Omega Owners Forum
Chat Area => General Discussion Area => Topic started by: JamesV6CDX on 03 July 2008, 15:07:32
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I have three credit cards, all clear, and I don't owe anything on any of them anymore.
Barclaycard, 3500 limit
Virgin, 5000 limit
Nationwide, £3500 limit
I am itching to cancel these cards so I don't end up being tempted to use one and getting into debt. But I am having second thoughts about this. Although my credit score is 100%, borrowing is becoming very difficult with the credit crunch, so if I did cancel these cards and found I ever did need one again, I may not be able to get one...
Discuss! :D
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depends on your willpower.i recently got rid of all of mine and felt a lot better for it. :y
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I've got a virgin credit card with £11000 limit, an egg card with £6000 and a guaranteed overdraft of £5000 with an APR of 9.9%. I'm not using them but I'm certainly not cancelling them either.
Just show some restraint laddie. ;D
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Credit cards ae a bad way to borrow money, so if you did find you needed to in future, they wouldn't be the best way anyway and you'd be better off applying for a loan.
Depends on willpower, as said. Credit cards can be useful for shifting expenses to the end of the month / pay day without incurring interest charges, but if you suspect the temptation is going to be to spend faster then you earn, chop them up.
Kevin
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I'm keeping all mine.
But then I've never bought what I can't afford, so they always get paid off every month (except when I forget :-[).
I struggle to understand people who are tempted to buy what they can't afford - I could understand if something happened and had to buy food etc temporarily, but not 'luxories' :-/
I have a preapproved 'loan option' on my mortgage of around £40k, that, if used, is charged at mortgage rate, the bank wrote to me asking if they could reduce this to £100 (from £40k). I guess they think I am bad risk, or they really need the money!
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I'm keeping all mine.
But then I've never bought what I can't afford, so they always get paid off every month (except when I forget :-[).
I struggle to understand people who are tempted to buy what they can't afford - I could understand if something happened and had to buy food etc temporarily, but not 'luxories' :-/
I have a preapproved 'loan option' on my mortgage of around £40k, that, if used, is charged at mortgage rate, the bank wrote to me asking if they could reduce this to £100 (from £40k). I guess they think I am bad risk, or they really need the money!
Are you sure? ;D ;D ;D
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I keep the Asda and Shell ones as I get discount of fuel. I keep the Barclaycard, purely to piss those gay tossers off. Amex is corporate.
I always use credit cards online for (slightly) extra protection.
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I keep the Asda and Shell ones as I get discount of fuel. I keep the Barclaycard, purely to piss those gay tossers off. Amex is corporate.
I always use credit cards online for (slightly) extra protection.
This is weird. Change your avatar Jaime, I keep thinking you're Mark.
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Credit cards, I cant live with them ,but sadly cant live without them either.
Iam working on the theory that if i borrow enough then i can get completely out of debt........... :y :y :y :y :y :y :y :y
PS. If i was not married i would not have this problem..... :P :P :P
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I keep the Asda and Shell ones as I get discount of fuel. I keep the Barclaycard, purely to piss those gay tossers off. Amex is corporate.
I always use credit cards online for (slightly) extra protection.
This is weird. Change your avatar Jaime, I keep thinking you're Mark.
Eh?
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;) I don`t have any credit cards; I might be living hand-to-mouth but at least there`s no monthly card-debt/demands/bailiffs to keep me awake at night. :y
[size=9]Henry David Thoreau
Simplicity, simplicity, simplicity! I say let your affairs be as one, two, three and to a hundred or a thousand… We are happy in proportion to the things we can do without.[/size]
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I keep the Asda and Shell ones as I get discount of fuel. I keep the Barclaycard, purely to piss those gay tossers off. Amex is corporate.
I always use credit cards online for (slightly) extra protection.
This is weird. Change your avatar Jaime, I keep thinking you're Mark.
Eh?
You haven't noticed? :o
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Ah, just clear cache >:(
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depends on your willpower.i recently got rid of all of mine and felt a lot better for it. :y
Not really feasible in 2008.
Try booking a hotel room or paying for a hire car without plastic.It also means no internet purchases. :o
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Cut them! The lenders will ALWAYS be willing to lend to peps. The media has hyped it all out of proportion at the moment. There is no need to cancel the card accounts... just cut them up so you cant use them.
They may even raise your limit and give you good incentive to use it again... but as the consumer all of this goes in your favour James! ;)
Enjoy the position of being able to choose! :y :y
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;) I don`t have any credit cards; I might be living hand-to-mouth but at least there`s no monthly card-debt/demands/bailiffs to keep me awake at night. :y
[size=9]Henry David Thoreau
Simplicity, simplicity, simplicity! I say let your affairs be as one, two, three and to a hundred or a thousand… We are happy in proportion to the things we can do without.[/size]
:y :y :y Sounds good to me Debs!
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Credit cards ae a bad way to borrow money, so if you did find you needed to in future, they wouldn't be the best way anyway and you'd be better off applying for a loan.
Kevin
True, but if you lose your job, or suffer any other financial disaster, just see how fast the other sources of lending disappear!
Keep your credit cards, use them occasionally, and pay them off as rapidly as you can - same month if possible. If you are ever unfortunate enough to need to borrow money, and the banks won't lend to you, the cards are a safety net.
