Timeline for Do I not have a credit score?
Current License: CC BY-SA 4.0
17 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
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| Jan 14, 2019 at 4:55 | history | edited | pojo-guy | CC BY-SA 4.0 |
added 357 characters in body
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| Apr 9, 2018 at 1:13 | comment | added | Ben Voigt | I also see debt as a moral failure; I simply do not see accessing my funds with a credit card to be building debt. | |
| Apr 9, 2018 at 1:10 | comment | added | pojo-guy | The last time I did a benefit comparison like this with someone, I was thousands of dollars ahead of him over 5 years, largely because of the behavior changes that occur when debt is seen as a moral failure. | |
| Apr 9, 2018 at 0:47 | comment | added | Ben Voigt | I don't know what level cashback rewards you've encountered that you so easily dismiss them, but I get at least 2.5%, commonly 5%, and sometimes 10-12%. That's in addition to getting a good price, whether through negotiation, price matching, using coupons, or whatever. | |
| Apr 9, 2018 at 0:45 | comment | added | Ben Voigt | Ah well, in the long run I'm much more interested in saving on the many small purchases I do have the money for, than sometimes getting an item I don't have the cash for. But then, I typically don't (essentially never) go shopping for items I don't have money to pay sticker price for, even if I prefer to pay less. Oh, and when I am shopping somewhere with salespeople, it's very nice to cut off the attempted upsell of extended warranty coverage by, instead of what they expect, which is to say it isn't worth it, just say my card already includes it. | |
| Apr 9, 2018 at 0:35 | comment | added | pojo-guy | If I don't have cash to make the small purchase, I can't afford it and walk away anyways. What benefit does the credit card offer me? (Edit) I did read the posting you pointed me at, and my personal experience parallels the ones who argued against it). | |
| Apr 9, 2018 at 0:33 | comment | added | Ben Voigt | Negotiating on price works well for buying cars and in bazaars in the town square. Anywhere you don't have shops lined up next to each other, you lose more resources walking away than you could ever save on a small purchase. Nevermind that salespeople are expensive and the best prices come from stores with mostly automated systems. Then the benefits and protections on my debit card are roughly equal to a "Student" or "Gold" card, the lowest level of credit card I've had (I suppose lower levels are common to people repairing credit). Platinum and Signature cards really do have better benefits. | |
| Apr 9, 2018 at 0:19 | comment | added | pojo-guy | I haven't had any issues travelling, staying in hotels, and renting cars in the past 14 years without having a credit card, even internationally. The protections available for credit cards are also applied to debit cards. The "cash back" rewards are in the range of a rounding error on the bank's part. You can often get a better deal by simply waving a wad of cash under the sales person's nose and walking away if they won't reach the deal you want. | |
| Apr 8, 2018 at 23:24 | comment | added | Ben Voigt | Further explanation at money.stackexchange.com/q/67368/5458 | |
| Apr 8, 2018 at 23:19 | comment | added | Ben Voigt | I'm suggesting having a deposit account with the same bank, with sufficient balance to cover the purchases, and auto-pay set up so you can't forget. The reason for the extra effort vs a debit card or secured card are that the terms are significantly better, vis-a-vis rewards (like cashback), benefits (like free insurance or price matching), consumer protection (when an item arrives defective, or fraud occurs). Also, pre-authorizations don't play nicely with debit cards, and some hotels and rental car companies won't accept a debit card at all. Building credit history is a secondary bonus. | |
| Apr 8, 2018 at 22:54 | comment | added | pojo-guy | Ah ... so you're suggesting pay into the card before acquiring the goods. Why go to the extra effort when you can use a debit card instead? | |
| Apr 8, 2018 at 20:29 | comment | added | Ben Voigt | And none of those definitions or examples include the case where the balance is positive. | |
| Apr 8, 2018 at 20:21 | comment | added | pojo-guy | Dictionary.com: Debt: noun 1. something that is owed or that one is bound to pay to or perform for another: a debt of $50. 2. a liability or obligation to pay or render something: My debt to her for advice is not to be discharged easily. 3. the condition of being under such an obligation: His gambling losses put him deeply in debt. | |
| Apr 8, 2018 at 20:18 | comment | added | Ben Voigt | It's a liability which balances an asset, but it's not debt unless net of (assets - liabilities) which are linked together becomes negative. Several forms of linking exist, a secured card has the asset directly in the same account (still not the same as a debit card), but generally having credit card and deposit account in the same accountholder name at the same institution will form such a link (via auto-pay and "setoff" agreements). | |
| Apr 8, 2018 at 20:14 | comment | added | pojo-guy | Every time you use the credit card, you establish debt. It may be short term, but it is disingenious to say paying it (the debt) off each month is the same as having no debt. | |
| Apr 8, 2018 at 20:09 | comment | added | Ben Voigt | No debt doesn't have to mean no credit score. You can use a credit card as a charge card, paying it off each month within the grace period (or even earlier). That won't maximize your score (because it doesn't maximize lender profit) but it will establish a credit report showing a history of financial responsibility. | |
| Aug 16, 2017 at 2:34 | history | answered | pojo-guy | CC BY-SA 3.0 |