Save and Conserve

Saving money is like so 1982. Why save when I still have over $1000 available credit on all of my cards? It doesn't like make sense to not buy stuff or travel to like see friends just for trying to save some spare money. I just transfer my balances around to whoever offers the lowest rate. It's all good ...

Is it now?

• In 2006, the [credit card] industry mailed out nearly 8 billion credit card offers, up from 3.5 billion in 2000.
• Credit card debt, less than $8 billion in 1968 (in current dollars), now exceeds $880 billion, more than tripling since 1988, adjusting for inflation, according to the Federal Reserve Bank.
• Penalty fees alone cost consumers $17.1 billion in 2006 — up from $12.8 billion in 2003, adjusted for inflation, according to R. K. Hammer, a bank card advisory firm.
• At the same time, as banks have moved from fixed interest rates to variable rates, the ability of borrowers like the Moellerings to move balances from one card to another, or from credit cards to lower-interest home equity loans, can have as much impact on their finances as whether they get a raise or trim household expenses, said Greg McBride, senior financial analyst at Bankrate.com.
• But the array of loans has become so complicated that many consumers fail to understand the different interest rates, financing charges and penalties they now face, Ms. Perry said.