"Good" Credit Card Holders – They’re Headed for You Next…

First, they came for the late-payers, but you always paid on time and had nothing to worry about. Well, time to start worrying:

Credit cards have long been a very good deal for people who pay their bills on time and in full. Even as card companies imposed punitive fees and penalties on those late with their payments, the best customers racked up cash-back rewards, frequent-flier miles and other perks in recent years.

Now Congress is moving to limit the penalties on riskier borrowers, who have become a prime source of billions of dollars in fee revenue for the industry. And to make up for lost income, the card companies are going after those people with sterling credit.

Banks are expected to look at reviving annual fees, curtailing cash-back and other rewards programs and charging interest immediately on a purchase instead of allowing a grace period of weeks, according to bank officials and trade groups.

Emphasis mine. If companies are moving to implement the above as policy, then you’d best be careful if you own a credit card and call yourself a “responsible user,” because soon it won’t matter. Can you imagine being charged 9-15% interest on a credit card even if you immediately go home and pay off your balance? Once these regulations are signed into law, that may become a reality. At the least, an annual fee will probably be levied if you don't pay one already.

You can find a more extensive list of the coming changes to the credit card companies here. Don't get me wrong, some of the changes I think are very good, like banning credit cards for those under 18 (unless parents supplement their income) and limiting credit cards to 1 per college student (more allowed if credit amount doesn't exceed 30% of college income). These are common-sense measures. Just be aware that the Credit Card Mafia Industry will still work to retain profits, even if it means going after the balance-paid-off-every-month crowd.

People tell me all the time that the reason they own a credit card is so that they can take advantage of the frequent flyer miles and rewards programs. With things like instant interest, those days may soon be coming to an end.