credit

[Wesley]

Let me start by saying this : Credit Cards on their face are not inherently evil.

Credit Card Companies ARE inherently evil.

Now a quick follow-up : Credit policies with regards to interest and payment schedules are designed to fool and trap people into entering themselves into a "Devil's Contract" that penalizes both good and bad payment behavior. Allow me to explain, if you charge a bunch of stuff and pay the balance in full before the end of the billing cycle, (which is what you should be doing anyway) the credit companies don't make any money off of interest on your balance. Because of this they will sometimes lower your credit limit, which makes no sense, or threaten to put a negative mark on your credit report because you are not carrying a balance, or charge you some kind of fee under the guise of account maintenance (it is really just trying to squeeze a little more money out of you). If you do carry a small balance (or a large balance) they are happy, because they can now collect the interest from you. But wait! They are already getting money from you, right? So, now they will try to get even more! Back in the early '90s I actually had a credit company mail my billing statement to me(I had no internet back then...) ON THE DAY IT WAS DUE! Yes, this is a true story. So, I would write a check, put it in the mail, and since I cannot mail things back in time, it would arrive late and I would be assessed a penalty of $35 for "late payment" on my account. Hmmm, seems fishy, right? It is. Completely fishy, and completely legal. Well, almost completely legal. Many credit companies are frequently fined and penalized by the Federal Government for unfair business practices, yet they keep doing it. The credit industry is the most profitable business on the planet, because they are legally allowed to take money from people who cannot afford it; who are lured in with "low" interest rates and the promise that they can have whatever they want, right now! Just pay for it later! (for the rest of your life....)

"So Zot, what can I do?" you ask. Well, you can do a combination of things.
1) Be less materialistic. Do you need that sparkly thing, or do you want it? Be honest.
2) Treat credit the same as cash. Only charge what you can afford to buy with cash.
3) Pay all your stuff before the due date. Do it online, over the phone, just do it.
4) If you feel a fee or charge was in error, talk to customer service and get it fixed.
5) Use credit in emergencies when needed, but understand that you will then have to trade off by spending less and doing less so that you can pay that stuff off before it eats you alive.

Okay then! Good luck, have fun, Imma go try to fix my stuff.

[Mouse]

I've never experienced any problems with my credit card companies other than they constantly seem to want to increase my limit and changing back to my maiden name upon separation...

I think though, that my credit card companies are happy with me because of all the transaction fees they get out of my service providers. I almost never carry a balance, but I use the cards almost daily.

[bella]

I never got in trouble with credit card companies because I never buy on credit. Only buy what you can afford, if you can't afford it yet, save some money. I know it's not always as easy as that, especially when you have a family to take care of and if you own a house.

[Wesley]

There are multitudinous reasons a person could use credit instead of cash. Some of them are good, some of them are bad. The thing with credit card companies is that they get money from every angle, from every step of every transaction. And even with all that (basically) free money pouring in, they still penalize anyone who falls on hard times and may be unable to make a payment. Here is a piece of logic for you, purely theoretical, mind you.... If Joe is a-ok and buys things on credit and pays all his bills on time, then he gets laid off from his job and gets kicked out of his apartment and is living out of his car and misses a few payments because he cannot afford anything to eat, the credit card companies will reward him by charging him even more money that he cannot afford to pay. Yup.

[bella]

Jo has a job, why does he have to take out a loan then and doesn't pay his bills with the money he has? Credit companies are businesses and try to max out their profit, they do not have morals or responsibility for their customers. They do not care for the reasons why someone needs to borrow money or if there is enough to eat at the end of the month. They care for numbers.
I don't judge here, people working for credit companies don't have a nice job and sometimes need to put their concerns aside (if they have concerns at all).
Save some money for cases of financial emergencies if you can to avoid troubles with such companies.

[Wesley]

I don't blame the people who work at the credit card companies. As for myself, I know I am the only one who got me into my situation. But it is a fact that the credit companies intentionally try to get people to spend what they cannot afford. A gentleman who was high up in one of the companies, who insisted on remaining anonymous, explained how over the years they have fine tuned the interest rates and fees and penalties and minimum payments so that people who do not agree with it will still be willing to pay. What do these fees pay for? Nothing. But if they explain it to the customer as though it is a punishment for some wrong doing, then the customer will pay. It is free money for the money men.

If a person is smart and uses credit wisely, then this is no problem. If a person is young or inexperienced or foolish, they are doomed. The credit companies live by the motto,"A Fool And His Money Are Soon Parted." Only they add on,"...With Our Help."

[bella]

I agree on that, it is made far too easy to get a credit without warning people about it's consequences. Many companies invite you to 'buy now, pay later' without letting you know that you have to pay an interest rate as well (well, it's in the fine print, barely readable). Same with mobile phones.