Credit Cards

[Buckmaster7600]

The more I think about it I think I’m staying credit card less, 2^ cash back on 2000$ a month in spending is less than 500$ a year not counting annual fees. Flights and hotels do nothing for me as I’m not much of a traveler.


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[HauseOfCards]

You should definitely look into applying to a couple credit cards. Depending on your spending habits there's a lot of ways to earn a decent amount of rewards points/cash back. I have 7 credit cards that I used based solely on the type of purchase I'm making to maximize my rewards earning (but I've spent a lot of time researching and keeping track of my spending). Probably the most flexible options are any of Chase's cards (Freedom, freedom unlimited, Reserve and preferred). The 2 freedoms don't have yearly fees, but the others do (but those honestly pay for themselves easily). Amex and Citi have a couple flexible options as well. These types of cards are normally a lot better than getting a card from a specific retailer as the earnings are similar and you can use them for a lot more (cash back, flight/hotel awards/bookings, etc). 

Also, if you apply for a new card make sure you spend enough to meet the sign on bonus as there's a lot of value to be had there. So if you know you'll be making a decent sized purchase you should consider applying for a new card right before. 

Obviously you should stay away from credit cards if you feel you'd have difficulty paying off your balances on time, but otherwise you're leaving a lot on the table by not having some.

Good luck!

[Five Seasons]

1 hour ago, Buckmaster7600 said:

The more I think about it I think I’m staying credit card less, 2^ cash back on 2000$ a month in spending is less than 500$ a year not counting annual fees. Flights and hotels do nothing for me as I’m not much of a traveler.


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no annual fees. I end up spending about $3k a month because we use the card for everything we can that doesn't require a bank account. That's over $700 a year...

[Five Seasons]

43 minutes ago, HauseOfCards said:

You should definitely look into applying to a couple credit cards. Depending on your spending habits there's a lot of ways to earn a decent amount of rewards points/cash back. I have 7 credit cards that I used based solely on the type of purchase I'm making to maximize my rewards earning (but I've spent a lot of time researching and keeping track of my spending). Probably the most flexible options are any of Chase's cards (Freedom, freedom unlimited, Reserve and preferred). The 2 freedoms don't have yearly fees, but the others do (but those honestly pay for themselves easily). Amex and Citi have a couple flexible options as well. These types of cards are normally a lot better than getting a card from a specific retailer as the earnings are similar and you can use them for a lot more (cash back, flight/hotel awards/bookings, etc). 

Also, if you apply for a new card make sure you spend enough to meet the sign on bonus as there's a lot of value to be had there. So if you know you'll be making a decent sized purchase you should consider applying for a new card right before. 

Obviously you should stay away from credit cards if you feel you'd have difficulty paying off your balances on time, but otherwise you're leaving a lot on the table by not having some.

Good luck!

check out mint.com allows you to load all your accounts that are web accessible. You can monitor bills, transactions, fees etc all from one site or app.

Edited December 19, 2018 by Belo

[Fletch]

I use credit all the time. There are many good reward cards out there. Pay off balance every month always. No annual fee. We took 6 of us on a cruise a couple years ago on points.

[NFA-ADK]

Get at least one credit card, it builds credit if you ever want a large purchase like a house, boat, truck etc.  

Just don't get one if you like to buy crap or wast money on stupid things or are not good at managing your money.  To many people get themselves into deep debt thinking I can pay it off later.  Max out your card and you will pay pathetic amounts of interest if you only pay the minimum. 

My general rule is I only use it if I have to and will not use it on anything I can not afford and always pay it off the next billing cycle if I can.  

[BizCT]

The more I think about it I think I’m staying credit card less, 2^ cash back on 2000$ a month in spending is less than 500$ a year not counting annual fees. Flights and hotels do nothing for me as I’m not much of a traveler.


