Love Your Chase Freedom® Credit Card? Here’s What to Look Forward to in 2015

If you’re a loyal Chase Freedom® user, you probably already know you’ve made a great credit card choice. It’s one of the Nerds’ favorite cash-back cards, and will really come in handy during the 2014 holiday shopping season.

But the great news is that the Chase Freedom® has some tricks up its sleeve for 2015. Ready to find out more? Let’s dig in.

Chase Freedom®: The basics

Before diving into the new information, here’s a quick reminder of what the Chase Freedom® offers:

• You’ll earn 5% cash back in rotating quarterly bonus categories, up to $1,500 spent per quarter. For the fourth quarter of 2014, you’ll score 5% cash back on every dollar spent at select department stores, Zappos.com and Amazon.com.


• You’ll also earn unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases throughout the year.


• You’ll have the opportunity to score a signup bonus: Get a $200 Bonus after spending $500 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening.


• The annual fee is $0

It’s also worth noting that with the Chase Freedom® you’re earning Chase Ultimate Reward points. You can redeem them for cash back, but if you also have the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, you also have the option to transfer them to that account and cash them in for a trip. If you shop smart and take advantage of the Chase Freedom®’s 5% categories, this could add up to a lot of points to travel with.

Finally, if you’re an iPhone 6 user, don’t forget that your Chase Freedom® is compatible with Apple Pay. As more and more retailers begin installing the infrastructure to accept mobile payments, you’ll be able to easily rack up Ultimate Rewards points with a single tap.

Exciting news about the Chase Freedom® in 2015

As if all the perks above weren’t enough, the Nerds just got some exciting information about what’s new for the Chase Freedom® in 2015. Let’s start with rewards: For the first quarter of 2015, you’ll be able to earn 5% cash back on every dollar spent at grocery stores (except Target and WalMart), movie theaters and Starbucks. Remember, you’ll earn the bonus cash back up to $1,500 spent between January and March 2015. After that, you’ll earn the standard (and unlimited) 1% cash back.

Also, newly issued and reissued Chase Freedom® will start coming with EMV chip technology. This upgrade is beginning in November 2014 and will continue throughout 2015. Getting a Chase Freedom® with a chip will help you prepare for the U.S. transition to EMV, which is expected to be complete by October 2015. This will lead to safer credit card transactions, and, consequently, more peace of mind for consumers.

Other tips for getting the most out of your Chase Freedom®

The Chase Freedom® offers a lot of great benefits, but here are a few Nerd tips for getting even more value out of the card:

• Explore all of your redemption options. In addition to using your points for cash back or transferring them to your Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card for travel, you can also use them for gift cards or to make purchases through Amazon.com. This flexibility means you’ll have an easy time finding something that has value for you.


• When you’re buying items online, try to shop through the Chase Ultimate Rewards bonus mall. You could earn 2%-15% back on your purchases.


• Sign up for alerts so that you’ll know when to go online and opt into new 5% categories. Although you can earn the bonus cash back retroactively, it would be a shame to totally miss out on the chance to score extra rewards.

For all the reasons described above, the Chase Freedom® is a great choice for 2015 and beyond. Be sure to keep it in mind, and check back with the Nerds as often as you can for other important updates!

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5 Hidden Hazards of Using a Reloadable Debit Card

General-purpose reloadable debit cards have some advantages over traditional checking accounts or even credit cards. No bank account is required, plus there’s no risk of overdraft fees or racking up credit card debt.

But some prepaid debit cards that let you add money to them impose hefty charges and have features that can make them a dangerous alternative to other types of accounts.

Recently, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau proposed new rules that could make prepaid cards safer and more user-friendly. A major change would include new protections for lost cards and fraudulent transactions, which have been unavailable for this type of plastic. The proposal would also limit fees (particularly “overdraft protection” charges for the type that let you spend more money than the card holds) and easier access to account statements.

While it could be several months before these proposed protections kick in—or longer, if they’re challenged—they should be welcomed by the rising number of people using prepaid debit cards. In 2003, consumers loaded $1 billion onto general-purpose reloadable cards; by 2012, that figure had ballooned to almost $65 billion and is still growing, according to the consumer bureau. Many people use the cards as alternatives to checking accounts.

“Prepaid card users are disproportionately unbanked and under-banked households,” Richard Cordray, the agency’s director, said in introducing its proposed regulations. “Many of these prepaid consumers are living paycheck to paycheck, and are engaged in a constant battle to make ends meet. They are some of the most economically vulnerable among us, and most of them have no idea that the prepaid cards they choose to purchase are largely unregulated at the federal level and carry few if any protections.”

