Know Your Credit Card Statement
December 11th, 2006–By Priya Jestin, Staff Writer
Credit card statements are not the prettiest of sights — and that’s putting it lightly. Most of us are quite intimidated by just the sight of a credit card statement. But it’s even worse trying to read and understand the document. However, once you come to grips with the statement, you can actually use this information each month to stay in control of your finances. I’m not teasing you, so please… stay with me.
Firstly, you need to understand why there is SO much information on your credit card statement. Actually, you can blame the government for it. The Fair Credit and Charge Card Disclosure Act, which is actually designed to protect you, requires creditors to provide you with certain data on a regular basis. This means that this information is beneficial to you and can actually help you make decisions about using credit.
The first thing you should do when you receive your credit card statement is check the interest rate and fee schedule information. This will let you know certain things like annual fee, APR, late payment fee, etc. Preview your statements each month to ensure you stay in control of your finances.