"Take a break from buying on credit and you will be back in the black sooner than you think."
I did that recently paying off two cards, destroying the cards, and now I have no monthly payment.
Try it, it works.
[OP]
Member
"Take a break from buying on credit and you will be back in the black sooner than you think."
I did that recently paying off two cards, destroying the cards, and now I have no monthly payment.
Try it, it works.
Moderator
Excellent! Let’s all quit enriching the cc companies!Originally Posted by lowell holmes
We use cards a lot but never had card debt, using a different method: pay off the balance due on every card every month on time so there is never any interest or fee. (We are known as “deadbeats” in the credit industry - congrats on joining the deadbeats club!) We set monthly alerts on the phone calendar for a couple of days before the due dates in case we miss the reminder from the cc company.
We laugh at occasional spam calls apparently wanting to help us with our credit card debt. (don’t know the exact spiel since I hang up too soon.)
JKJ
The euphemism used out in the open is "convenience user" but, I'm sure we are called worse in-house. Carrying credit card debt is fatal to any plan to manage your money and your future. Fortunately I learned this painfully in my younger days and am now happily retired. Like "eat right and get plenty of exercise" the advice to "eliminate your credit card debt" has always been good and would be hard to interpret as bad.
"A hen is only an egg's way of making another egg".
– Samuel Butler
Contributor
Some of the best financial advice I ever received was given by an Uncle, when I was a young man. He said, "Make money, not payments. Start making payments, and you won't ever have any money". I thought he was a crazy old man at the time, but later learned that he was exactly right. It's been a Long time since we've made more than one payment on anything.
Contributor
I have nothing against debt. Been in debt all my life. I've hardly ever paid cash for anything. Debt has allowed my family to enjoy life. It's allowed us to prepare for our retirement, which is right around the corner. In the last 15 years we've bought a 32' pontoon boat, a 53' houseboat, a 26' bowrider, which we sold to buy a 31' pocket cruiser a 40' motorhome, and 2 mobile homes. Everything but the pocket cruiser is paid for. Last October we refi'd the house, bought the 2nd mobile home and paid off everything but the 31 footer. The 2 mobile homes we've sold on contract, and we're currently receiving $1000 monthly in P&I payments. The house payment only went up $170, and we still have $200k equity. So all but one of our retirement toys are paid for, plus we've been able to enjoy them for many years already
Had we saved up to pay cash for these things, we'd likely still be saving for the first boat...
as an analogy-- I grew up in the 'smoking generation'. I've known many friends and family who've quit smoking, including me. When people encourage you to quit, a big reason is "look at the money you'll save!" - I, personally, don't know of any quitters who actually noticed the extra money, at least enough they were able to save it to buy a car or something with it. It just gets assimilated into the daily financial grind unnoticed...
But yeah, I'm also a fan of paying off the bills! --even if it takes going into debt to do it
(flame suit on)
========================================
ELEVEN - rotary cutter tool machines
FOUR - CO2 lasers
THREE- make that FOUR now- fiber lasers
ONE - vinyl cutter
CASmate, Corel, Gravostyle
Member
No Molotov Cocktails here. Debt can be a good thing for building wealth & net worth .... if you purchase something that appreciates. Then you get to watch your money (and the bank's) grow in YOUR 'pocket', so to speak. And the cost (interest rate) of the bank's money has been historically low for the last few years. Then throw in low inflation. All* works in a borrower's favor.--even if it takes going into debt to do it
(flame suit on)
But get thee gone with the 26% CC rates.
___________
* - Balance in all things. You have to be able to deal with the risk too.
Last edited by Malcolm McLeod; 04-19-2021 at 2:40 PM.
Member
It can depend on comparing the interest rate on the loan to the average return on your investments over the lifetime of the loan. Say you’re experiencing 10% year over year in the S&P 500, vs a 1.5% rate on a car. It’s clear where you’d put your money. Credit cards (average rate on them anyway) are OTOH rarely a good deal unless you pay them off monthly. They’re very convenient though.
