Credit Card Bills Deliver a Shock

Portland Oregonian ^ | 12/05/2007 | Laurie Kellman

[John W]

Do you own your own home?

[meyer]

When someone steals your debit/check card, they are stealing your actual money out of your actual bank accounts.

When they steal your credit card, they aren’t.

That’s the difference, and it’s huge, imo.

I carry cash...

...and a large-caliber sidearm.

[meyer]

I really don't get why they would charge a fee for paying on line. It has to be cheaper than processing paper pay. They do it because they can I suppose.

Just as you or I would sell our house at the highest possible price, they are 'selling' their financing services at the highest possible price. They do it because they can.

That said, I pay my Chase card off monthly on line with no fee.

[VanDeKoik]

We are renters right now.

We want to save a bit, and pay a large down payment, and then pay off a house in 10 years.

(fingers crossed)

[Graybeard58]

Just as you or I would sell our house at the highest possible price, they are 'selling' their financing services at the highest possible price

I understand that but there have been replies here that said they were charged a fee by Discover and others, including me, who have never been charged a "pay on line fee".

If I am selling my house, I wouldn't have one price for you and better price for someone else.

[BlueNgold]

I have little sympathy for people who bought homes on adjustable or interest-only mortgage plans that could not afford the increases they knew were coming eventually.

I have little sympathy for people who bought homes they could not afford hoping to play the equity game.

When buying a home:
1. Budget so that you can afford it on a 30 year fixed mortgage. If you want to speculate and play with different mortgage plans hoping to get lucky you will still have the fall back of a re-fi into a standard mortgage if/when things go south.
2. Buy a home you actually can and want to live in. That way, even if you were planning/hoping for a profitable ‘flip’ you still have something that works if the market takes a turn.
3. Insist on dealing with ethical people. If you didn’t interview your realtor, your mortgage banker, and/or your title agent then you have failed in your responsibilities.

** For most people buying a home is the largest and most significant financial transaction they will ever make. Treat the process with the proper respect and remember that it means more to you than it does to anyone else involved in the deal.

[meyer]

I understand that but there have been replies here that said they were charged a fee by Discover and others, including me, who have never been charged a "pay on line fee".

Could be some state laws that prohibit such charges in some areas, or it could be related to the type of account or even the credit rating of the customer. I'm not sure on that one.

[Concentrate]

God Bless you, LOL!

[Smokin' Joe]

I, too noticed Discover had jacked their rates. I zero balanced the card and pay in full every month. Now they owe me ‘cash back’, and I am not paying interest. I don’t use the others—I just keep them for serious emergencies.

[roamer_1]

I sawed ‘m all up 15 years ago, and never looked back. Plastic sucks. If I can’t buy it out of my pocket, I sure don’t need it.

[ex-Texan]

I was listening to Dave Ramsey earlier tonight. He was saying that credit card companies are penalizing people who pay off their balance monthly. He gave an example of one card company that doubled and tripled the required minimum payment and also charged an 'interest' penalty on the new balance due. Of course, this amounts to an intentional violation of original agreement. But it seems that the terms can be modified at will by the company. Therefore, they may violate the agreement whenever they choose to without any penalty.

Ramsey said. "You are dealing with the devil. They only thing to do is destroy the plastic." Or words to that effect. He named the company in his broadcast.

[Skywalk]

Yes, I detest the ‘I don’t own a TV’ threads. Why, in one day, I can watch Anthony Bourdain introduce me to cuisine and countries I probably won’t visit (even if I travel later, I probably won’t go everywhere and not with a TV production budget, protection/security,) see Scotland in most of its glory, learn about WW I on the Military Channel, people who move large buildings and houses, the engineering behind the Khmer city of Angkor Wat and then ‘enjoy’ myself with any number of films.

It’s not that it should REPLACE reading but the idea that the TV HAS to be an idiot box is, in fact, an idiotic idea. For all of us who don’t have the money to go to the Galapagos, isn’t it nice to see things that even tourists won’t see (deep-sea diving and high quality photography in little submarines) AND get a narrated history lesson far superior to what I’d get in most places (and in English!)??

TV is a tool. It’s up to people to budget their time, watch programming that interests them but also find enrichment from the unique combination of entertainment and education available. Is it perfect? Of course not. It’s not designed to replace PhDs but it is able to truly widen your perspectives on the world and broaden your knowledge base. Things I would not consider bad at all.

[scan59]

I agree. Used properly, TV opens the world and places it in our living rooms. Reading about an event is great, but actually seeing it can make it even more real. Like you, I prefer both.

[JasonC]

If any of this goes through, all that will happen is rates will rise for everyone instead of rising only for deadbeats. If you don't discriminate between good credit risks and poor ones, you do not thereby make credit losses any smaller - in fact they will be larger. And those losses will be covered by users of credit, through interest paid. You can try to redistribute it from sound people to deadbeats - all you will do is reduce overall credit extended and raise rates, relative to what they would have been otherwise.

Let underwriters underwrite, and get out of the way.

[JasonC]

No. More likely, she signed up for one of those identity theft insurance schemes that they send you about a million mailers for after you get any new credit card. I have a Discover and I pay no annual fees of any kind. In fact they pay me (rebates of 1% of purchases, 3% for some promotional items).

[JasonC]

Of course the contract does so state. They all do. Consumers just don't read them. They run and whine to democrats instead.

She just never understood that the minimum monthly payment is deliberately set low enough to hold the balance steady instead of rising, but not high enough to pay down the balance in finite time. All she ever had to do is pay 2-3 times the minimum, or pay lump sums as funds became available between months she could only pay the minimum.

Anyone carrying a CC balance has a great savings plan available - pay it down and you are sure to earn 12-24%. So cut expenses and save already. Don't go whining to pols.

Geez...

[napscoordinator]

Don’t worry...Everyone on FR PAYS their bill in its ENTIRETY every month...I know...they will be here to state that fact...soon...

I actually think this is a true statement. People in FR seem to be intelligent, conservative, and have high standards. Many of us have been through the “stupid” stages in life. I was pretty ignorant and dumb in my 20’s when I though credit cards were free money. Well of course I did not pay them off every month and actually had a few late payments. gasp!!!! But now that I am in my late 30’s I have for the last 10 years been MUCH better at ensuring my credit is good and within reason.

[napscoordinator]

I’m already living in May 2008, when the postal rates go up another penny.

Everyone should only buy forever stamps. You will not feel the increase until they run out. For me, I bought about 200 stamps and I figure that should last at least until I die. lol. I am 38. Gives you an idea how often I use a stamp.

[Fawn]

I pay my Discover off every month. Sometimes for emergencies I pay some of it off using my Home Equity account. Lower interest and deductible on your taxes. Plus, DIscover pays me money -about $20 a month....

[Fawn]

I love Discover! They pay me money every month (which is why I charge EVERYTHING now) and they also have alot of fraud alerts....and I use that one-time number for all my internet purchases. It’s only good one time. They also called me one night asking me if I made some large purchases and I did not. Seems that Barnes and Nobles web site has a bug and they grabbed my number from their web site.