New federal rules could mean no credit cards for stay at home parents

Stay-at-home parents may no longer be allowed to get their own credit card.

That's because new federal rules that say banks will no longer be able to give credit cards to people who can't prove an individual source of income.

The new rules are meant to keep credit cards out of the hands of people who can't afford it, but they could negatively impact stay-at-home parents, and people who have a spouse in the military. They could also mean that if a couple gets divorced, the stay-at-home parent would have no credit history.

The federal rules don't go into effect until October 1st, but banks could start enforcing them at any time.