Looking For The Best Credit Card Rates? Avoid Major Banks. Here’s Why …

Do you know which types of banks offer the most favorable bank rates? Are you aware that these types of banks won’t even come and seek you?

If you are looking for the best credit card rates, here’s one sexy money tip for you.

Avoid the Bank of Americas or the Citibanks of the world. These banks won’t give you the best rates.

The most favorable credit card rates that you will find are the ones offered by mid-size regional banks.

Aside from offering low annual percentage rates (APRs), these regional banks also have fewer fees.

Pair up low APRs with fewer or lower fees, you can definitely score major savings in the long-run.

Even the overall customer satisfaction ratings of regional banks have been found to be much higher for regional bank card issuers compared to national issuers.

When it comes to rewards programs, some of these regional banks also offer some competitive options.

So you may ask: “What if I don’t live in the same state as the bank? Can I still apply for a card?”

The answer …

It may vary depending on the bank.

In most cases, any person with a decent credit rating or history may apply for a card from any of these regional banks even if your live out-of-state.

Some banks may have geographic limitations but a lot of them accept applicants from out of state. All you have to do is find out and ask.

These banks won’t come out and seek you. These banks want you to seek them out.

That’s the catch but the long-term benefits in terms of interest savings is well worth the effort.

So how do you find these gems?

Start by doing some searches for local or regional banks near you. If their rates are quite high, then check on banks in states that have tighter lending laws.

Now if you are the type of person who pays off all of your credit card balances each and every month to avoid any interest charges, then …

… a credit card’s interest rate would not be as important as its annual fees, right?

Did you also know that smaller banks are less likely to charge an annual fee compared to major banks?

This was in fact confirmed by consumer research firm J.D. Power and associates. They found that customers of smaller regional banks were more satisfied with the “reasonableness of the annual fees charged.”

Oh … by the way, some of these regional banks don’t even have an annual fee at all.

Other fees that may be lower aside from the annual fees are late fees, foreign transaction fees, balance transfer fees, and cash advance fees.

Again, fewer fees will mean more savings for you. When paired with lower APRs, this further enhances the value of regional banks.

One of the best regional bank cards you might like to look into is Regions Bank, a bank located in Birmingham, Alabama.

Regions Bank serves customers in 15 states across the South and Midwest, including Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas.

Another regional bank you might like to check is KeyBank of Cleveland, Ohio.

KeyBank serves customers in Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, D.C. and Washington.