Until the proposed changes come into play, watch out for these common pitfalls of using a reloadable prepaid debit card:

1. Fees, fees and more fees

Prepaid debit cards work very differently than those tied to a bank account. The reloadable type let you or a third party add funds. Some card issuers take advantage of this characteristic by charging a fee each time you load money on it.

Some issuers tack on additional fees, nickel-and-diming you when you activate your card, check its balance and withdraw cash. Monthly fees are also common. Before you select a card, take a close look at the fees. That isn’t always easy, and one of the proposed rules is designed to require better fee disclosure by card issuers.

2. No loss or theft protection

Credit cards and bank debit cards must limit liability for cardholders if the account is used for fraudulent purchases. This means if someone steals your card and uses it without your knowledge, you will likely owe little, if anything.

Some prepaid cards offer protection against unauthorized transactions, but according to the consumer agency, not all do. So for now, at least, if your prepaid card is stolen and used, it’s unlikely the card issuer will help you recover that money.

3. Automatic overdraft protection

Some prepaid cards come with automatic overdraft protection or linked lines of credit. If the user overspends, the card will still work but you pay major fees for the “benefit” of being allowed to overdraft the account. And with an automatic linked line of credit, you may run up unpaid balances without having intended to ever go above your limit—the kind of problem you can run into with a credit card. Look for one that doesn’t have automatic overdraft protection or lets you cancel it.

4. Binding arbitration

It’s common for prepaid debit cards to require users to submit to binding arbitration in cases where charges are disputed. This means you give up many of your legal rights.

These clauses “prevent cardholders from challenging unfair and deceptive practices or other legal violations in court, impairing individual rights and potentially allowing abuses to spread without legal or public scrutiny,” the Pew Charitable Trusts have warned.

5. Lack of insurance

Nearly all checking accounts at banks are federally insured. This protects your money in accounts of $250,000 or less if the financial institution ever fails. Prepaid cards generally don’t have such protections. If the prepaid card’s issuer goes bankrupt, you may be out of luck.

The consumer bureau’s rules deal with many of these issues, and others as well. But keep in mind that until they take effect, you may be paying too much and are at risk of losing your money by loading it onto a prepaid debit card.

---

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The post 5 Hidden Hazards of Using a Reloadable Debit Card appeared first on NerdWallet Credit Card Blog.

Source Article :http://bit.ly/1vi1MPy

Read More

5 Hidden Hazards of Using a Reloadable Debit Card

General-purpose reloadable debit cards have some advantages over traditional checking accounts or even credit cards. No bank account is required, plus there’s no risk of overdraft fees or racking up credit card debt.

But some prepaid debit cards that let you add money to them impose hefty charges and have features that can make them a dangerous alternative to other types of accounts.

Recently, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau proposed new rules that could make prepaid cards safer and more user-friendly. A major change would include new protections for lost cards and fraudulent transactions, which have been unavailable for this type of plastic. The proposal would also limit fees (particularly “overdraft protection” charges for the type that let you spend more money than the card holds) and easier access to account statements.

While it could be several months before these proposed protections kick in—or longer, if they’re challenged—they should be welcomed by the rising number of people using prepaid debit cards. In 2003, consumers loaded $1 billion onto general-purpose reloadable cards; by 2012, that figure had ballooned to almost $65 billion and is still growing, according to the consumer bureau. Many people use the cards as alternatives to checking accounts.

“Prepaid card users are disproportionately unbanked and under-banked households,” Richard Cordray, the agency’s director, said in introducing its proposed regulations. “Many of these prepaid consumers are living paycheck to paycheck, and are engaged in a constant battle to make ends meet. They are some of the most economically vulnerable among us, and most of them have no idea that the prepaid cards they choose to purchase are largely unregulated at the federal level and carry few if any protections.”

Until the proposed changes come into play, watch out for these common pitfalls of using a reloadable prepaid debit card:

1. Fees, fees and more fees

Prepaid debit cards work very differently than those tied to a bank account. The reloadable type let you or a third party add funds. Some card issuers take advantage of this characteristic by charging a fee each time you load money on it.

Some issuers tack on additional fees, nickel-and-diming you when you activate your card, check its balance and withdraw cash. Monthly fees are also common. Before you select a card, take a close look at the fees. That isn’t always easy, and one of the proposed rules is designed to require better fee disclosure by card issuers.

