credit card...a good thing or a bad thing?

I couldn't agree with you more. Sadly at one time I misused my credit badly and in return I ended up with bad credit. I had 3 credit cards and misused them and ended up having to hire a negotiator to pay off of cards (ugh long story there) However, I decided to one day end my excuses for my actions, dust myself off and make a new start. I got myself a secured card and never pulled out my report (as that lowers your score too) and never even thought of applying for credit that I would be denied too (that also would lower your score). I faithfully paid my bills on time and within 18 months my score went up almost 200 points. I now have good credit just by doing that. So if you pay your bills on time and don't go over your limit, you will be okay.

I totally agree with you If you are not a responsible person then you should not apply for a credit card simple as that. or anything that can give you credit. I was really bad with my credit when I was younger and could not get a credit card until about a year ago and the only company that would give me one was Capital one. I am a very responsible person now and always make sure I can pay bills so that I don't fall into the trap of losing my credit again.

Credit cards are like sharp-edged knifes. A knife can be used to do many constructive/ useful jobs. But, if you do not handle it properly, you will cut your hands and you will bleed. Same goes with credit cards. They are handy, easy to use and you also get some rewards/ discount for using it. But, if you do not pay it at the end of the month then the interest charges are going to mount on you. Credit cards are good, but needs careful use.

Having credit cards, lead to purchasing spree. So vigourous it is, one lands up paying double/triple, as sometime your actual money avl'ble with you is very less compared to what you have purchased. One just pays minimum, and for the balance, the meter for balance starts and never ends. One should know his/her bank balance and with the credit card one should prudently use it within his/her capacity. Having more and more credit cards is a fashion of this day and there are umpteen number of banks/institutions to brand their presence. Your money should be rightly spent. Bank people only get the CREDIT of scapgoating others!~!~

Well said maxsee212, people using credit cards that can not pay them back, is a big issue for me. The way I look at things when it comes to that. Is it is no different then stealing. why go into a store put something on plastic when they no they can not pay it back. I have a few people with in my family that has done that. Cousin's and it really fires me up. I have a few credit cards and have always paid what I owe on them.

For me, credit card is a good thing, because from the very first day of having a credit card, my parents have teach me how to use it properly and with responsibility. I have a credit card that has a 55 days free interest period, therefore, since I hate to spend more money, I always try (so far always succeed) to pay the bills on time and never accrued interest. I always make sure I have enough money in my account to cover the bills, and I only use the credit card to buy whatever I usually need to buy anyways. Recently, I was furnishing my house, so buying all the white goods, there is one this credit card that have promotional period to have 40 months interest free and allowing me to pay the items in installment per month. The whole thing only cost me about $50 per month for fridge and washing machine... therefore I would say it is a very good bargain and a good thing to have a credit card in cases like this. For people that are not responsible, or are not great with organizing their money, I would suggest not to use credit card as you may be depth in debt without realising.

Credit card is not good thing though it makes comfortable if you have money to repay, but it equally bad as it has got high rate of interest.

everything has its own good and bad effect and credit cards are not an exemption, i have 5 cards and i also have tough times paying them but i have no regrets because i know that i spent all of those debts for my family. having a credit card is a good thing, it can be your best friend that you can turn to in times of needs, you just have to learn how to manage it so as not to drown in its high interest rate.

I think everything has its advantages and disadvantages. Such as internet, we can't always say it is a bad thing. It is the same for credit card. In my opinion, I still tend to say credit card is a good thing. If you can control of your purchase, it's nothing wrong to use credit card. At least you can pay for it next month.

When credit card in a pocket, people behave like that the shopping is free for them!! But you have to keep it in mind that you have to pay for it afterwards! If you have a credit card, you expenses can go beyond your budget. This is really bad thing. But there are also good points of having credit card that you don't have to carry cash all the time.

I totally agree, credit cards are bad bad news if you do not have the money or the income to pay it back in a quick time. The only person I ever knew a credit card to work for was my grandad, he would use it to buy something and have it paid off by the end of the next month, he never got into debt with it. Me on the other hand, used one once and spent a couple of years trying to get rid of it. Pleased to say that we did get rid and we now do not touch them at all. If we cannot afford we dont have as simple as that. The amount of people I know who are in debt to these things is unbelievable and they worry themselves silly and juggle from one card to another trying to get the interest rates down, its just not worth it. They are a scary piece of plastic really.

I think credit cards can be excellent if you keep paid up and do not run a balance. I messed myself up royally by not keeping paid up in full and its ruined my credit standing.

well everything has its dis and advantages..so it is with the credit cards. advantages? Well, it provides you with an alternative payment if you don't bring enough cash. Some banks also offer discounts or special offers, which benefits you. disadvantages? Firstly, you don't really notice how much u have spent, leading to a deficit in your bank's account. By paying with cash, u'll easily notice how much you have spent and thus preventing you to buy unnessary things. Additionnaly, credit cards usually distribute informations about discounts, special offers, etc; leading you to buy the things that u don't really need. Furthermore, for every purchase they'll charge you a certain interest. With that interest you could buy other eseential products.

You are exactly right. When you get a credit card you don't need to use it unless you will have the money to pay it off. Some people use them and just get in over their heads and never get out of debt. And that is really sad. If they would have used the card correctly then they would never have any problems.

credit cards are a bad thing if you do not know how to manage your finances well. i have seen to many people whose debt are so over what they can afford just because they use their credit cards too much and the interests just grew bigger than the principal amount.

Hahaha credit cards are always bad for me....i am not a right person to have these cards in my wallet. i can't stop using them and by the end of the day i realized that i have a mounting of debts. I have quit using cards and I think cash are much better. This teaches me to works hard then only can spend money...not spending first and pay later....

i think credit card may a goog thing also may a bad thing.Using credit card is convenient for shopping ,i don't need to take much cash.the credit cards of some bank have preferential policy .if you use credit card consuming to reach a level ,the bank will send to some gifts,the gift certificate of shopping mall and so on. but once we use credit card ,we must study how to control our consume not out of our economic ability.if we can't repay the money we spend by credit card ,it's dangerous.

So true, yet if everyone could pay it back immediately they wouldn't need a card. My personal finances revolve around having 1 major card,which I use as needed. By having only 1 I am aware of the balance and don't exceed my limits. I try to keep it around for emergencies and never take it with me when out shopping so I don't splurge on unnecessary items. Hope your credit philosophy is spread, its a good one for people to follow!

I think credit cards are good so long as you have the self discipline to keep your spending within your means. I put most of my purchases on a credit card and pay it off in full every month. (If I can't afford to pay it, then I don't put the purchase on the credit card in the first place.) Paying the card off every month means that I don't pay any interest. I think it's actually about every 3 weeks that I pay it since it has a grace period of 25 days interest-free. Using the card and paying more than the minimum has helped build good credit. I have a cash-back card, so I get 1% of the money spent paid back to me. This makes it better than using cash! Another benefit of using a credit card (or debit card) instead of cash is that you have a list of all your purchases, making it easy to see where you money is going.

Credit cards are good if you know how to handle your finances properly. If not careful in using credit cards, you might end up having a bills piling up.