Why You Never, Ever Want To Make a Late Credit Card Payment

Those Fees Add Up

First it's just one missed payment, then it's one or two more. You make just six late payments a year on all of your credit cards and it's going to cost you at least $150 - and that's assuming your late fee is just $25. If it's the $39 many credit card companies charge, that figure goes up to $234. That's a really, really nice dinner out or maybe the latest in electronic gadgetry.

It's Not Just The Fees

And it's not just the late fees you have to worry about when you make a late credit card payment. Most credit card agreements have this nasty little thing called a Universal Default agreement. Make a late payment to Card A and they're going to hike your interest from 12.99 to 29.99 percent. But that's not the worst of it. Cards B and C can do the same, even though the late payment wasn't made to them.

Not fair? Sorry kid. You agreed to those terms when you signed up for the cards and started using them. If you don't want Cards B and C to jack your interest rate up (and they can even though you've made payments on time to them every time for years) you have to pay Card A on time too.

So the next time you're thinking about letting your budget slide a bit and you're wondering if making a late credit card payment could really hurt, remember what we've talked about here. You could end up paying a heck of a lot more than that one-time fee the company will charge on your next statement. That late credit card payment could cost you hundreds in the long run - maybe even more.