2. No loss or theft protection

Credit cards and bank debit cards must limit liability for cardholders if the account is used for fraudulent purchases. This means if someone steals your card and uses it without your knowledge, you will likely owe little, if anything.

Some prepaid cards offer protection against unauthorized transactions, but according to the consumer agency, not all do. So for now, at least, if your prepaid card is stolen and used, it’s unlikely the card issuer will help you recover that money.

3. Automatic overdraft protection

Some prepaid cards come with automatic overdraft protection or linked lines of credit. If the user overspends, the card will still work but you pay major fees for the “benefit” of being allowed to overdraft the account. And with an automatic linked line of credit, you may run up unpaid balances without having intended to ever go above your limit—the kind of problem you can run into with a credit card. Look for one that doesn’t have automatic overdraft protection or lets you cancel it.

4. Binding arbitration

It’s common for prepaid debit cards to require users to submit to binding arbitration in cases where charges are disputed. This means you give up many of your legal rights.

These clauses “prevent cardholders from challenging unfair and deceptive practices or other legal violations in court, impairing individual rights and potentially allowing abuses to spread without legal or public scrutiny,” the Pew Charitable Trusts have warned.

5. Lack of insurance

Nearly all checking accounts at banks are federally insured. This protects your money in accounts of $250,000 or less if the financial institution ever fails. Prepaid cards generally don’t have such protections. If the prepaid card’s issuer goes bankrupt, you may be out of luck.

The consumer bureau’s rules deal with many of these issues, and others as well. But keep in mind that until they take effect, you may be paying too much and are at risk of losing your money by loading it onto a prepaid debit card.

---

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The post 5 Hidden Hazards of Using a Reloadable Debit Card appeared first on NerdWallet Credit Card Blog.

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Financial Reality Fairs Give Teens a Taste of Making Ends Meet

High school students are getting a financial reality check.

A recent wave of credit union-hosted fairs are popping up in gyms across the country to teach teenagers about budgeting, handling a checking account and the value of a dollar. At these events, students take on roles designed to simulate what it’s like to live within your means and make money decisions.

Often called reality fairs, they’re typically put on for specific schools, but some are open to the general public. Credit unions organize the events individually or through larger programs such as the Credit Union National Association’s Mad City Money, America’s Credit Union Museum’s CU 4 Reality and Connecticut Financial Reality Fairs. Each organization runs the events its own way, but the overall goals are similar: teach kids financial literacy.

Learning by doing

In Connecticut, students start the day at the fair by getting a random credit score, a credit card with a balance and spending limit, a checking account and a budget with taxes and student loan payments deducted. Each has chosen a career ahead of time and gets a realistic salary to match.

Across the country at Redwood Credit Union’s “Bite of Reality” fairs in California wine country, students take on personas such as being a police officer who takes home $2,358 a month and is married to a landscaper bringing in $2,100. The couple has a 4-year-old named Juan. The officer has $2,109 in credit card debt, owes $100 a month on student loans and pays $100 a month for a family medical insurance policy.

Students spend two hours visiting various booths to spend their income on necessities like housing, food, transportation, clothing and more. Some optional stations, such as the pet and shopping booths, are designed to tempt them with items they might buy on impulse.

Five TVs

One Connecticut teen bought five big-screen televisions, including one for each of the four bedrooms in his fictional house, says Fred Brown, a financial reality fair organizer and the president of the Hartford chapter of the Credit Union League of Connecticut.

After spending their fantasy income, students try to balance their household budgets. Then they review their experience with a financial counselor. After a fair concludes, Brown says he hears these common reactions from students: “I can’t believe it costs this much,” and, “I didn’t know insurance was that expensive.”

At Bite of Reality fairs in California, teens can backtrack and correct purchasing mistakes, such as laying out big amounts for a five-bedroom mansion, a sports car or a trip to London, after consulting the credit union booth for advice.

“In the real world, you don’t just get to return your house, but here they do,” says Lee Alderman, the assistant vice president of training and financial literacy at Santa Rosa-based Redwood Credit Union. “It’s a conversation. It’s not us lecturing them.”

Building financial literacy

About 39% of U.S. adults say they budget and keep track of their spending, according to the 2014 Consumer Financial Literacy survey. The fairs are part of a larger attempt by credit unions to boost that number by teaching kids basic financial literacy. The participants don’t always get that education at school or at home.

A third of parents would rather talk to their kids about smoking, drugs and bullying before money, and only 17 states, including Texas, Florida and New Jersey, require personal finance classes in high school, according to a 2014 Council for Economic Education survey.

