Credit Cards | 3 Ways to Improve Your Credit Card Interest Rates Yourself

These days credit card companies can be "sneaky": they often hike up consumer's interest rates in a somewhat stealthy fashion, letting you discover the higher rate on your credit card statement. Here are two reasons credit card companies use to raise your interest rate:

· They check your credit report regularly and use what they find on your credit report to justify raising your interest rate
· They use late payments, even those just slightly late (like 10 days, or less) to raise your interest rate.

When you inquire about your higher interest rate on your statement with your credit card company, they cite the credit card agreement you signed when you first applied for your card. (Does anybody actually read those)?

I have found three things you can do to keep your credit card interest rate low:

1. Sign up for Autopay.
Ask your credit card company for an Autopay application and pay your credit card bill automatically from your bank account. MBNA, for instance has an autopay application, which offers you the chance to either take the minimum payment out automatically, or a payment that you set every month, say $250. Autopay can be invaluable in keeping your payment history, and credit, spotless-keeping you at a low interest rate.

2. Raise your Credit Score.
You may know that each of us have a "credit score" that predicts our ability to pay back credit on time. Credit Card Companies check your credit score on an average of every 60-90 days or so. Cleaning your credit report can include paying any outstanding collections that can compromise your score. Even a small $50 collection can compromise your credit score. Although clearing a credit report can be a 4 to 8 month process, there is a book on my site called "Improve your Credit Score in 24 Hours that can give you tips to raise your credit score faster.

3. Ask for a Lower Rate.
Sometimes simply asking for a lower rate results in a lower rate. But, you must ask in a shrewd businesslike manner, and sometimes you need to be firm. The conversation would go something like this a 15% rate is unacceptable to me. I need you to lower my rate to 9% for me to keep my account, or I will close my account". Of course, it helps to really mean it. But I have gotten my rate lowered at least three times this way, and you can too.

Credit Cards - Interest Rates

3 Ways to Improve Your Credit Card Interest Rates