If the words “free money” are music to your ears, credit card companies are playing your song. But grabbing cards that offer cash-back rewards and signing bonuses could create problems for your finances.
 
While points and privileges still abound, card issuers these days are increasingly wooing prospective customers with cold, hard cash. Some dangle bonuses of $100 or more for enrolling.

The incentives won’t make you rich, but you don’t have to be Gordon Gekko to find them tempting.
 
(MORE: 5 Surprising Ways Your Credit Score Can Get Nicked)
 
Why Free Money Offers Hook Us
 
“Everybody likes something for nothing,” says Olivia Mellan, a psychotherapist in Washington, D.C., who specializes in financial issues. “But it goes deeper than that. Money means love, power, control and security.”