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For me it’s worth it. 2018 included:

Roundtrip airfare with the wife to Scottsdale
Roundtrip airfare with the wife to Bermuda
Roundtrip airfare for myself to Hilton Head


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[Nomad]

As far as a cashless society, I’m not much for that . Pretty much every guy I hire, from cleaning my gutters, to remodeling our kitchen ,to the guy who works on my kids cars , I pay cash . We save a ton . My car guy is off the books, and his labor rate is $50 an hour not $125 .

Always need cash, bribes,hookers,blow , dont take CC .

[BizCT]

As far as a cashless society, I’m not much for that . Pretty much every guy I hire, from cleaning my gutters, to remodeling our kitchen ,to the guy who works on my kids cars , I pay cash . We save a ton . My car guy is off the books, and his labor rate is $50 an hour not $125 .
Always need cash, bribes,hookers,blow , dont take CC .

Same here. Everything for house is paid in cash, get a way better deal that way. But buying a cup of coffee in nyc with cash will soon be extinct


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[Buckmaster7600]

Get at least one credit card, it builds credit if you ever want a large purchase like a house, boat, truck etc.  
Just don't get one if you like to buy crap or wast money on stupid things or are not good at managing your money.  To many people get themselves into deep debt thinking I can pay it off later.  Max out your card and you will pay pathetic amounts of interest if you only pay the minimum. 
My general rule is I only use it if I have to and will not use it on anything I can not afford and always pay it off the next billing cycle if I can.  

No fear of racking up debt, I live on roughly half my total income. All my vehicles and toys I pay cash for. If I ever end up buying another house I don’t think I’ll have any trouble getting a loan with no credit with a large down payment and zero debt.

Last year I was looking at a house that bordered my property when I went to my bank to see about a loan I had a little over 30% down and on a 15yr fixed loan I got approved with a very low interest rate. The fella at the bank told me that with mortgages it’s easier to get approved with no credit and a good debt to income ratio than someone with perfect credit with a iffy debt to income ratio. Don’t know if this is always true but the interest rate I was approved at was much lower than I was expecting with a “ok” credit score.


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[Buckmaster7600]

As far as a cashless society, I’m not much for that . Pretty much every guy I hire, from cleaning my gutters, to remodeling our kitchen ,to the guy who works on my kids cars , I pay cash . We save a ton . My car guy is off the books, and his labor rate is $50 an hour not $125 .
Always need cash, bribes,hookers,blow , dont take CC .

Yup I’m a cash guy! Always have cash on hand for a good deal.


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[Five Seasons]

15 hours ago, Stay at home Nomad said:

As far as a cashless society, I’m not much for that . Pretty much every guy I hire, from cleaning my gutters, to remodeling our kitchen ,to the guy who works on my kids cars , I pay cash . We save a ton . My car guy is off the books, and his labor rate is $50 an hour not $125 .

Always need cash, bribes,hookers,blow , dont take CC .

there's actually some pretty good studies out there that point to a cashless society will substantially reduce crime.

As far as getting paid under the table, I have a couple guys I pay this way and I've always felt it was on them because you can get in some decent trouble for that too.

[Five Seasons]

1 hour ago, Buckmaster7600 said:

No fear of racking up debt, I live on roughly half my total income. All my vehicles and toys I pay cash for. If I ever end up buying another house I don’t think I’ll have any trouble getting a loan with no credit with a large down payment and zero debt.

Last year I was looking at a house that bordered my property when I went to my bank to see about a loan I had a little over 30% down and on a 15yr fixed loan I got approved with a very low interest rate. The fella at the bank told me that with mortgages it’s easier to get approved with no credit and a good debt to income ratio than someone with perfect credit with a iffy debt to income ratio. Don’t know if this is always true but the interest rate I was approved at was much lower than I was expecting with a “ok” credit score.


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the whole point of a loan is to convince them you will pay it back. With no credit, they are taking a huge gamble on you and after the shit storm that was the housing market crash it's a lot harder. It's like hiring a guy with no experience for a job. 

