The new Zync from American Express is the first credit card of it’s kind that let’s applicants choose a “lifestyle pack” that fits them and their purchase habits best. American Express lets you choose one of the following lifestyle packs:

Go Pack - Earn double points on eligible airline tickets and enjoy car rental discounts when you book through American Express Travel. Car rental discounts up to 25% are available from Avis, Budget and Hertz. All points are credited to your Membership Rewards points account and the annual cost is just $25.

Social Pack - Earn double points at qualified resturants and on qualified concert, movie and show tickets. Applicants will also be automatically enrolled to receive emails for advanced ticket access and other benefit information. All points are credited to your Membership Rewards points account and the annual cost is just $25.

Connect Pack - Earn double points on eligible cell phone, cable, broadband and internet services through qualified providers. Applicants who choose this pack will also be eligible to receive 25% discount on the number of Membership Rewards points require for redemption of cell phones and other electronic communication devices. All points are credited to your Membership Rewards points account and the annual cost is just $25.

Eco Pack - Earn double points on eligible purchases at select green merchants rated by Greenopia®. Greenopia selects and rates merchants based on their impact to the environment. Applicants who choose this pack will receive discounts of 25% when redeemed for qualified eco-friendly merchandise and carbon offsets. American Express will also donate $1 to TerraPass to fund reductions in carbon emissions at dairy farms and landfills. All points are credited to your Membership Rewards points account and there is no annual cost.

The Zync from American Express credit card has an annual fee of $25 and features all of the standard cardmembers benefits of an American Express card: Memberships Reward points on every purchase, car rental insurance and road side coverage, and purchase protection. Purchases made through the Bonus Points Mall earn triple points on every purchase with over 250 retailers and all balances must be paid in full each month.

It isn’t everyday that credit cards are chosen as ‘the best.’ The Blue Cash card from American Express knows just how this feels. It was recently chosen to round out Money Magazine’s ‘The best credit card for you’ list.

Only six credit cards made the list. Money Magazine spent a great deal of time researching millions of credit cards, only to choose six for its list. Blue Cash from American Express earned the number six slot and with good reason.

How many cash back credit cards are there out there? A lot, right? But, Money Magazine chose 1 cash back credit card as being the best…The Blue Cash card from American Express.

Whether you are a big spender or you pay for everything with plastic and pay it off monthly, the Blue Cash will help you get ahead of the game.

First of all, the interest rates for the Blue Cash card start at just 7.99%. The better your credit, the lower your interest rate. And, wouldn’t it be nice to be paying an interest rate as low as 7.99%?

The Blue Cash card comes with one spending tier. That tier is set at $6500. This means that before you spend $6500 in one year, you’ll earn a certain amount of cash back. After you hit that $6500 tier, you will earn a different and higher amount of cash back.

Before you spend $6500 in one year, you will earn 1% cash back on all of your purchases through certain categories. These categories include: supermarket purchases, drugstore purchases and gas station purchases. You will earn 0.5% cash back on any other purchase you make.

After you have spent $6500, you will earn 5% cash back at the supermarket, the gas station and the drugstore. 5%! That really gives you the opportunity to earn a lot of cash back. You’ll earn 1.5% cash back on all of your other purchases.

The Blue Cash from American Express is the best cash-back credit card on the market. It gives you the opportunity to earn more cash back than ever before. That’s why Money Magazine chose it as being the best of the best.

On Friday May 22nd 2009, President Barack Obama signed into law new legislation recently passed by Congress that will drastically alter the way credit card companies treat consumers. The bill is set to take effect in July of 2010 and contains many alterations to the current credit card industry. These changes include:

- New rules that will protect consumers with high amounts of debt
- Limitations to the charges that a credit card company can charge (including fees for paying a bill over the phone, over limit fees, etc)
- Tighter restrictions on rewards programs
- Additional annual fees, even for consumers with good/excellent credit
- Credit card holders must be more than 60 days past due on payments before the credit card company can increase the interest rate on the existing credit balance
- Credit card companies would be forced to lower the interest rate to the original interest rate if the consumer pays the minimum balance on time or early for six months
- Consumers who are under 21 years of age must be able to prove that they can repay the loan or have a cosigner that will be responsible for the debt if the minor defaults on the loan

The most significant change will prevent credit card companies from increasing interest rates “on the fly.” Rather, consumers must receive written notice regarding the interest rate increase at least 45 days prior to the actual increase. This portion of the bill is good news for consumers around the country and their strained finances.

