Anyone just not use credit cards at all?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think what you’re looking for is not advice about credit cards, you are looking to see how people budget when they are mostly commission.

Sounds like you need to live off base only for a year and then use that years bonus to budget forward for the year so you don’t incur debt.

This is correct. OP needs a budget. Its foolish not to use a CC for many of the reasons people stated - fraud protection, security, cash/points, etc.

Only thing that makes me ever question the use of a CC is that many in the Intelligence Community strictly use cash...

What exactly are you implying here? Lol

Not implying anything, because it's entirely untrue. PP is going off spy fiction from 20 years ago.

[Anonymous]

I don’t like using my debit card due to the fraud issue. But I swear by pulling out cash for the week and spending only that. But I don’t work on commission which makes that easier.

OP, I would budget from your base and accumulate the rest. You’ll be amazed at how much extra you have when times are good.

[Anonymous]

Ive never not paid off my credit card when the balance was due. I love credit cards, earning points, the freedom to keep my $ in savings until the due date.

I hear about people getting into trouble with cc, but if you just pay it off it's not much different than cash or debit. If you choose to stick your head in the sand and ignore your bills of course its not going to go well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I pay for everything by credit. Only the mortgage isn't paid by credit. Pay off the balance promptly every month. I get points. A lot of points. It's worth it. Haven't seen or touched cash in years.

I’m looking for people in my situation. Not sure why it’s worth mentioning this. This is basically everyone else.

What is your situation? Are you charging more money than you can pay off in a month? And you blame it on your commission irregularities? If you are high income, you just build up savings to smooth drops in income, and treat credit card like a debit card (ie on auto pay to pay off balance every month). It has nothing to do with stable job or not; people have drops in income for all sorts of reasons like job loss, illness, that’s why you have cash funds.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The problem with a debit card is you have zero protections. If your cc gets hacked, you could legally be responsible for $50, which most cards will waive (getting hacked is part of the cost of doing business now). If your debit card gets hacked, too bad so sad for you - the bank is not required to make you whole.

Like others have posted, we pay off our cc in full every month and use the points for travel

I loathe my debit card for a variety of reasons, but you aren’t liable for fraud there either.

It just takes longer and you checking account will be empty while they investigate which can have cascading problems.

https://www.bankrate.com/banking/checking/risky-places-to-use-debit-card/#:~:text=Consumers%20aren't%20liable%20for,can%20give%20your%20money%20back.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP we only use debit cards. We overspend on credit cards so we just don’t use them.

One of us is in sales with 50% of income coming in from commissions. We just don’t count on it and try to live off of our base salaries, which can be challenging but is doable.

Really confused how a credit card vs debit card changes this; do you really go to make purchase and the account is empty so it stops you??

[Anonymous]

Autopay is the best. There are so many annoying little monthly accounts it’s nice not to have to worry about them.

I use cash primarily because I like to and I don’t care about risks vs benefits. I have a credit card and a debit card. My dh gives me $3,000 in cash every month because I’m not working and he likes to even though I don’t need so much money. I do deposit cash into my account when I have an excess in my draw.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP we only use debit cards. We overspend on credit cards so we just don’t use them.

One of us is in sales with 50% of income coming in from commissions. We just don’t count on it and try to live off of our base salaries, which can be challenging but is doable.

Really confused how a credit card vs debit card changes this; do you really go to make purchase and the account is empty so it stops you??

Yes. You can opt out of overdraft protection which means you can only spend what’s in your account.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The problem with a debit card is you have zero protections. If your cc gets hacked, you could legally be responsible for $50, which most cards will waive (getting hacked is part of the cost of doing business now). If your debit card gets hacked, too bad so sad for you - the bank is not required to make you whole.

Like others have posted, we pay off our cc in full every month and use the points for travel

That's not true. Federal law also limits liability for unauthorized debit card charges. The exact limit depends on how your account was compromised (i.e., whether the card itself was stolen or just the number) and how quickly you report the loss, but are generally $0 or $50 unless you wait too long to report. The details are here:

https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/lost-or-stolen-credit-atm-and-debit-cards

The big issue with using a debit card isn't the loss limit, it's that it provide direct access to your checking account. Unauthorized credit card charges can be disputed and don't have to be paid while they're in dispute. Unauthorized debit card charges reduce your account balance until resolved. And for people who don't have a lot of money in their accounts, that reduced balance could cause other payments to bounce. That, IMO, is the reason not to use debit cards—not that there are no protections for them.

+1

[Anonymous]

I can't use CC because I have not been responsible with them. It's like having an alcohol problem. I overindulge on CC.

I wish I could use them for points and vacations, but I can't, so I just avoid them. More power to everyone else who is responsible and pays them off every month!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I can't use CC because I have not been responsible with them. It's like having an alcohol problem. I overindulge on CC.

I wish I could use them for points and vacations, but I can't, so I just avoid them. More power to everyone else who is responsible and pays them off every month!

Many debit cards give points and cash back

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What’s the difference in paying off the balance every month and using a debit card? Surely you’re not suggesting we carry around a bunch of cash like some paranoid German?

Lol, never heard that before and my family is German. We love our credit cards! Debit, not so much.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Autopay is the best. There are so many annoying little monthly accounts it’s nice not to have to worry about them.

I use cash primarily because I like to and I don’t care about risks vs benefits. I have a credit card and a debit card. My dh gives me $3,000 in cash every month because I’m not working and he likes to even though I don’t need so much money. I do deposit cash into my account when I have an excess in my draw.

Why on earth is he giving you cash? That's asking to be robbed.

[Anonymous]

Someone said to me once “ use a cc for convenience not for credit” and it has stuck with me. I like using it for Amazon, getting gas, online purchases etc.
I don’t use a debit card except at Costco because my checking account is kind of low and I don’t want to worry I’ll overdraw.
I pay my cc off monthly.
Also I like the cash back it gives me with no annual fee.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Autopay is the best. There are so many annoying little monthly accounts it’s nice not to have to worry about them.

I use cash primarily because I like to and I don’t care about risks vs benefits. I have a credit card and a debit card. My dh gives me $3,000 in cash every month because I’m not working and he likes to even though I don’t need so much money. I do deposit cash into my account when I have an excess in my draw.

Why doesn't he just transfer your allowance into the account automatically?