Credit Card Advice

FireFireCohen

Got my credit score up into the 600s, so I no longer need one of those securecards. Thinking about applying for this TJ max one. It says interest of APR 27.74% variable. That seems pretty high. Can I get a better deal? How do I close my old account? TYIA.

greenblood

Get a payday loan, or I hear Swaye’s relatives have great loan programs.

Doog_de_Jour

This one only charges 24.99%, and you get additional perks!

BennyBeaver

Who pays interest on their credit card?

PurpleThrobber

I use whatever one Mrs. Throbber v2.0 lets me hold on to for the day.

Then I have to give it right back.

HuskyJW

You should only have a credit card if you have $200K in the bank. Live like a pauper for 80% of your life so you can enjoy the last 20

Doog_de_Jour

HuskyJW said:

You should only have a credit card if you have $200K in the bank. Live like a pauper for 80% of your life so you can enjoy the last 20

But Visa gave me a free UW branded frisbee when I signed up a card in college! 😅

In all seriousness, how does one just starting out (college/post-graduation) build credit w/o a card of some kind? (I’m not saying young people should be forced to get one, but it does seem like a necessary evil.)

Purple_Pills

HuskyJW said:

You should only have a credit card if you have $200K in the bank. Live like a pauper for 80% of your life so you can enjoy the last 20

Disagree. You should only have a credit card if you will never miss a payment ever. Credit cards provide rewards, added security for certain transactions, and other perks. Unless you are getting a cash discount you are better off using a credit card for your purchases.

Doog_de_Jour

Purple_Pills said:

HuskyJW said:

You should only have a credit card if you have $200K in the bank. Live like a pauper for 80% of your life so you can enjoy the last 20

Disagree. You should only have a credit card if you will never miss a payment ever. Credit cards provide rewards, added security for certain transactions, and other perks. Unless you are getting a cash discount you are better off using a credit card for your purchases.

Yup. I don’t think anyone would try to argue cash isn’t king, but despite what Dave Ramsey preaches I think paying for certain transactions with a credit card makes sense...even if you don’t have $200k in savings yet (as is the case with many people).

haie

BennyBeaver said:

Who pays interest on their credit card?

Your best effort ever.

1to392831weretaken

My credit card rate is 8% and does 1% cash back (2% on certain purchases like gas or whatever). Effectively, it has the same rate as my first mortgage in 2008. I use it for EVERYTHING. I'd like to say I keep it paid down. I'd like to say that...

RaceBannon

I'm still stuck on credit score in the 600s. Thoughts and prayers

BennyBeaver

HuskyJW said:

You should only have a credit card if you have $200K in the bank. Live like a pauper for 80% of your life so you can enjoy the last 20

haie said:

BennyBeaver said:

Who pays interest on their credit card?

Your best effort ever.

It’s a low bar Camas.

GreenRiverGatorz

HuskyJW said:

You should only have a credit card if you have $200K in the bank. Live like a pauper for 80% of your life so you can enjoy the last 20

Being that this is a @FireCohen thread, I can't tell if this satire.

If it's not, this is shit advice. Credit cards are the easiest free money/miles/rewards you will ever find. And it's all made possible because of the rubes who pay with debit cards and don't reap those benefits (and the merchants who pay the exhorbitant CC fees on your behalf). I haven't paid for a domestic flight in god knows how long. Plus the whole credit building thing. Just don't be a fucking idiot, and pay your bills on time.

GreenRiverGatorz

1to392831weretaken said:

My credit card rate is 8% and does 1% cash back (2% on certain purchases like gas or whatever). Effectively, it has the same rate as my first mortgage in 2008. I use it for EVERYTHING. I'd like to say I keep it paid down. I'd like to say that...

You either have a spending problem or you're a really shitty arbitrageur.

MelloDawg

1to392831weretaken said:

My credit card rate is 8% and does 1% cash back (2% on certain purchases like gas or whatever). Effectively, it has the same rate as my first mortgage in 2008. I use it for EVERYTHING. I'd like to say I keep it paid down. I'd like to say that...

If you travel, the answer is the Chase Trifecta which is the Chase Reserve, Freedom Unlimited and then the Flex which has rotating categories. If you want to flex on people (I like to say "flex"), then it's the AMEX Trifecta. Otherwise, AMEX Blue Cash Preferred / Citi Double Cash. Alternatively, the Capital One Savor is good if you enjoy a good entertainment evening as I do with my heterosexual lifemate (she/her).

Sources

For the uninitiated, the correct answer is get an amazon credit card. Since you, your husband, and his boyfriend buy all your shit from there, at least get the 5% back to help pay for weekend trips to the Castro.

If you can't pay it off on a monthly basis, well, keep in mind that death is normally grounds to void a contract.

1to392831weretaken

GreenRiverGatorz said:

1to392831weretaken said:

My credit card rate is 8% and does 1% cash back (2% on certain purchases like gas or whatever). Effectively, it has the same rate as my first mortgage in 2008. I use it for EVERYTHING. I'd like to say I keep it paid down. I'd like to say that...

You either have a spending problem or you're a really shitty arbitrageur.

Must be whatever that second thing is, because I have absolutely no problem spending.

PurpleThrobber

Mrs. Throbber's hobby is playing the credit card game. It's fucking unreal. There's like this cult following of how to scam the credit card companies for cash and airline points.

Opens a card with X company, gets the promised cash, let's the card sit open for the prerequisite time and then closes it. Keeps the cash.

Knows which cards give the most points for restaurants - so she uses Card A; some cards give more points for groceries - Card B. It's crazy.

We haven't paid for a hotel room in probably 3 years. Almost always fly first class because, well, shit, we didn't pay for the tickets in the first place.

RaceBannon

Back in the day my Seattle boss was buying materials for our jobs on his credit card. At the size of our jobs he was getting enough miles to go to Mars. Then the credit card companies cracked down as they are wont to do

You need one for room service and to rent a car or uber. Or DoorDash.

I was raised as a Lannister to always pay my debts. Even at the abyss I made the minimum payments to all bills. Never dipped below 750 and that was because of the amount of credit I was juggling. Now safely back above 800. It just means more.

Doog_de_Jour

PurpleThrobber said:

Mrs. Throbber's hobby is playing the credit card game. It's fucking unreal. There's like this cult following of how to scam the credit card companies for cash and airline points.

Opens a card with X company, gets the promised cash, let's the card sit open for the prerequisite time and then closes it. Keeps the cash.

Knows which cards give the most points for restaurants - so she uses Card A; some cards give more points for groceries - Card B. It's crazy.

We haven't paid for a hotel room in probably 3 years. Almost always fly first class because, well, shit, we didn't pay for the tickets in the first place.

Speaking as someone who has kept the same card for 20+ years, how do you get away with that? I keep wondering if switching to something with better perks would be a good move, but I’m lazy.