Shopping wisely using credit card
By omchesunche
@omchesunche (1755)
Indonesia
December 18, 2011 9:11am CST
Credit cards such as the seductive temptation. Stay friction, your payment is safe and comfortable walking anywhere. Not only that, credit cards offer many discounts at various stores, restaurants or hotels. However, behind it all, credit cards can also cause problems if you do not use it wisely. You have made ??complacent by the use of credit cards are easy to make you keep swiping a credit card regardless of the obligations that must be paid at the end of the month. Unconscious, credit card bills already high and almost reach the limit.. This sometimes happened when we are shopping in sale season, If we unable to use it wisely then we will ended up to pay more than we expected and we have difficulty to control our expense since we must reserved our monthly budget for credit card bills payment only...I know credit card is already way of life and most of the people will feel comfort when using it..
How about you? How do you handle this problem and shopping wisely using credit card?
2 people like this
13 responses
@sender621 (14894)
• United States
19 Dec 11
Being cautious shoukd come with any kind of shopping. uisn a credit card is easy and convenient for our shopping needs, but we do need to tak care of it use. tracking these purchases can mean a lot to your credit and your buying needs. Anyone can use your credit card without youre knowledge and you end up paying the prie. you can never be too careful.1 person likes this
@omchesunche (1755)
• Indonesia
30 Dec 11
Well, that was good point my friend.. I also observed this kind of credit card criminal mode.. My friend has this experience, when he used his credit card somewhere in boutique shop, I guess the shop is small one..He found the credit card bill getting increment after using it there and it confirmed when he called the credit card service center, then he called a police to do investigation.. Lucky he got save and all the credit card unknown bill has been rejected by the credit card provider..I think we need to be careful when it comes to using it.. especially for online, I believe better to
@randylovesdar (4932)
• United States
18 Dec 11
My goal for this year is to pay off my credit card debt (I have one that I owe quite a bit of money to). I am trying to pay it off. I am going to contact company and see if I can have them freeze the account (I hope they can do this) so I can pay it down. I am hoping to make money online as well as trying hard to get a job so I can pay it off and start saving up for a new house. Unfortunatly, my credit card debt was a result of us needing things (my husband had lost his job twice) and we had to have certain things such as heat and electricity. I did splurge and bought one meal out (we were both upset and needed a night a out).
1 person likes this
@omchesunche (1755)
• Indonesia
30 Dec 11
Well, I also pray hard for your to be able to succeed to pay off your credit card debt.. I also having same experienced and can only effort to pay the minimum payment which really terrible and seems the interests always high and high and really hard to close the account.. However, I finally succeed to freeze 2 out of 5 credit cards I have, even I closed those two to ensure not tempted to using it again..I think we must really has good resolution and make it priority, otherwise we always live with debt for the rest of our live..
Appreciate for your response..
@omchesunche (1755)
• Indonesia
29 Dec 11
well, you are right my friend.. I also still have temptation to buy stuffs I don’t really need..Like I still have good television but I really want to buy new television , the new plasma model..It has cheaper than it used to be but still consider costly..I am now enjoy to watch nice television but really suffer to buy credit card bill every month.. I am not sure when I could stop to use and have zero bill…I have experienced to pay all the bill until zero but I tempted to using it again and now ended up burden with credit card debt once again…appreciate your response..
@moneywinner (1864)
• Brazil
30 Dec 11
I always try to pay everything with money, but, of course, I always carry my credit card with me in case I don't have enough money, but only in special cases. This way I reduced my credit card bill without needing to worry about that.
@davaome (1826)
• Philippines
18 Dec 11
I don't have a credit card now, and I don't plan on getting one anytime soon. because I know myself, and I believe i am an "impulsive" buyer. even without the credit card, just merely using the paper bills i can't even control myself, how much more if it was just merely swiping. Swipe here, swipe there, I don't want to live in the streets anytime soon.
but
Many people are very comfortable using these credit cards, maybe because they can control themselves not like me, and if only it was possible for me to be like them, then, i wouldn't have to worry about using it.
I think the best way, for me, would be that you set your priorities, and separate the wants, from the needs, accomplish first your needs, and when you have extra, you can use it on your "wants".
But I must say, this is "EASIER SAID THAN DONE"
@JER616 (545)
• Philippines
19 Dec 11
I am also an impulsive buyer like you, davaome. However, I was compelled to get a credit card because of my need then to register to a site that promises online part-time jobs. With the credit card, I did and was also beneficial in part when I was confined twice this year.
