Credit cards?

[norcalchick]

What are the good credit cards out there?

I want one, but I don't work right now, and the ones that send me applications ask for employers name, etc.

[cashmoney]

Originally posted by norcalchick
What are the good credit cards out there?

I want one, but I don't work right now, and the ones that send me applications ask for employers name, etc.

lol...get a fucking job like the rest of us.



Credit Cards are a bitch. I just paid off my Visa card. I accidently let my spending get out of control and racked up 4,000$ on it and didnt have anything to show for it. It was all clothes, dinner, alcohol, christmas presents, going to clubs and cash advances. If you get one just be sure to control your spending. I was lucky that I could pay that one off. When my mom's dad died he left my brother and I some nice chunks of change. We invested it in stocks and mutual funds and because of that I had money to pay off my credit cards. Most people arent as fortunate and if you're not careful you can dig yourself a hole you wont get out of very easily.

[IowaStatePhiPsi]

Originally posted by cashmoney
I accidently let my spending get out of control and racked up 4,000$ on it and didnt have anything to show for it. It was all clothes, dinner, alcohol, christmas presents, going to clubs and cash advances.

... if you're not careful you can dig yourself a hole you wont get out of very easily.

That's where I'm at. If I stay on my debt reduction plan I'll have the balance down to $1500 by the end of 2005 and then convert it all to a student loan for a lower interest rate while I student teach in spring 2006.

[ShaedyKD]

Credit card? Youuuuu've got it!


Those Capital One commercials crack me up. Maybe you could look into that one.

[winnieb]

If you don't have a job, don't get a card. Cards are too easy to run up and they suck paying them off.
Over the past 5 years I have paid off all of our credit cards and we do everything with cash now. It is sooo nice being able to just throw down the cash and not worrying about it later. And while it seems like you won't have the money to pay cash, it is unreal how much more money you have when you don't have monthly payments to a credut card.

[ambición6]

ugh, avoid them like the plague. or get one with a really small credit line (unless you have lots of self control, which in my younger days, i did not and now $15K of debt).

and when they do increase your line, call them up and tell them to decrease it at consumer's request. keeps you in check from going overboard.

[ZTAngel]

I like my American Express. I have the blue card so there's no annual fees although AMEX constantly sends me letters to get me to enroll in their gold card program (hell no....I'm not paying money for a credit card!). Their customer service has been great and efficient. When a gas station double charged my card, AMEX removed the charge without any questions. Plus, they have a good membership awards program.
They have a blue card for students which I was enrolled in until I graduated. It has a lower credit limit so you don't overspend.

American Express isn't accepted everywhere so you might want to have a back up Visa or Mastercard just in case.

ETA:
Credit cards are a necessary evil in many cases. I'm pretty sure you can't rent a car without them (well, I've never tried to rent without so you never know!). It also helps to build up good credit so that you can one day get a mortgage. You just need to be really careful. I have many friends who have spent frivously on a credit card figuring that they can pay it off eventually. Credit cards are great if you have the mindset that you will pay off your balance in full every month. Interest rates are really high on most cards and I would never want to give my hard-earned money to a credit card company so I make sure to pay off my balance every month! One of my friends owes over $7,000 on her Visa and about $500 of it is finance charges/late fees. Ridiculous. Make sure to budget yourself when it comes to a credit card. Don't go into a store and make an extravagant purchase thinking you can pay it off later. If you can't afford it while you're at the store, you won't be able to afford it later! Credit card companies target college students because they're infamous for racking up all kinds of unpayable charges which creates more money for the credit card company. It's big business for them. The average college student is usually in credit card debt when they graduate. Don't be one of them!

[_Lisa_]

It took me 2 years to pay off a $1000 credit card bill. And I work a very good job that pays me very well. They aren't worth it, don't get one.

[cashmoney]

Originally posted by IowaStatePhiPsi
That's where I'm at. If I stay on my debt reduction plan I'll have the balance down to $1500 by the end of 2005 and then convert it all to a student loan for a lower interest rate while I student teach in spring 2006.

I feel ya. My mom told me to put my Visa in a ziplock baggie and throw it in the freezer till I paid it off. It worked.