“I don’t think many students get this type of reality check,” says Anthy O’Brien, a Bite of Reality volunteer at San Marin High School in Novato, California. “I wish my kids could have had it. It would have sparked questions.”

At least 1,050 financial reality fairs have been held nationwide with about 104,000 participants since 2010, the National Credit Union Foundation estimates. The group is working to make the fairs more widely available.

“Hopefully any kid in high school can have an opportunity to go to a reality fair and get this experiential learning about what it costs to be an adult and what it costs once you get out of school,” says Gigi Hyland, the foundation’s executive director.

---

Stretching a dollar illustration via Shutterstock.

The post Financial Reality Fairs Give Teens a Taste of Making Ends Meet appeared first on NerdWallet Credit Card Blog.

Source Article :http://bit.ly/1zRIVf3

Read More

Financial Reality Fairs Give Teens a Taste of Making Ends Meet

High school students are getting a financial reality check.

A recent wave of credit union-hosted fairs are popping up in gyms across the country to teach teenagers about budgeting, handling a checking account and the value of a dollar. At these events, students take on roles designed to simulate what it’s like to live within your means and make money decisions.

Often called reality fairs, they’re typically put on for specific schools, but some are open to the general public. Credit unions organize the events individually or through larger programs such as the Credit Union National Association’s Mad City Money, America’s Credit Union Museum’s CU 4 Reality and Connecticut Financial Reality Fairs. Each organization runs the events its own way, but the overall goals are similar: teach kids financial literacy.

Learning by doing

In Connecticut, students start the day at the fair by getting a random credit score, a credit card with a balance and spending limit, a checking account and a budget with taxes and student loan payments deducted. Each has chosen a career ahead of time and gets a realistic salary to match.

Across the country at Redwood Credit Union’s “Bite of Reality” fairs in California wine country, students take on personas such as being a police officer who takes home $2,358 a month and is married to a landscaper bringing in $2,100. The couple has a 4-year-old named Juan. The officer has $2,109 in credit card debt, owes $100 a month on student loans and pays $100 a month for a family medical insurance policy.

Students spend two hours visiting various booths to spend their income on necessities like housing, food, transportation, clothing and more. Some optional stations, such as the pet and shopping booths, are designed to tempt them with items they might buy on impulse.

Five TVs

One Connecticut teen bought five big-screen televisions, including one for each of the four bedrooms in his fictional house, says Fred Brown, a financial reality fair organizer and the president of the Hartford chapter of the Credit Union League of Connecticut.

After spending their fantasy income, students try to balance their household budgets. Then they review their experience with a financial counselor. After a fair concludes, Brown says he hears these common reactions from students: “I can’t believe it costs this much,” and, “I didn’t know insurance was that expensive.”

At Bite of Reality fairs in California, teens can backtrack and correct purchasing mistakes, such as laying out big amounts for a five-bedroom mansion, a sports car or a trip to London, after consulting the credit union booth for advice.

“In the real world, you don’t just get to return your house, but here they do,” says Lee Alderman, the assistant vice president of training and financial literacy at Santa Rosa-based Redwood Credit Union. “It’s a conversation. It’s not us lecturing them.”

Building financial literacy

About 39% of U.S. adults say they budget and keep track of their spending, according to the 2014 Consumer Financial Literacy survey. The fairs are part of a larger attempt by credit unions to boost that number by teaching kids basic financial literacy. The participants don’t always get that education at school or at home.

A third of parents would rather talk to their kids about smoking, drugs and bullying before money, and only 17 states, including Texas, Florida and New Jersey, require personal finance classes in high school, according to a 2014 Council for Economic Education survey.

“I don’t think many students get this type of reality check,” says Anthy O’Brien, a Bite of Reality volunteer at San Marin High School in Novato, California. “I wish my kids could have had it. It would have sparked questions.”

At least 1,050 financial reality fairs have been held nationwide with about 104,000 participants since 2010, the National Credit Union Foundation estimates. The group is working to make the fairs more widely available.

“Hopefully any kid in high school can have an opportunity to go to a reality fair and get this experiential learning about what it costs to be an adult and what it costs once you get out of school,” says Gigi Hyland, the foundation’s executive director.

---

Stretching a dollar illustration via Shutterstock.

The post Financial Reality Fairs Give Teens a Taste of Making Ends Meet appeared first on NerdWallet Credit Card Blog.

