URL: http://credit.about.com/cs/frugality/a/042104.htm
<h>What Will Your New Year's Resolutions Be?

<p>About 100 Million American's make New Year's resolutions each year;
   37% of those people will have broken their resolution within the first
   2 months of the new year. The more thought you put into your
   resolutions, and the more confident you are that you can stick to your
   resolution, the more likely you are to keep your resolution throughout
   the coming year.

<p>Check as many boxes as are applicable, and feel free to add your
   comments about your resolutions, and how you intend to keep them.

<h>Merry Christmas

<p>Merry Christmas to those of you and your families who celebrate this
   holiday.

<h>Avoiding Scams

<p>A poster on the forum recently warned of an advance fee loan scam to
   which she had fallen victim.

<p>Scams abound, and if you're going to be working to eliminate debt
   and/or repair your credit next year, you'll need to be aware of how to
   avoid being scammed. Be suspicious of any offer that asks you to pay
   money up front, guarantees results that seem too good to be true, or
   just sets off your personal warning system.
    <l>Debt Elimination Scams
    <l>Secured Credit Card Scams
    <l>Credit Repair Scams

<h>Help Prevent Holiday Hangover By Lowering Your Credit Card Interest Rate

<p>With only a few more days left in the holiday shopping season, it's
   likely that your credit card is getting a work out. The average
   consumer will spend around $700 this year on gifts; by making only the
   minimum payment on that $700 at an interest rate of 18% you could take
   up to 118 months (that's nearly 10 years) to pay off the debt and pay
   an estimated $665 in interest.

<p>If you are unable to pay your balance in full, you can avoid holiday
   hangover and get your holiday bills paid off sooner by calling your
   credit card company and asking them to lower your credit card interest
   rate.

<h>Gift Cards May Not Be The Perfect Gift

<p>Gift cards can be a great gift for someone who is hard to buy for, or
   for whom shipping gifts is expensive or impractical. Unfortunately,
   gift cards aren't always the perfect gift as many come with fees and
   restrictions that make the gift a headache for the recipient.

<p>If you're shopping for a gift card this holiday season, make sure
   you're aware of any expiration dates, restrictions and fees that apply
   to the card you're planning to purchase.

<h>Do You Have a Serious Debt Problem?

<p>If you think you have a serious debt problem, you probably do. The
   following are some warning signs that your debt is out of control:
<l>Your monthly minimum credit card payments exceed 15-20% of your
       take home pay.
<l>You have several delinquent revolving accounts.
<l>You have maxed out all of your credit limits.
<l>You take cash advances to pay your credit card bills.

<h>Happy Chanukah

<p>Happy Chanukah to those who celebrate the festival of lights.

<h>Credit Card Payment Protection Insurance

<p>If you haven't gotten offers in the mail to sign up for "credit
   insurance"' or a "payment protection plan", you've probably been
   forced to listen to the pitch when you call to activate your new or
   replacement credit card.

<p>Payment protection plans are supposed to offer you peace of mind by
   making your credit card payments for you if you lose your job, are
   disabled, or are hospitalized due to a serious medical condition and
   can't make your minimum credit card payments. Sounds good, right?
   Wrong. Often these plans don't work the way you want them to, when you
   need them to, and the premium can result in a nearly 9% increase in
   your APR.

<h>$9 Fee Just for Paying Your Credit Card Bill Online?

<p>David Lazarus of the San Francisco Chronicle wrote about unexpected,
   and often outrageous, credit card practices.

<p>It makes sense to understand the terms and conditions to which you are
   agreeing before you apply for a credit card, and with whom the credit
   card company is affiliated.

<p>As always, you can opt out of prescreened credit offers.

<h>Gift Card Scams

<p>I was watching my local news last week, and one of the stories
   reported was about gift card scams that retailers are working to
   combat.

<p>You can avoid being scammed when buying gift cards by:
<l>Buy gift cards directly from the store or the retailer's secure
       website.
<l>Don't purchase the first card hanging on the rack; if possible,
       get one from a location that's inaccessible to the general public.
<l>Don't purchase a card that appears to have been tampered with, or
       has the PIN/password exposed.
<l>Ask the cashier to scan the card after you've purchased it to
       confirm the card's balance reflects the amount of money you asked
       to have loaded on the card.
<l>Keep your receipt as proof of the time, location and amount for
       which the gift card was purchased.
