Obama Credit Card Policy

::::::: SaGe enters the fray ::::::: So basically all the little morons out there that didn't read their contracts / terms & conditions have complaing & bitched enough to the point where somthing MUST be done about the big bad Credit Card companies. Now that they have tightened down CC companies with bullshit regulations etc watch what happens over the next 9 months or so. CC companies will do ALL of the following but not lmited to: 1) Do away with most, if not all Points Programs on CC's 2) Add annual fees to ALL new CC's 3) Have mostly NO GRACE Cards 4) Raise Int. Rates 5) Increased Min Payments 6) Ages 18-21 Must have a Job/show proof of income AND have a co-signer. So much for being grown ups eh? 7) many ... many more... All they are basically doing with this bill is [fucking] a LOT of people from NOW until the bill passes. Banks are about money in general. They are a place of business and any bank that owns their own credit card will do what they can to help the customer but... Read more

I consider the Credit Card legislation that went through Congress last month to be a complete and utter sham, a sellout to the big credit card companies. This legislation really is a series of minor reforms that deals with the problem at the periphery; it deals with things like the misapplication of payments, retroactive interest rate hikes, and late billings. Yet they failed to address the real problem--the credit card company's use of usury. Congress specifically rejected placing any limits on the amount of interest that the credit card companies can charge. It remains perfectly legal for them to charge interest rates that would make a loan shark look reputable! Historically this hasn't always been the case. Credit card interest was subject to usury limits that a lot of states had in their books until 1979. That was when the Supreme Court gutted out these restrictions by ruling that the original state where the lender was based out of, not the state where the borrower lived... Read more

Does this mean usury will be made unlawful again?

So... he's gonna take over credit cards? Good thing I don't have one.

Overall, I think this bill makes some long overdue changes to the operating procedures of Credit Card companies in America. The main potential drawback is that people with unproven credit may have a harder time entering into the system. Credit has become a way to charge against our future selves, recently, and based upon a realistic approach to life and one's aspirations, that can actually be a good thing. On occasion, even a great thing. Major companies have been launched on good ideas and lots of credit (famously, amazon). I have faith that in the absence of easy access to credit, however, motivated people will find another way, and we'll continue to hear these rags-to-riches stories without nearly so many examples of the converse. Here are my thoughts on some of the key issues in the bill, point-by-point. Italics are descriptions from MSNBC (http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2009/05/20/1 938548.aspx): The bill would extend the grace period from 30 to 60 days before credit c... Read more

Quarterhorse outlined it nicely. Obama may have good intentions here, but still misses the broader implications that can result from it. We don't want people getting credit that shouldn't have it.

This new Credit Card policy of Obama has both good and bad aspects. The good is that such policies as calculating interest based on two billing cycles and changing interest arbitrarily even for good customers will now get scrutiny. The good does outweigh the bad on this policy, BUT: The bad side of this is that responsible acting people that do pay their bills on time will now have to pay more to make up for those that don't. In this sense Obama has rewarded irresponsiblity and punished responsiblity. Credit Card companies that did not charge fees for responsible acting customers will now charge annual fees.