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Prepaid Debit Cards May Face New Consumer Bureau Rules

If you use a prepaid debit card, here’s a heads up: Your plastic may soon come under new rules from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which is expected to release its proposal Nov. 13, according to recent reports.

Regulations may affect overdrafts and require clearer disclosures from card issuers regarding what their products cost you to use, according to reports from Bloomberg News and the Wall Street Journal. Consumer use of prepaid debit cards that can be reloaded with funds has ballooned from virtually zero to 7.5% of all payments in the U.S. in 2012, according to Moebs Services, a researcher in Lake Bluff, Illinois. Reloadable cards are particularly popular with younger Americans, studies show.

The consumer bureau said the number of prepaid cards in use doubled to more than 7 million this year from 3.4 million in 2009, just counting those handled by the two largest program managers. The agency tipped its hand in May with an announcement that it would take a close look at fees, terms and the security provided for users’ funds on prepaid cards. It cited concerns about the fees charged by the “largely unregulated” industry and the consumers it serves.

“The people who use prepaid cards are, in many instances, the most vulnerable among us,” said Richard Cordray, the bureau’s director, in the May announcement. “All consumers need, and deserve, products which are safe and whose costs and risks are clear upfront. Yet right now prepaid cards have far fewer regulatory protections than bank accounts or debit or credit cards.”

Expected rules

Among the proposals expected from the agency are a disclosure format designed to make it easier for you to compare charges and services offered by different card issuers, the Journal said in a Nov. 11 report. It said the rules would also deter overdrafting, though it didn’t say how that might be accomplished, as it noted the bureau lacks the authority to cap fees.

To control overdraft costs, the regulator plans to apply a 2009 credit card reform law to the prepaid industry’s products, Bloomberg News said in October. It said only a few issuers permit overdrafting with their cards. The news service also said the proposals wouldn’t include limits on transaction fees.

In May, the agency listed standardized disclosure that would make it easier to compare different cards’ costs and services among the areas it planned to evaluate. It also cited the way issuers let you know whether your funds are insured against losses, your liability for unauthorized charges and overdraft policies.

Debit card image via Shutterstock

The post Prepaid Debit Cards May Face New Consumer Bureau Rules appeared first on NerdWallet Credit Card Blog.

Source Article :http://bit.ly/1ExYcBF

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Prepaid Debit Cards May Face New Consumer Bureau Rules

If you use a prepaid debit card, here’s a heads up: Your plastic may soon come under new rules from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which is expected to release its proposal Nov. 13, according to recent reports.

Regulations may affect overdrafts and require clearer disclosures from card issuers regarding what their products cost you to use, according to reports from Bloomberg News and the Wall Street Journal. Consumer use of prepaid debit cards that can be reloaded with funds has ballooned from virtually zero to 7.5% of all payments in the U.S. in 2012, according to Moebs Services, a researcher in Lake Bluff, Illinois. Reloadable cards are particularly popular with younger Americans, studies show.

The consumer bureau said the number of prepaid cards in use doubled to more than 7 million this year from 3.4 million in 2009, just counting those handled by the two largest program managers. The agency tipped its hand in May with an announcement that it would take a close look at fees, terms and the security provided for users’ funds on prepaid cards. It cited concerns about the fees charged by the “largely unregulated” industry and the consumers it serves.

“The people who use prepaid cards are, in many instances, the most vulnerable among us,” said Richard Cordray, the bureau’s director, in the May announcement. “All consumers need, and deserve, products which are safe and whose costs and risks are clear upfront. Yet right now prepaid cards have far fewer regulatory protections than bank accounts or debit or credit cards.”

Expected rules

Among the proposals expected from the agency are a disclosure format designed to make it easier for you to compare charges and services offered by different card issuers, the Journal said in a Nov. 11 report. It said the rules would also deter overdrafting, though it didn’t say how that might be accomplished, as it noted the bureau lacks the authority to cap fees.

To control overdraft costs, the regulator plans to apply a 2009 credit card reform law to the prepaid industry’s products, Bloomberg News said in October. It said only a few issuers permit overdrafting with their cards. The news service also said the proposals wouldn’t include limits on transaction fees.

In May, the agency listed standardized disclosure that would make it easier to compare different cards’ costs and services among the areas it planned to evaluate. It also cited the way issuers let you know whether your funds are insured against losses, your liability for unauthorized charges and overdraft policies.

Debit card image via Shutterstock

The post Prepaid Debit Cards May Face New Consumer Bureau Rules appeared first on NerdWallet Credit Card Blog.

Source Article http://ift.tt/1y39EC7

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