But, unfortunately, return from such investment registering to online jobs is slow and the debts resulting from swiping the card every now and then were doubly, if not triple, fast.
Heist! Now I have to use my 13th month pay just to pay off!
1 person likes this
@omchesunche (1755)
• Indonesia
29 Dec 11
Well, you have good points my mate.. Many people like me even feel difficult to control the credit card usage in the long run..I think must start to determine the priorities from now on, I must know which one must to buy and nice to buy. It just like to differentiate between what we need and what we want. I believe we must be really discipline if we want to survived in the long run..I am not sure how to do it but seems can start with the ones you have suggested…appreciate your response my friends..Jer,I am also really sorry for you..I can imagine what a dissapointment if our 13th month salary just to pay those bill..
@chrishelpful (2)
• Canada
18 Dec 11
Simply I never bring my credit card shopping with me, its a terrible tool I only use paper money so I can monitor and control how much I am spending. I only use my credit card online and then pay the amount immediately after I have bought what I wanted.
1 person likes this
@omchesunche (1755)
• Indonesia
29 Dec 11
Well, that was really wise decision my friend.. sometimes I also want to do the same thing but easier to use credit card and more safer..The problem is we unable to control our desire to buy anything we want since we think that we still have credit card in our hand..As long as we can pay a minimum amount of money than should be fine..understand that we really hard to hold ours..If we have enough cash money maybe it was great if we live in the safe country..I also use my credit card for online transaction, it really comfortable and safe as well…appreciate your response my friend..
@maximax8 (31046)
• United Kingdom
25 Dec 11
I have two credit cards. One I pay it off in full every month. I buy things on-line with it because it is safer than using my debit card. I suffered fraud on my bank account and they said to get a credit card for safer spending. I found a zero percent deal for sixteen months on a credit card so I applied for that and got it. I bought my flight on it which cost loads. I pay off a bit each month but not the full amount. Yes, the sales are now coming up and will be tempting.
@marguicha (223010)
• Chile
24 Dec 11
Credit cards are made to get into debt for credit cannot be had without interests and taxes, but on the other hand it is the most sure way of having money when you need it.
I use my credit card to buy almost everything and that helps me keep an account of where I spent my money. It also helps when I´´m traveling. But I only buy what I can pay ,so I pay mu credit card at the end of each month, as soon as I have my money.
@marguicha (223010)
• Chile
26 Dec 11
The way I have my credit card helping me instead of becoming a foe is by paying it all every month. I use it for safety here and abroad as I do not need to carry large amounts of money. But if I don´t have the money to buy something, I don´t buy it. I suppose that, in case of emergency, I would pay in installments, as you would any loan. By that I mean if I had to pay a big hospital bill and such. But I will not use it for clothes, appliances or jewelry. I can save for that and buy them later.
@starsailover (7829)
• Mexico
19 Dec 11
Hi omchesunche: In my case, the best way I have to control the temptation of buy without any control just because I have a credit card on my hands is imagining that I'm paying things using my own cash, so even if I'm using my credit card I make plans form the next three or four months and I use it on things I can afford to buy in the near future so my credit card won't become a headache after I buy.
ALVARO
@triplejazzm51 (1373)
• Philippines
19 Dec 11
Hi! having credit cards has advantages and disadvantages. I have credit cards, but it was very useful to me when i was paying my equity for the condo unit i bought 4 years ago. Everytime i am short of cash, i make a cash advance from my card so i can pay for my equity but it took me two years before i was able to pay for it. I am not really an impulsive buyer i only use it for the necessary things we need but the problem is i could not afford to pay the whole amount before it earn interest. This month i applied for a payment arrangement with the credit company for the two cards. I still have two but i seldom use them. With my experience with credit cards, i could say that my life is better when i don't have a credit card.
@JER616 (545)
• Philippines
19 Dec 11
So true indeed. Recently, I have come to experienced the good and bad side of having a credit card. Within this year only, I was hospitalized twice. To avail of a substantial discount the hospital offers as an employee of its sister firm, I used the credit card paying off a whooping sum of Php 40K plus.
This month, because of those two big swiping feat, I immediately reached my credit limit. To pay off, I will have to use the 13th month pay I will be getting with an expectation of a big balance still! This will require me to pay series of huge sums in a couple of months from now just to wipe off such balance. However, since I will be paying in installments, this will mean that my payments will be first applied to finance charges for not paying the entire principal balance on time.
With this experience, I intend to leave the card at home while paying off my bills. I just hope that I won't anymore get sick and be confined again.