I've got quite a large amount on a 12 month interest free arrangement - balance transfers are very useful! If I can't find a new transfer at the end of the 12 months, I may have to sell the shares. Of course, I could have done that instead of incurring the loan, but then I would have missed the capital appreciation and dividends. :)Credit cards aren't all bad... :)
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Personally I'd cut up the cards but leave the accounts open, that way if you NEED credit you can contact the bank and get one reissued but you're not tempted to shove an impulse purchase on the plastic.
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Personally I'd cut up the cards but leave the accounts open, that way if you NEED credit you can contact the bank and get one reissued but you're not tempted to shove an impulse purchase on the plastic.
:y :y :y
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Depends on personal discipline but I would keep and not use them (or use and pay off at the end of the month as I do).
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I use only 2 credit cards with a dropped limit like 3 months salary..
And clear the debt nearly monthly..
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;) I don`t have any credit cards; I might be living hand-to-mouth but at least there`s no monthly card-debt/demands/bailiffs to keep me awake at night. :y
Good sentiment Debs but iam sorry but i dont think it will work to well in 2008
But ,you are in good company .My old gran said the same thing..............in about 1932
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Get rid of your credit cards.
If you do need 1, get 1 that gives you cash back at the end of the year.
Or
Tesco credit card, every little helps, 2 points for every £1 you spend ISO 1 point per £ on Tesco's club card.
As to me, i no longer have ANY CC.
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Ive always prefererd to have nothing, or 0, than to owe, or a negative. I have not used a credit card for 10 years, although I still own 2. I keep them... well I dont know why I keep them TBH!
I do hammer the maestro card on a daily basis. I got into quite a bit of debt as a stupid student... now Im an older stupid student. I just like to know where everything is in a linear way... I tend to have OCD tendancies when it comes to money. ::) ::)
But Im sure 2008 and beyond will prove to be a very big struggle for many. I have felt the squeeze but I am fortunate compared to many and I feel for those who suffer the most.... those who have the most to loose in real terms. >:(
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Good sentiment Debs but iam sorry but i dont think it will work to well in 2008
But ,you are in good company .My old gran said the same thing..............in about 1932
Not really a 'sentiment'; for, I doubt if anyone would offer me a C.C on my income......anyway, what`s wrong with saving and waiting awhile for the things one desires, rather than satiating an immediate wish at the expense of worrysome and burdensome debt? :-/
'1932'.....I guess then I`m to be considered; 'old-fashioned' ;D
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Keep them and do not use them - well do use them for little things then pay off in full.
If you need them then you have them.
Keep them for emergencies
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As long as there's no annual fee then keep them. That's what I've done! We now buy everything on the3 plastic and pay it off every month! It's about time the banks helped me out!! :y :y :y :y :y
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Credit cards can be cheaper than a loan.
If you balance transfer an amount on to a card offering 0% interest, they will charge you 2-3% handling fee.
This means that for 1 year you can say borrow £3000 at 3% interest.
NOW that's far better than any bank loan. ;) ;) ;)
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depends on your willpower.i recently got rid of all of mine and felt a lot better for it. :y
Not really feasible in 2008.
Try booking a hotel room or paying for a hire car without plastic.It also means no internet purchases. :o
I use my debit card......if the monies not there, then i dont buy it.
So without cc's you still can book hotel rooms etc.
But i think i agree with Mr Zok........as long as the cc companies dont close your account for lack of use :-/
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I have opened up 2 cards in the past "just in case"... both have been closed by the provider for lack of use.
Since then I came across the Tesco CC... its excellent. I only use it to buy my groceries and fuel and pay it off full each month - but it does bring alot of perks when combined with the Clubcard - on average £60 a month of money off vouchers when i do about £600 on the card.
Does me fine - but the key is paying it off every month without fail!
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I use my credit card for internet/telephone purchases rather than my debit card as it is protected and gives you added protection on goods you buy. (Don't even use street cash machines with my debit card). Pay full balance off each month and have never paid a penny interest on it. :)
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i have about eight cards and when i am at an end of an interest period i find another card wants to do a balance transfer for me at zero% for another period. so rarely pay interest.
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Captain Zok already added my sentiment.
Your credit rating is boosted by having, but not abusing credit cards, but if you feel tempted - you can't spend on them if they're in the bin - but you can get them reissued if needed later on.
So bin them - but leave the account open. :y
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For what it's worth, my opinion is that credit will always be available for the credit worthy.
If you can prove that you can pay it back, and the lender will make some money out of you, then you will be able to get credit.
I've just taken out a large mortgage on a fixed rate deal and had an offer within 24 hours. My biggest problem was stopping the building socitey completing before the end of my existing fixed rate deal.
Don't get too sucked in with stories about lack of credit. After all, these stories pay the bills of the people writing them.
I must add though, if you need unsecured credit then you probably shouldn't be allowed it. ;)
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Buy a mini safe, seal them in an envelope, loads and loads of sellotape, lock them in the safe, and hide it as deep into a cupboard as it will fit. Then forget about them.
If you then find you need to book a holiday and need the cards insurnce cover incase things go wrong then at least you have the cards to fall back on.
With all the polava you will go through digging them out you will have worked out whether or not you NEED to use the card for an insured transaction or just want to use the card.
Either way,you will work it out, if you use the card, pay if off within the period and lock it away again.
DICIPLINE is the only way to maintain your credit card.