What are your pros and cons of having a credit card....

Dante · Apr 20, 2011

a few pros:

you can earn points for free cash/giftcards or cashback if you charge everything you do each day on it ... but you need to pay full balance off each month

need it to rent cars and buy things online.

A few cons:

can cause you to go into massive debt if your not responsible.

you can buy things instantly and it seems like you really did not spend money on it .

festeringZit · Apr 20, 2011

Pros:
If you pay your balance each month it can increase your credit rating
It provides you "insurance" if the item you buy is faulty, or never shows up - you can contest the charge, I've had to do this many times

GoBlue34 · Apr 20, 2011

I cringe everytime I see people pay for stuff in cash and even more so when I see them pay with a check.

Stupid to not use a credit card, not get signup bonuses, and not get cash or "stuff" back. I put everything I possibly can on a credit card every month and pay them off every month.

This year along I have gotten $500 in gift cards from southwest, a free flight from them, 150,000 in miles from American Airlines and some gift cards to various places from my Discover card including 5% cash back from them.

awmllc2000 · Apr 20, 2011

Our business cards are used for absolutely everything. It is a GM card that pays back GM cash. Im not sure of the ratio, but a brand new chevrolet 2500 deisel was bought earlier this year and we had over 60% of the cost removed instantly. We obviosly have alot of monthly charges that are paid off....But we were happy with the incentive. Previously we would pay allaccounts in full by check and we recieved nothing in exchange.

donkeybucks · Apr 21, 2011

Dump it.

seanm0520 · Apr 21, 2011

I do see a good amount of pros in CC's but I wish I hadn't gotten one so young and been so god damn irresponsible. Completely my fault but as a struggling college kid, it looked like a pot of gold. Now I got some waiting years for my credit score to get better.

ALSportsJunkie · Apr 21, 2011

We have 2 cards we use all the time. One is a 3% cashback amex from Costco and the other is a Harrahs TR visa...great benefits from both. Cannot remember the last time I bought a stamp too. Hooray online banking.

Betallsports · Apr 21, 2011

Use to have 11 ... Yes ! Count Credit cards .....

about 2 years ago I told my wife, we have too many... call them and ask for a lower interest rate.....the one's that say no....start paying them off
then Rip them up.

We now Only 4 between us. When I use them, they get Paid ASAP
I still like to use Cash .....Just a little on the Old fashion side

Fishhead · Apr 21, 2011

Betallsports said:
Use to have 11 ... Yes ! Count Credit cards .....

about 2 years ago I told my wife, we have too many... call them and ask for a lower interest rate.....the one's that say no....start paying them off
then Rip them up.

We now Only 4 between us. When I use them, they get Paid ASAP
I still like to use Cash .....Just a little on the Old fashion side

You should never get rid of a credit card, in most instances.

Just don't use it............

The reasons are many, but the two most important are that one can never have enough credit available and with more credit available, one's credit rating and/or score will be higher(debt ratio).

In some cases however, it is certainly better to downsize if one cannot manage their money properly and smartly.

patswin · Apr 21, 2011

i use them mostly for points/cash back programs but it seems they are getting less attractive each year
citibank had a good one they just discontinued a few months back.
its to the point now where i only have a few and find myself using them less and less now
for me its more conveinent than carrying cash and always pay off the balance every month

D2bets · Apr 21, 2011

awmllc2000 said:
Our business cards are used for absolutely everything. It is a GM card that pays back GM cash. Im not sure of the ratio, but a brand new chevrolet 2500 deisel was bought earlier this year and we had over 60% of the cost removed instantly. We obviosly have alot of monthly charges that are paid off....But we were happy with the incentive. Previously we would pay allaccounts in full by check and we recieved nothing in exchange.

No way. They have per vehicle limits on those redemptions (usually between $1,000 to $2,500 per vehicle).

Dante · Apr 21, 2011

GoBlue34 said:
I cringe everytime I see people pay for stuff in cash and even more so when I see them pay with a check.

Stupid to not use a credit card, not get signup bonuses, and not get cash or "stuff" back. I put everything I possibly can on a credit card every month and pay them off every month.

This year along I have gotten $500 in gift cards from southwest, a free flight from them, 150,000 in miles from American Airlines and some gift cards to various places from my Discover card including 5% cash back from them.

exactly.... how can they not see this ...I mean as long as they have the willpower to pay off there acct each month its like amazing amount of free money.... I earn about 700$ a year in free giftcards and cash

Dante · Apr 21, 2011

patswin said:
i use them mostly for points/cash back programs but it seems they are getting less attractive each year
citibank had a good one they just discontinued a few months back.
its to the point now where i only have a few and find myself using them less and less now
for me its more conveinent than carrying cash and always pay off the balance every month

pats move to CHASE freedom card or chase sapphire card they give you 10K just after first purchase thats 100$ free.. it is AWESOME check it out on there site

GUYS this is the way to make FREE Money and its out there to take!

awmllc2000 · Apr 21, 2011

D2bets said:
No way. They have per vehicle limits on those redemptions (usually between $1,000 to $2,500 per vehicle).

We run a current fleet of over 25 trucks. We leased in the past, but found it more cost effective to purchase this year. These were combined redemptions.

ivyconniver · Apr 21, 2011

Dante said:
pats move to CHASE freedom card or chase sapphire card!

I agree with this. If your credit is good enough to get a Sapphire card, do it. Just like the commercial says their customer service answers after the first ring and it's an actual American person who is happy to help you with whatever you want. I've had fraudulent charges erased immediately, travel booked from a cell phone at a price equal to what you get on any of the websites, and when I lost my card they sent me a new one by fedex overnight free of charge. Oh yea, they give unlimited cash back (some cards will max you out after like $500-$1000 a year) and there's no annual fee.

Dante · Apr 21, 2011

ivyconniver said:
I agree with this. If your credit is good enough to get a Sapphire card, do it. Just like the commercial says their customer service answers after the first ring and it's an actual American person who is happy to help you with whatever you want. I've had fraudulent charges erased immediately, travel booked from a cell phone at a price equal to what you get on any of the websites, and when I lost my card they sent me a new one by fedex overnight free of charge. Oh yea, they give unlimited cash back (some cards will max you out after like $500-$1000 a year) and there's no annual fee.

I have a sapphire card and the Chase freedom one ...I dont use the sapphire should I go just to that card?? is it better then the chase freedom i have been using that like crazy on everything racking up points have 58950 so far this year that is almost 600$ free cash ,I like the 5% bonus categories every 3 months it changes... awesome way to get bonus points on top of other points

TomGshotput · Apr 22, 2011

Rationally, purchases should never be any different when using cash compared to credit. Interest payments should be made only in emergencies. If it happens more than once in a lifetime, highly doubtful it wasn't an emergency

Any cons to using a credit card occur only if someone acts irrational

The only pro is the reward programs

My debit card gives decent enough rewards, though lower than other ones I've seen. I highly doubt I would buy stuff differently with different plastic, it at least protects me from the chance I miss making a monthly payment and end up hit with an interest charge

nhoj · Apr 22, 2011

Pro.... You always have mail in your mailbox. Cons........ You got to pay that interest. Use cash and live free.

louisvillekid · Apr 22, 2011

con, using it too much and maxing it out

BAGIANT · Apr 22, 2011

I have one Citi Bank MC that I pay off monthly if there's a balance. The pro's of having a card are very simple. They are only a must have when renting a car or renting a hotel room. Other than that, I would never need one.