Have you ever wondered why your credit card expires? I recently had this happen to me. My MBNA Smart Cash Mastercard was nearing its expiry date. I was wondering when the new credit card would arrive. Thankfully it arrived about a month before it expired.
That begs the question: is an expiry date on credit cards even necessary? Let’s look at why expiry dates exist and what they’re used for.
Do you find yourself using cash less frequently these days? You’re not alone. As we move increasingly closer to a cashless society, it’s important to be aware of the upsides and downsides of using physical money less often. Some of the positives of using your credit card over cash include better consumer protection, rewards and ease of tracking your spending.
Can you believe school is back in session? It seems like summer flew by in the blink of an eye!
Back to school isn’t getting any cheaper for parents. In fact, quite the opposite. Here’s a fact that may surprise you: Canadian families spend on average more on back to school than during the holidays. This is backed by a recent survey by online deals website RetailMeNot.ca. Canadians families expect to spend $883 on back to school supplies in 2017, more than $325 more than during the holidays last year.
As our saying goes, credit cards are a powerful financial tool when used responsibly. It’s when you misuse your credit card that it can cause you financial pain.
In today’s low interest rates environment where money is ultra-cheap (except credit card interest and payday loans), it’s easy to find yourself in what we like to call the “minimum payment trap.” It goes something like this: you rack up a lot of credit card debt for one reason or another and before you know it, you get in the habit of only paying the minimum payment.
It’s summer time. Do you have a holiday getaway planned? For some, the perfect vacation is lying on a beach with an umbrella drink, while for others it’s going on a travel adventure in the pyramids. Whatever your idea of fun is, if you have the travel bug, it helps to have a travel rewards credit card to help pay for your summer getaway.
Don’t get too attached to any one travel reward program. That’s the best advice I can give in today’s increasingly competitive credit card space. You work hard for your money – and your reward points. The last thing you want is to jump through hoops to book your dream vacation. But that’s just what some of the travel reward programs make you do. Some way to reward loyal cardholders!
