I recall back in the 70’s or so my parents getting their first Mastercard. It was a big deal to them and they held it in regard as a potential huge danger too. Oddly enough I've never forgotten their caution.
Then came the 1980’s and 1990’s. I got married and soon it was ‘off to the races’ to establish enough credit that we could buy a home. By that time it was if you didn't have several credit cards, you didn't have enough credit to buy any large items like a house, condo, or car. At the time it was like the banks created this funky prerequisite with their major CC’s. You couldn't then book a plane flight, hotel room, rent a car. Somewhere along the line my ex-husband lost the temptation battle with stuff and his resulting habits ended our marriage(it wasn't just the debt, but other things not fit to print in a public forum).
It took me years to payoff the mess he created. He would have never paid it off and no matter how much I argued with the CC’s and banks regarding the court ordered responsibility for abuse of marital assets...I still had to pay. Some cards he had I was never even a signor. And the things he charged on his personal cards...well it was nothing I ever benefited from either. But marriage is marriage and at the time the banks didn't really care.
So here we are with this new legislation and it was just a few years ago they (Fed) allowed the CC’s to change their rules. Raise rates and minimum monthly payments (recently doubled these). Some of this is just turning the clock back a bit.
Credit Cards are a necessary evil in our modern world. Recently I found my statement to hold an increased interest rate for no apparent reason that I could tell. I had been making bi-monthly payments in an effort to payoff the last card. I called to find out why. Why? It was some convoluted reason of the bi-monthly payments, paying it down too quickly, and my credit score for having low amounts of credit? It was very convoluted and I still don't really understand it. I told the lady on the phone that I was being punished for having a home paid off, no car payment, and one stinkin’ credit card? What a joke.
I need one of those balance transfer offers right about now.
But that is not really the answer now is it. I tend to agree with some other viewpoints that the CC’s are out of control. I can't wait to have this last card paid off and get back to living with the caution that my parents had with their first card.
“It was very convoluted and I still don’t really understand it. I told the lady on the phone that I was being punished for having a home paid off, no car payment, and one stinkin’ credit card?”
That’s BS!
The only thing i’ve ever paid interest on in my life was our first home and it’s been paid off for 20 years.
We have one CC wirh a $30k limit and always pay it off in full every month as soon as the statement is available.
Last month I got a notice that my maximum was cut in half to $15k and I called them and after talking to them for a few minutes got it raised back to the $30k.
He mentioned my credit score and I asked what it was. He wouldn’t tell me but said that it was within the upper 10%.
I reduse to pay to find out what my credit score is since I never borrow to buy anything and never have in my life including my airplane and the condo we are currently living in.