>be 24, live alone >lead modest and frugal life with low overhead cost >almost all of my money goes to my living expenses and savings and I have no loan debt, no car payment >pay for everything with debit card or cash >always avoided credit cards because afraid of debt >step-dad starts telling me how I'm losing out because he gets free flights and hotels and whatnot >feel like I should actually listen to him because he's very successful and will probably retire 20 years early
Wat do, Jow Forums? Can a credit card be worth it? And if so, will any ol' one work for me?
No, you're doing well already. Don't bother with credit cards, it's easy to lose self control with them with the easy credit.
Eli Mitchell
You should get one and just make sure it's fully paid off every month. It's not fair but the goy system we live in requires you to have a credit history.
Jonathan Myers
Build credit history and get cash back rewards. Charge backs if a purchase or service goes to hell. 30 day interest free loans as long as you pay your bill on time. Plus if shit hits the fan in the case of fraud you don't have to fight with the bank to get your money back, you just tell the credit card company to fuck off.
It boggles my mind so many people use debit cards over credit cards, but I guess we're living in a society of brainlets.
Joshua Sanders
its 2018, you literally can't survive without credit anymore. Want a house? Want a nonshitbox car? Want a loan? You need credit. Literally just keep spending the same way you are now and pay that shit off 100% every month. Don't view it as "oh shit I can spend up to [credit limit] this is awesome!" cuz that's how retards go into dept.
Sebastian Rivera
Credit cards are objectively better than cash/debit if you pay off the balance each month. If you do this, you will never pay a cent in interest, you will build credit, and you will build rewards. Check out Credit Karma or Nerdwallet. And don't listen to any of the 3rd worlders or literal brainlets here who are against using credit cards. You would think that people on a business board would understand basic financial concepts such as the advantages of using credit cards but at least half the people here are too retarded even for that.
Juan Cruz
This. Just use your credit card the exact way you use your debit card.
Most banks have their own credit card where you can view it in the same screen as the balances.
Wyatt Jackson
>goy system we live in requires you to have a credit history
This is the other thing I was concerned about. In a few years I want to buy a house but I have non-existent credit so I'm not sure how that works.
also, sign up for creditkarma dot com, that shit monitors your credit for you for free and gives nice monthly reports and suggestions on how to improve your credit
Do you know your credit score? My brother who is 26 had never used one before, but when I had him check it it was in the 700s. I have no idea how that is possible but you should find out what yours is.
Sebastian Ramirez
I don't think I even know what a credit score is. I'm kinda like a belligerent old man; I remain happily ignorant of things that may cause me any sort of hassle.
>I'm not sure how that works it doesn't work. Literally every mortgage company will deny you. A lot of banks (I use TD) have student cards (dont have to be a student) for people with no credit built yet. Basically you set your own credit limit (let's say $1000). The bank then makes a separate account that you put $1000 in as collateral in case you're retarded and don't pay your bill. After like 6-12 months of on time payments they delete that collateral account and put that $1k back into your checking account and you now have a normal credit card.
Elijah Reed
If you live in a country with credit score system, you should get a cc asap and pay it in full every month.. ez money. No credit score, no credit cards. T. someone who'd want to build credit score but no such system in the country.
literally open a new tab right now and sign up for credit karma. This is shit you can't turn a blind eye towards and just hope shit works out. It lays everything out for you and tells you what you gotta work on Just cuz it's a 700 doesn't mean it's amazing. When someone runs his credit for lets say a new car, he'll get denied due to lack of credit history
Easton Nelson
FICO has started creating alternative scores for people who MIGHT BE good credit candidate, but never owned a credit card. An example is how often you pay your rent each month, even if you don't possess a CD.
Maybe they pulled one of these scores or he was doing good on an installment loan (which also shows up on a credit check) of some sort.
Nathaniel Allen
Thanks for the input, fellers.
>get denied due to lack of credit history
Now that I think about it, that did actually happen to me when I first tried to rent the house I live in.
Jacob Hernandez
>credit karma Maybe OP isn't American.
Jason Cox
Credit card companies give you ~20-30% discount on everything you buy. The question is whether that reward outweighs the risk of you spending money you don't have (going into debt) and paying them 20-30% instead.
For the vast majority of people, the answer is no. For the disciplined few, it is a no brainer.