Contributor
Until recently we haven't used our credit card for a few years. Recently our bank notified us of a suspect charge on the wife's debt card. The card was canceled. While waiting for a new one she had a dentist appointment and had to do some shopping so the credit card was used. Paid it off in full and back to being in no debt.
My intention is to purchase a truck soon. It may be paid in full or it may be financed. It all depends on the cost.
jtk
"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
- Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)
Contributor
Retired with no debt...
Pay off credit card every month
Contributor
When I first starting in business, I had to borrow money to do anything. I pretty quickly found out that if I also borrowed money to buy stuff, it was going to be difficult. I decided a long time ago that it was okay to borrow money to make money, but not to buy stuff, for me. I think I'd be a lot worse off now, if I had done it the other way. Our biggest debt now is property tax every year, but we like our place. At least we don't pay interest on that.
I'm retired when I want to be, and work when I want to, now.
Contributor
I like Clark Howard's credit freeze idea. Take your CC, and freeze them in a container of water. When you feel the need to use them, place container in the fridge, and by the time they are thawed, you will probably have changed your mind.
Member
A frozen card gathers no points. I get money back for charging utilities, groceries, drug store purchases, gas, etc. Provided you pay it off every month, it’s free money. Who wouldn’t want that. It’s not like you weren’t going to make those purchases anyway.
In the case of utilities for example, I don’t like giving them direct access to my bank account, given that I do everything online. It’s a measure of protection.
Member
This is what we do—almost all our recurring bills go on a CC that earns us cash back or points or whatever. Then we pay it each month (at least enough to avoid interest, not necessarily enough to zero it out entirely). Like Doug said, putting bills on a CC is an extra measure of protection from someone getting bank account info. I recently got a notice from my bank that they were about to cancel my debit card due to non-use, so I had to stop by an ATM and do a balance inquiry to keep it active.
Contributor
Kev,I have nothing against debt. Been in debt all my life. I've hardly ever paid cash for anything. Debt has allowed my family to enjoy life. It's allowed us to prepare for our retirement, which is right around the corner. In the last 15 years we've bought a 32' pontoon boat, a 53' houseboat, a 26' bowrider, which we sold to buy a 31' pocket cruiser a 40' motorhome, and 2 mobile homes. Everything but the pocket cruiser is paid for. Last October we refi'd the house, bought the 2nd mobile home and paid off everything but the 31 footer. The 2 mobile homes we've sold on contract, and we're currently receiving $1000 monthly in P&I payments. The house payment only went up $170, and we still have $200k equity. So all but one of our retirement toys are paid for, plus we've been able to enjoy them for many years already
Had we saved up to pay cash for these things, we'd likely still be saving for the first boat...
as an analogy-- I grew up in the 'smoking generation'. I've known many friends and family who've quit smoking, including me. When people encourage you to quit, a big reason is "look at the money you'll save!" - I, personally, don't know of any quitters who actually noticed the extra money, at least enough they were able to save it to buy a car or something with it. It just gets assimilated into the daily financial grind unnoticed...
But yeah, I'm also a fan of paying off the bills! --even if it takes going into debt to do it
(flame suit on)
no flames here. It sounds to me like you are one of those rare people that can go into debt but has the self-discipline to manage it well. My wife and I grew up with parents that lived through the Great Depression and were terrified of any debt. My parents had a mortgage but no other debt. My wife’s parents only paid cash. I guess some of that fear rubbed off on us. We had mortgages but no other debt. We had credit cards but paid them off every month and didn’t use them much. In retirement, we’ve been using the credit cards more and my wife has been hoarding points. I think she wants to fund a vacation or something.
No Molotav's here either Kev--even if it takes going into debt to do it
(flame suit on)
"A hen is only an egg's way of making another egg".
– Samuel Butler
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