[Jeremy K]

17 hours ago, Belo said:

check out mint.com allows you to load all your accounts that are web accessible. You can monitor bills, transactions, fees etc all from one site or app.

My wife and I just started using it a couple months ago.

[Elmo]

I have 2 cards that I rotate based on which one will give me the most point on any particular purchases.  I try my best to use my card any and every time I could.  Again, it's free money.  As mentioned, if I was going to spend $100 on utilities, I just use my card then spend the $100 paying off the card right away.  In that transaction, if I spend just cash, I spend $100.  If I use the card, I also spend $100 but come away with some points towards free stuff.  So it's $100 and nothing or $100 and some free stuff?

Because of that, I've become a point hog.  A dinner outings, I'll offer to pay with my card and have everyone else hand me their portions in cash.  I save up all my points and blow it all in one shut.  Two years ago I bought round trip airfare for me, my wife, my son, and my brother all off of points.  Right now I have over 260K points.  One of my cards also waives all foreign transaction fees so if you travel a lot, it is well worth it.

Sacred of identity theft?  I've had someone made some purchases on my card before.  I called the bank.  They said "oh snaps...we'll send you a new card and refund you the money."  Conversation must have lasted 2 minutes tops.  Where does the bank make their money?  They skim 2% off the top.  Most places, the retailer takes the hit, not you.  Big retailers understand that's the cost of business going forward.  They would lose more revenue if they refuse cards and 2% isn't much to them. That's why some small mom and pop shops will charge you more if you use a card.

[sits in trees]

You can't rent a car or motel or even travel without a cc. Damn I drive away from a gas station if the display says pay inside

[stubborn1VT]

On 12/20/2018 at 8:54 AM, Belo said:

there's actually some pretty good studies out there that point to a cashless society will substantially reduce crime.

As far as getting paid under the table, I have a couple guys I pay this way and I've always felt it was on them because you can get in some decent trouble for that too.

I don't believe that at all.  It is a different kind of crime, but a cashless society suffers from identity theft.

I also don't believe for a second that the debts from identity theft just disappear.  I think everyone pays for those debts, just like in a mismanaged health care system.  

I was taught as a farm kid that "Cash is king!" and I haven't seen a thing to change my mind.

Edited December 24, 2018 by stubborn1VT

[Four Season Whitetail's]

I don't believe that at all.  It is a different kind of crime, but a cashless society suffers from identity theft.
I also don't believe for a second that the debts from identity theft just disappear.  I think everyone pays for those debts, just like in a mismanaged health care system.  
I was taught as a farm kid that "Cash is king!" and I haven't seen a thing to change my mind.

So True. Cash is king in my world on both ends of most transactions. Plenty of cards and loans over the years to stay in high 7's in case it's needed but the greenbacks are king.


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[WNYBuckHunter]

1 hour ago, sits in trees said:

You can't rent a car or motel or even travel without a cc. Damn I drive away from a gas station if the display says pay inside

You absolutely can. Been doing it for years.

[Five Seasons]

On 12/24/2018 at 7:06 AM, stubborn1VT said:

I don't believe that at all.  It is a different kind of crime, but a cashless society suffers from identity theft.

I also don't believe for a second that the debts from identity theft just disappear.  I think everyone pays for those debts, just like in a mismanaged health care system.  

I was taught as a farm kid that "Cash is king!" and I haven't seen a thing to change my mind.

you have identity theft right now anyhow, so i fail to see your point. But it's a lot harder for Tina to pay for her meth with a cc that she doesn't have. However, if you're proud of your farm kid "cash is king" mentality and are unable to adapt, then power to you. I'm sure you still awaken with a rooster and not an alarm clock as well?

And unless you never shop online and pay all your bills in cash, even being on this forum puts your identity at risk.

