Loans and credit cards

You could almost believe in Santa Claus, couldn’t you? There you are, fretting over the fact that it’s the run-up to Christmas and you’ve got no cash and a credit card that’s almost maxed out (if not dead in the water), when, voila! A letter appears from your financial institution, telling you you’re pre-approved for a credit-limit increase. All you have to do is tick, sign and send it off, and you’re ready to spend again.

Falling rates might be great news for borrowers with a home loan but credit card holders have had little relief despite rates official rates dropping 3% in the last four months of 2008.

September’s banking column, “Pesky card fees”, hit a raw nerve with a number of Money readers. Ellis Prifti summed it up well when he wrote in to say bank fees are “like a mosquito – you only feel the itch when your get bitten and then it’s too late!”

To pay or not to pay — that is the question. When your income is high enough to trigger compulsory repayments of your Higher Education Loan Program (HECS-HELP) debt, should you be rushing to pay it off as quickly as possible or just pay the minimum amount?

Credit cards issued by retailers look like being the next big trend. Woolworths released its Everyday Money card in August and now David Jones has done the same — teaming up with American Express.

I never thought I would be a victim of identity fraud. I shred documents that contain personal information, pick up new cards etc from my bank branch rather than let them be mailed, monitor my accounts online several times a week – the list goes on.