Many consumer groups praise the recent credit card changes recently enacted by Congress and President Obama. The new credit card changes should help ease the financial burden placed on American credit card holders.

However, the bill does leave room for debate when it comes to how it will affect consumers with good or excellent credit. For instance, consumers who pay off the entire balance of their credit card each month may face “penalties” for doing so. Why? Banks and credit card companies will lose money by not being allowed to raise interest rates. Therefore, they must make up that money somehow. Plans are being discussed about how these companies will handle the restrictions. Credit card holders who pay off their balance entirely every month may be forced to pay annual fees or have tighter restrictions placed on their rewards programs.

Credit, in general, will also become harder to obtain as banks and credit card companies will be forced into spreading risk around into all credit classes and not just those with lower credit.

What do you think? Please submit your comments and feedback.

With almost every credit card out there, not making your payment on time or exceeding your credit limit, you can be sure of an interest rate increase, fees or combination of both. But, what does your credit card do for you when you make your payments on time or do not exceed your credit limit? Enter the Forward credit cards from Citi - the only card that rewards cardholders for responsible use and good behavior. Separate credit cards are available for personal use and college students.

For consumers, the Citi Forward(SM) Card rewards you when you make three payments on time and stay below your credit limit. Your reward comes in the form of an APR reduction up to 2% on purchases. However, a reduced APR won’t be your only reward for your good behavior. How about earning ThankYou points on every purchase you make? Earn 6,000 points after $50 in purchases, 5,000 points when you sign up for paperless statements and five points for every $1 on dining, books, movies and music.

The Citi Forward(SM) Card for College Students offers the same rewards for college students too. Students using the card responsibly will save money and work towards establishing a good credit history. Cardholders can use their ThankYou points for almost any type of reward.

Both cards offer new applicants a 0% APR for six months on purchases and balances transfers. Please see the issuer’s website to read the full terms and conditions or to apply online.

Consumers around the country have found themselves strapped for cash these days. The credit crisis hasn’t made it much easier, until now.

New regulations are going to be presented by the federal government in the upcoming weeks. These regulations will restrict any and all credit card practices that are seen as unfair or deceptive. Credit card regulation proposals have included a number of different restrictions. These restrictions include prohibiting:

• - Increasing interest rates on an outstanding balance (except under limited circumstances)
• - Applying payments to the minimum payment to maximize interest charges
• - Requiring a reasonable amount of time for consumers to make payments

Consumers have played a big part in getting the feds to listen. Thousands and thousands of comments have been posted on the Federal Reserve’s website. These consumers have begged and begged the government to place tighter restrictions on credit card practices.

The credit card industry, as a whole, is extremely skeptical about the new regulations. It is concerned that each regulation will prohibit its ability to manage risk. This could cause credit card companies to be forced to raise interest rates and decrease the amount of available credit. Meredith Whitney, a well-known credit analyst recently predicted that the rules would decrease credit lines to 40 percent.

She said, “With so many Americans relying on their credit cards as a major source of liquidity, it would be equivalent to a major pay cut.”

The major problem right now is that the rules and regulations have not been finalized. However, the industry predicts that the Federal government will act aggressively.

Ken Clayton, the managing director of the American Bankers Association’s card policy council, said, “What you’re going to see is an unprecedented change in the way consumers deal with their card companies. In light on the current economic uncertainties, it’s important that all of us understand the full impact of these regulations on consumers and the economy before we can understand [whether they are] successful.”

Credit card companies have protested several of the possible regulations. For instance, credit card issuers do not agree that there should be regulations put in place that would prohibit increasing the interest rate on outstanding balances. Past proposals would allow exceptions to the rule (namely, when a minimum payment is not received until 30 days past the due date. However, the industry argues that 30-days for a delinquency is already too long.

The fact of the matter is that nothing is certain yet. The Feds are feverishly working on the regulations and should be releasing those regulations soon. As a consumer, you can sit back and take a deep breath knowing that your end of the bargain is about to be loosened.