Learn About the Changes to Your Credit Card Statement

Back in March I received a wonderful email from Nicolle Matthews, who works with the personal finance blog FiveCentNickel (http://www.fivecentnickel.com/). She had asked me if I would be interested in sharing some of the articles of FiveCentNickle with my readers. I said, "Sure, the more people working together the better." It has taken some time due to both of our busy schedules, but this is an article that I thought was worth sharing not only on my blog,but also with my newsletter readers. As you read about the changes to your statement, you can move your cursor over the numbers and they will tell you what the various sections mean. However, if I messed up the code and the cursor doesn't bring up the window to explain the statement. Please visit the site that has this interactive feature:

http://www.fivecentnickel.com/infographic-credit-card-statement-changes/

Thank you, Nicole for your assistance and advice to folks working on stabilizing their personal finances! Here is what she has to say about the new credit card statements.

Wishing you abundance,

Janine

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In December 2008 the Federal Reserve approved rules to better protect credit card users, including improvements to monthly credit card statements so that cardholders could more easily understand payments and interest rates charged. As of July 1, 2010, the issuers are now required to tell cardholders how long it will take to pay off the balance if they pay only the minimum payment and how much total interest they will pay in that time. This information might shock consumers into paying off their balance as fast as possible.

Below is a sample statement, from the Federal Reserve, that explains the changes. Mouse over the number and read the details on each part of the statement.