Edited December 27, 2018 by Belo

[stubborn1VT]

32 minutes ago, Belo said:

you have identity theft right now anyhow, so i fail to see your point. But it's a lot harder for Tina to pay for her meth with a cc that she doesn't have. However, if you're proud of your farm kid "cash is king" mentality and are unable to adapt, then power to you. I'm sure you still awaken with a rooster and not an alarm clock as well?

And unless you never shop online and pay all your bills in cash, even being on this forum puts your identity at risk.

Now you're going to stop drug abuse with a cashless economy?  I am proud that I don't spend more than I have.  We obviously live very differently.  Nobody could ever change your mind, so there's not much to talk about with you.  I wake up without an alarm clock or a rooster.  Where I grew up you could debate a point without being a dick.  Have a great holiday season.

[Five Seasons]

1 hour ago, stubborn1VT said:

Now you're going to stop drug abuse with a cashless economy?  I am proud that I don't spend more than I have.  We obviously live very differently.  Nobody could ever change your mind, so there's not much to talk about with you.  I wake up without an alarm clock or a rooster.  Where I grew up you could debate a point without being a dick.  Have a great holiday season.

i'm not debating anything with you. You're sticking to your old school way of thinking without even trying to see something differently. It's not 1950 anymore and that style of ignorance pisses me right off. I myself grew up in a log cabin with a wood burning stove and well water. No cable. But that doesn't mean as things progressed that my parents didn't eventually put in central air, and then city water and gas as it became available. 

Point is this. If all of your purchases are monitored and controlled it's a lot harder to buy illegal shit. With this oversight and control you lose a lot of other freedoms, so it's not exactly the end all be all, but it sure as hell hurts the drug, illegal arms and sex slave industries.

And for what it's worth, I don't buy more than I can afford either, I pay off my cards at the end of the month. It's the same thing as what you do buying everything in cash, except I get over $700 a year back from my card.

Merry Christmas to you too.

[stubborn1VT]

I'm not discounting your thoughts on "progress".  I just don't want to be one of the many Americans who live  beyond their means.  I personally don't want a card.  I think you're projecting quite a bit.  Cash and barter work better for me.  I am guessing you don't live in the country.  I do.  I figured I could introduce my point of view without you labeling me as unable to adapt.   I'mon the site because I am a hunter.  I am also a college graduate, a Veteran and a business owner.  I'm not the only one who believes in a cash economy, but I seem to the only one you have a problem with.  I'll just chalk that up to your own insecurities.  

If you think that government oversight of banking is part of the solution to anything than I think you're kidding yourself.  Since when does government oversight amount to anything?  Just look at what is happening with the President.  

It's pretty easy to be an internet expert.  I can see how a credit card is a valuable tool for some, with certain advantages.  There are also advantaged and benefits to paying cash.  I'm not sure why you can't see that.

[Five Seasons]

How does my post explaining my upbringing conclude you to believe I don't live in the country? You're the only one who took issue with my post (that is well supported by research) that it would help reduce crime. So we had a banter back and forth about it, you started the discussion, not me. I have a bunch of posts in this thread, but yes you did touch a nerve with your inability to see a new way of doing things. Mostly this is a nerve for me, because gives us "simple" country folk the kind of stereotype we don't always deserve, but here you are "I'll trade you a sheep for medical treatment" in 2018 reinforcing it. But i'm projecting and insecure I guess...

Additionally "cash only folks" have this belief that they're staying within their means and that's their main reason. And as discussed throughout this thread by me and many others, that's only the case if you lack self control. Doing as I and others do is actually fiscally more responsible because they're paying YOU, to use the card.

I don't see how this has anything to do with being an "internet expert". I'm simply disagreeing with your opinion and providing facts. 

[dbHunterNY]

cash is better just not as convenient.  smaller privately owned businesses eat less fees and costs with a cash transaction vs CC, despite much of those costs are written off during tax time.  offer cash and the purchase price will be cheaper on more expensive things. other reasons that you wouldn't get into on a public forum.