Those of you who hold credit cards should be aware of a massive mailing done by CITI this week.
Many "no annual fee" accounts will be charged $60 annually effective 4/1/10. Not everyone is affected, but it is a sizable percentage of CITI customers.
You have two options to avoid the fee: Charge $2,400 on the card per year, and the fee will be refunded to you. Or, you can opt out of the card within the next six weeks and close the account.
Some of you may hold Bank of America's Total Rewards VISA with the intent of making infrequent small charges strictly to preserve the life of your Reward Credits. Bank of America has apparently followed CITI's lead and already sent a similar letter with the change in terms and conditions to selected customers.
I have not received the letter but personally hold 8 credit cards. Some have the sole purpose of preserving airline/hotel points from expiring. If confronted with the change in terms, I plan to consolidate where possible to achieve the $200/month average per retained card. For those cards no longer kept, I recommend instead using "partners", i.e. car rentals, FTD flowers, etc. occasionally to preserve your mileage/points from expiring.