you can save a great deal of money and pay your debt off fast.

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