Blog

Consumers may now be feeling better about their financial standing and feel they're in a improved position to once again handle credit card debt, because the number of transactions on their cards are increasing significantly.

Both Visa and MasterCard, the world's two largest processors of credit and debit card transactions, announced that they've seen the number and value of credit purchases rising recently, according to a report from Dow Jones Newswires. For Visa's part, it saw the total number of U.S. credit and debit transactions it processed in February rise 6 percent on a year-over-year basis, with credit purchases rising 11 percent and debit transactions climbing 4 percent.

And during the first two months of the year, MasterCard has seen even more significant increases in card use, the report said. The world's second-biggest payment processor saw U.S. transaction volumes increase 26 percent overall in January and February, while the value of those purchases climbed 14 percent.

Rising credit card purchase values may make it more difficult for consumers to reduce debt down the road, but with the economic recovery fully under way, many may feel more capable of handling those concerns.

While consumers' attitudes toward borrowing changed drastically during the recession, many have begun to feel more comfortable with credit card debt as economic conditions improve nationwide.

As a consequence of those two factors, lenders are now extending more lines of credit to borrowers, but are reserving their best offers to those whose credit scores are around 740 or higher, according to a report from Jacksonville, Florida, television station WJXT. In many cases these days, borrowers with top-notch scores may be able to receive credit cards with interest rates in the single digits, more generous balance transfer offers, or more beneficial rewards programs.

"Credit card issuers have come out of their shell," Greg McBride of Bankrate told the news station. "They're now back on offense, they are trying to grow their businesses but they're trying to do so primarily through top credit quality consumers."

But at the same time, because competition for top borrowers is so fierce, some lenders are also extending more offers to borrowers with rockier histories as well, the report said.

Lower interest rates can help consumers to more quickly reduce debt and have a little more certainty with their finances going forward.

Americans made significant efforts to reduce debt on their credit card accounts during the month of January, reversing several months of increases in the amount of credit card debt they carried.

During the month of January, the amount of debt carried on consumers' credit cards slipped 4.4 percent to a nationwide total of $800.9 billion, down from December's $803.8 billion, according to the latest statistics on consumer credit released by the Federal Reserve Board. In November, the amount borrowed on consumers' cards increased 9.9 percent, followed by another 5.5 percent increase before the end of 2011.

But even as consumers continued to trim the amount they owed on their credit cards, they also significantly increased borrowing in other areas, the report said. Nonrevolving credit – installment loans like those for education or auto purchases, but not including mortgages – rose 14.7 percent to more than $1.71 billion.

Experts had noted that the increases in credit card debt seen in the last few months, while sizable, may have been the result of seasonal shifts in borrowing for the holidays, which are usually seen every year.

Consumers who are wary of the high cost of dealing with credit card debt and had worked hard to chisel down their balances may be excited to learn that lenders are once again offering more affordable accounts.

Though the hottest competition among the nation's top credit card lenders remains for those who have the best possible credit scores, consumers with more modest incomes and credit ratings may soon find that the offers they receive for less expensive accounts are increasing, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal. These days, lenders are once again seeing the value in marketing low-rate cards to consumers of more modest means who previously had worked to reduce debt and get their finances under control.

The type of cards now being offered to these borrowers typically comes with low interest rates and almost no fees, but also no rewards or other perks, the report said.

In previous months, most credit card marketing was geared toward those who have higher credit ratings, for accounts that have top-notch rewards programs attached.

Protections added for consumers as it relates to their financial accounts have generally led to Americans having better control over their credit card debt and, perhaps as a consequence, filing fewer complaints about their cards.

Data from the Better Business Bureau reveals that the number of complaints lodged over consumer credit card accounts slipped 28 percent in 2011 when compared with the previous year, according to a report from Reuters. Many experts attribute this shift in consumer sentiment to disclosures related to credit card accounts mandated by the federal Dodd-Frank Act, which passed in 2010.

Similar disclosures enforced for other products offered by financial institutions may have led to similar drops in complaints against banks, the report said. In all, those grievances dropped by about one-third in 2011.

Credit card disclosures are viewed as being helpful for consumers because they give a better idea of what the cardholder will have to do to find the kind of debt relief they're looking for, often by spelling out details related to how long it will take to pay off a certain amount of debt.

Consumers who want to have a more convenient way to make payments and even keep better tabs on their credit card debt may soon have a number of options available to them.

As more companies enter the mobile credit card payment system industry, the quality, convenience and ubiquity of these systems is likely to improve considerably, and fortunately for all involved, there is a considerable amount of interest in pushing this new payment method, according to a report from USA Today. Businesses from mobile phone service providers to payment processing giants to smaller startups are jumping into the game, but experts say that they have to do all they can to make adoption as easy as possible right off the bat.

Experts have viewed adoption as the largest hurdle mobile payments will have to clear in the early stages of being widely available, and companies are working to incentivize use, the report said. Some may even make it easier to manage accounts and work toward debt relief by offering in-depth looks at account use through these systems.

Companies also have an incentive for getting involved in the industry, as it is expected to grow to an annual value of $44 billion by 2015.

Consumers are growing more comfortable in dealing with credit card debt these days, and demand for new lines of credit of all kinds has grown substantially.

In the second half of 2011, the number of inquiries for credit accounts, which are viewed as a reasonable gauge for consumer credit demand, increased 2.7 percent, according to new data in the Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit released by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. In addition, the average credit limits consumers could carry rose $98 billion nationwide, a 3.6 percent increase over available maximums at the end of the third quarter, as the number of open credit card accounts jumped 3 million to a total of 386 million.

Meanwhile, consumers continued to be more conscientious in their efforts to pay down existing debts on time, the report said. Overall, household debt delinquency fell in the fourth quarter, but still accounted for 9.8 percent of all balances outstanding.

During the recession, consumers who were anxious to find some amount of debt relief shied away from using their credit cards and were more committed to reducing their balances, increasing the value of their monthly contributions.

As many consumers continue to grapple with credit card debt, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is trying to add more ways for Americans to better understand the situation they face when seeking debt relief.

One of those protections seems to be having a positive effect on some of the nation's most troubled borrowers, according to a new study from the Harvard Business School. The disclosure boxes that are required on every credit card bill these days, which spell out how much consumers can save over a period of a few years by increasing the value of their payments above the minimum, seem to entice borrowers to pay more than they have to.

Those who tend to increase the value of their payments are also those who have the largest balances, lowest credit scores and have a history of paying off their debt more slowly, the report said.

The CFPB has had full regulatory power since July 2011 and has worked to improve protections for all types of consumer financial products, including credit cards, mortgages and other lines of credit.