On the Capital One cards......stay away. Those people try to rip you off every way they can. I pay all my bills online and once I made a payment on my Capital One card, got the conf # but for some reason they said I didnt make the payment and charged me late fees despite me having my confirmation number and the printed out date and time of transaction. I didnt pay it since I didnt fuck up in the first place and they charged me again the next billing cycle.The fuckers still made me pay the fees in the end. And it didnt help my credit score at all. I have a really high credit score but after that Capital One fiascal my score went down. I went from the low 800s to the mid/high 700s. I had to beef it back up by paying all my bills early and paying off the cards themselves.

[FAB*SpiceySpice]

I have never had a credit card, only a debit card. My parents, who are lucky enough to have really well paying jobs, told me to never get one. They don't have any, and I was raised with the mindset that you shouldn't buy anything you can't immediately pay for. I know this however doesn't work for most people b/c most people do need to borrow money at some point or another.

So if you are wanting a credit card just to build your credit, I'd suggest just using your debit card, it still builds your credit, this is what I do.

However if you want a CC so you have the extra money then I don't know what the best is, just be super super careful. My brother got a couple of them when my parents cut him off (they hate his fiancee) and he bought her engagement ring plus other random stuff on it and he's now in an immense amount of debt. Just be very careful! My roommate has a money problem and she gets new credit cards so she can pay off her old ones. We haven't even graduated from undergrad yet and she has $5000+ in debt!

[cashmoney]

Originally posted by FAB*SpiceySpice
So if you are wanting a credit card just to build your credit, I'd suggest just using your debit card, it still builds your credit, this is what I do.

WTF??? Who told you using your debit card builds your credit?




I feel ya on the mindset thing. My parents raised me the same way, but after I got mostly cut off (they still pay for my cell phone, insurance and my gym fees) I needed to get CCs to build my credit up more than what my parents did. I walked in to the real world walking without having to crawl first. When I was in college my parents put all my bills in my name and my dad put me on his payroll without me knowing it. Thank god they did because after 6 years in college my credit was the shit after I got out, that and it looked like I'd had a well paying job for 6 years when they ran an employment check or whatever it is they call it. My parents were sneaky, too. They got me a credit card (Visa) without me knowing it was mine. They told me it was my dad's and that they got me a card in my name but it was billed to his account. The intent of that was to make sure I wouldnt charge all kinds of shit out of fear of getting bitched out/cut off. It worked. After I graduated I found out it was in my name alone all the time and that they used it to beef up my credit score for when I got out of school. When I found out about being on payroll I asked them wtf did they do with all my tax returns..... They claimed it went to paying off the credit cards. I'd suggest you talk to your parents about doing the same type of thing for when you're done with school and out in the real world. You wouldnt believe how easier life is with really good credit as opposed to having none/bad/ok credit. You can't do shit in the real world without a good credit score. Employers are now making hiring decisions based on credit scores.....can you believe that?

[winnieb]

Originally posted by cashmoney
Employers are now making hiring decisions based on credit scores.....can you believe that?

When I started at my current employer I had to sign off on the background check, one of the areas I had to agree on them checking was my credit. They said they don't do that part, only criminal history-- but I had to sign off regardless.

[chideltjen]

I recently got one. I've had a Macys card for years and years, but I was forced to get one when I worked there, otherwise I wouldn't get my discount. I hardly ever use it, but I'd rather keep it open and paid off because I heard closing accounts, no matter how well you take care of it, can be a negative credit point.

But I have a Capital One card. I have only been using it for paying for school and then I pay everything off once I get my bill, no matter how broke I'll be after I send in the check. Since I lost my full time job, it's now ONLY being used for school. (Although this weekend, I went shopping...)

Basically, I use it only when I know I will have the funds in a month to pay it off. I am richest at the end of the month and that's when my statement comes. My uncle is in debt right now and my parents tell me every day to NEVER spend more than I can afford to pay off completely.

I too used a debit card all throughout college.

[AchtungBaby80]

Originally posted by chideltjen
I've had a Macys card for years and years, but I was forced to get one when I worked there, otherwise I wouldn't get my discount. I hardly ever use it, but I'd rather keep it open and paid off because I heard closing accounts, no matter how well you take care of it, can be a negative credit point.

I have a Macy's card, too, because I had to get one to receive my discount, but now that I don't work there anymore the only thing I wanna do is throw that d*mned thing away! But I didn't know that closing accounts makes you look bad...really?

[ZTAngel]

Originally posted by AchtungBaby80
But I didn't know that closing accounts makes you look bad...really?

Not necessarily:

http://www.experian.com/ask_max/max030905a.html