The way you get 20-30% discounts is to get a new credit card every time you finish the sign up bonus spend on the last one. There are tons of cards with $500-$1000 sign up bonus for $3k-4k spending.
Jace Reed
Dumb. Good credit = free money.
Banks will offer you 0% loans for 12, 24, sometimes 36 months. Invest in T-bills and take a free 2%. They'll give you 4% loans to buy real estate, rent it, some other sucker pays off the mortgage, you end up with a free house. Etc. etc.
Colton Reyes
Yeah, get one. I got my first one when I was 27. I would recommend looking into the Discover It card. You get pretty badass rewards and it has built in credit monitoring so you can check your credit score every month for free.
Just use it for all purchases without changing your lifestyle. Pay it off every month. Set up automatic payments so you cant forget. Youll have a high 700s or low 800s credit score in no time.
Just dont be a retard and pay your balance every month
Liam Cooper
>Invest in T-bills and take a free 2%. They'll give you 4% loans to buy real estate, rent it, some other sucker pays off the mortgage, you end up with a free house.
If you are as frugal and dedicated to your budget as you think you could get a cheap ass babies first credit card from discover they accept anyone.
I got one at new year and used it only for groceries until my credit was hovering at 700 then I bumped up my limit to sub 2K. Now I take advantage of the cash back reward to buy luxury items when I save up enough. I pay all my utilities in credit and then pay off out of my checking account like I normally would.
When I buy something frivolous like a videogame it is now "free" since I got the cash back from purchases I had made. They also have seasonal specials like 5% back on certain types of purchases which I then adjust my budget to take advantage of like buying from amazon, grocery stores, restaurants, and gas.
So long as you budget to never have any outstanding fees and budget to ensure it's ALWAYS paid off before the date you will find yourself building some nice ass credit. By this time next year if you are as financially responsible as you should be you will have a credit score close to 800 and at the very least around 650-720.
Yes, these things are very rare, though. They won't offer this to just any schmuck.
Zachary Reed
Protip: you're not getting cashback, but you're realizing a more efficient price point on your original purchases. (not what you buy with the cash back.)
>hurr durr if I buy this luxury item which costs thousands I can get a free game!!
Mason Campbell
Godspeed user I want you to succeed. If Discover doesn't accept you with their 200$ limit then do the bank back credit card as described. I did the same when I was still horrified of becoming a dog slave to debt. If you are fiscally responsible then it wont be a problem if you fuck around with fuckery you will ruin your western world life.
I'll send you my energy since I find myself becoming the 30yo boomer for the first time financially secure.
You don't seem to understand fren. I pay for all my overhead living expenses with the credit card and receive $.01 for every dollar spent. While that doesn't seem like much it does add up. After rent, utilities, food etc I get around 12-20 dollars back a month. I can either use that to pay off the card itself, cash out into a bank account, or use it in a way which is essentially useless.
It's possible I misunderstood your price point statement though. I still have to pay them at whatever billing statement is provided. Since I pay off the card promptly I don't even experience a delay on my liquid funding from paying it off over time.
"Cashback" means that the consumer spending is inflated since people think they are getting cash back, but really, are just realizing the more efficient price point. With inflated spending comes an inflated price. Many merchants pass on the credit card charge fee onto their customers, which is why pay with a card for gas is more expensive than paying with cash.
When you buy something with that "cash back", you're not getting it for free.
John Myers
>"Cashback" means that the consumer spending is inflated since people think they are getting cash back, but really, are just realizing the more efficient price point. With inflated spending comes an inflated price. Many merchants pass on the credit card charge fee onto their customers, which is why pay with a card for gas is more expensive than paying with cash. > >When you buy something with that "cash back", you're not getting it for free.
While I understand what you are saying that isn't the case with how I use the card. The APR is probably the inflated price affecting those who don't spend within their means. Due to how I use the card I can assure you that my spending is not inflated. I don't experience any fees on my card, and I would note there are purchases which would come with an inflated price however I do not use the card for those types of purchases. The gas example though is more of a case by case basis depending on the station you attend.
While that may be the case for certain regions or cards that does not apply to the one I use. The cashback "feature" is entirely a penny on the dollar cash return incentive by this credit company sometimes giving a nickel on the dollar for annual seasonal events they hold.
If you still have qualms please continue I was very wary about signing up for a credit card and tried to perform a large amount of research before finally acquiring one.
