My spouse noted at dinner that I seem to be the one getting the credit card offers. He didn't enlist in the Direct Mail Opt-Out Campaign, as I had, and thus he'd be getting four credit card offers from Capital One a month, but only the month before anti-consumer legislation benefiting credit card issuers would be law.
I received an offer from Chase today. The second surprise is that it didn't suck. F.I.A., formerly MBNA, would have me in the position of an abused spouse, believing that it had every right to refuse me 0% offers and APRs below 13% because I didn't deserve good credit--those installment loans for vehicles, over 100 months of mortgage payments, not good enough for F.I.A. I felt unworthy of having any credit card. But Chase is willing to offer me 0% until June 2009, and then a fixed APR of 8.99%. And my credit card issuer of twelve years isn't willing. How's that for weird?
I wonder what would transpire if I got some first-tier customer retention support person at F.I.A. "Hey, Chase offered me a 0% teaser for a year. Did you tell them how much I suck? The best you guys will offer me is 3% plus a 3% transfer fee for eight months. Any idea why they'd offer me a rate 4 points below the absolute minimum you'd give me?" "Doy, durrr.... we think our rates are more competitive. Black is white, ignorance is strength, slavery is freedom. Doyyyyy..."
Update/Correction: Chase offered 20-day grace period. So apparently I still suck as a credit risk after all.
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I'd been dwelling on our finances--I know, BIG SURPRISE--meditating on why we still can't afford lotsa stuff it seems the average American household has. Our emergency funds and retirement funds have had the same growing pains our incomes had. Our savings are still recovering from five-plus years of daycare...
What's 'average' anyway, financially speaking?
May 16th, 2008 at 07:20 pm
May 16th, 2008 at 08:56 pm
May 17th, 2008 at 05:41 am
May 17th, 2008 at 06:14 am
May 17th, 2008 at 07:44 am
Really, F.I.A. is going to have to work harder to entice me and millions of others if Bank of America wants to recoup its losses or have us pay for its myopic and irresponsible mortgage lending practices. Instead they're cutting me off from the 0% offers and sending me disincentives in the terms of anti-consumer amendments to terms and conditions.
And for all the money credit card issuers spend on marketing, you'd think they would be able to afford to specifically target households based on credit histories, AGIs, occupations... I'd probably complete and return an application if I knew I wouldn't be applying for a major loan within two years, and I knew ahead of time what my chances would be of getting the terms promised, and if I could assess the offer as a good one.