Do It Now New York! Major Warning About Credit Cards

The excitement and anxiety surrounding holiday shopping and gift giving is over for the year. The Black Friday, Cyber Monday and Small Business Saturday deals are gone and now the reality of the bills and payments are starting to settle in. While you may have been prepared for them, there could be a few surprises you should also be prepared for.

A Solid Shopping Season

It seemed that most of the local business were mobbed with shoppers this past week. Now that the COVID pandemic has ended and the regulations are over, people were back out shopping in real life and not just online. Combine that with an incredible online shopping season, it was a great year for retailers.

As business owners and retail giants count their profits, consumers are anxiously waiting for the credit card statements to hit their accounts. With interest rates at record levels, it may be more painful than most had anticipated.

Zero Percent Offers?

But perhaps you took advantage of a zero percent offer? Credit Card companies are very good at presenting these offers are the right time. Based on first hand experience, remember to pay that zero percent bill in a timely fashion or else.

Let this be a reminder (warning) to check your credit card statement for when the zero percent offer ends (or has ended). You may have opened that account last year and the 12 month offer is up. I recently opened a letter from a credit company telling me that the zero percent is about to end and the interest rate is about to jump to an astonishing 34%!

Be Prepared For Those Bills

While a zero percent offer can be a blessing IF you pay it off on time, it could become a nightmare if you are not paying attention. With rising prices on just about everything, the money you budgeted for a monthly payment may be going someplace else? I suggest you start the new year with a plan to take inventory of the credit you have out there and be ahead of any changes or interest surprises.