1st Unsecured Credit Cards FAQ's

Who is responsible for your credit card debt after your death?

1st Credit Card Issuers
Several possibilities
Your estate, your spouse, a cosigner.

Spouse or estate
If the spouse is still alive, he or she is still on the hook; otherwise, the estate must pay off the creditors.

Estate
The credit card company will first try to collect from the estate (assets will be sold to pay the bills). Then, if the account was a joint account, any survivors will be left holding the bag. If the debt belonged solely to the deceased, then the credit card company will end up eating the debt if there aren't enough assets to cover it.

Credit counselor agrees
I can confirm that the answer above is correct. I am a certified credit counselor and it is true that the credit card companies will try to collect from the estate first and if there is a co-signer, they will be responsible for the debt. However, if there is no estate to collect from the credit cards can not pursue collections from the family. They may try to get the family to pay the debt, but can not legally force them to. Simply mail a copy of the death certificate to the credit card company (certified mail) and they should take care of the rest.

Inheritance laws vary
Inheritance laws vary by state. If the state you live in (or the deceased lived in invokes "community family property" laws or "joint and several" provisions, heirs to an estate may be deemed responsible for the debts of a deceased person.

In most cases this has nothing to do with being a relative and everything to do with being an heir. The rationale is that anyone staking claim to the assets of an estate, should also be willing to accept its liabilities.

It depends
That would depend on if the person is the only account holder or if the person is married and lives in a community property state. When a person dies and is the only account holder, the person's debts and assets are generally handled by the state probate court. State laws govern what property is exempted from probate procedure and what is exempt. If the deceased was married and lived in a community property state, the surviving spouse is usually responsible for most debts regardless of who held the account. CLICK HERE - 1st Credit Card Issuers

How should you choose a student credit card?

Get a Student Credit Card
If your student credit card uses different rates for purchases, transfers, and cash advances, realize that the credit card company may pay the lower interest rate balance first. Consequently, if you carry a balance, your high-rate cash advance may not be "paid" until all lower-rate balances are paid in full.

Fixed-rate student credit cards are not fixed forever. Rates can be changed at any time, as long as the card issuer provides 15 days advance notice of the change in terms. Fees may also increase. These "Change in Terms" notices are usually included with your monthly statement.

Your interest rate may dramatically increase if you make late payments. For example, some issuers will raise your interest rate to the maximum after one or two late payments. Consequently, your 12% student credit card could quickly turn into a 25% credit card.

Your credit card issuer may also raise your interest rate after conducting a routine credit report review. If your overall credit history has deteriorated, the issuer may raise your interest rate, even though you've never made a late payment on the card in question.

The 25 day grace period only applies when you pay-off your entire balance due each month. If you only pay the minimum payment, interest is immediately accrued from the moment you charge something to your credit card. Some companies are also shortening the grace period to 20 days, and some student cards have no grace periods.

Ignore offers to reduce or skip payments. These options are frequently offered over the holidays. When you skip a payment, the loan continues to accrue interest; therefore, these offers simply increase the overall interest and finance charges that the creditor collects. On a similar note, beware of offers of no payment/no interest for a period of time. Furniture stores, jewelry stores, and electronics stores frequently offer these programs. For example, "no payment/no interest for 12 months!" This can be a good offer, but once again, read the fine print. Make sure you know the details of the program. Generally, you need to pay off the entire balance before the end of the "free" period to receive the benefit. Otherwise, you will probably have to pay interest on the entire balance from the date of your purchase.

CLICK HERE - To get a Student Credit Card

Where can you get a credit card comparison?

Get a Credit Card
Many Web sites purport to offer unbiased credit card comparisons, but actually just link to credit card applications that pay them commissions. Their information may be perfectly valid, but if you want the closest thing to a truly unbiased comparison, see the U.S. Federal Reserve System's credit card comparison chart.

The comparison is a survey of the terms of the largest credit card issuers in the country as well as plans offered by smaller financial institutions. It is published as an Adobe Acrobat PDF file and updated every six months.

Below is a list of the sort of information it includes. (For more on choosing a credit card, click here.)

Refers to availability to consumers.

Fixed, Variable, or Tiered, with different periodic rates for different levels of outstanding balance. Rate shown applies to the lowest of the balance tiers.

The interest rate on variable-rate plans is based on an index, such as Prime rate, One-month Treasury bill rate, Three-month Treasury bill rate, Federal Reserve discount rate, etc.

Credit card issuers may add enhancements or other features to the plan without charging extra fees. These enhancements may include cash rebates, purchase protections, warranty guarantees, travel accident or automobile rental insurance, discounts on goods and services, and incentives for use such as frequent flyer miles.

CLICK HERE - To get a Credit Card

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