Having gotten one relatively recently it's not as complex as you'd think... but then that just begs the question of what these people do to owe literally THOUSANDS, like I just pay my card off and don't go into debt, it's really that simple.
yeah, the credit card is a tool to make spending money easier. fraud protection on credit cards in the states is better than any debit card, so it's more secure than any other option (cash, checks). make your selections, zip zap, the money moves. and the user can check their spending categories because there's a record. i love that shit.
i think where it breaks down is how the time period between swiping and actually paying for the charge can decouple the two events in our minds. combine that with how crap wages are, driving down savings, and a sudden emergency expense (car repair) can give someone a balance, that is now taking on very high interest. if they can't pay it off immediately, it now makes some other typical expenses take on interest as the balance is carried.
the "credit card float" is the term that the personal finance community uses for that window and makes a big point about making sure not to pay any utilities with a credit card, because it essentially keeps you "behind" on paying bills. it took me a bit to understand that conceptually, but the recommendation is to pay all bills/utilities straight from one's bank immediately because if you lost your job/income, you wouldn't still be on the hook for last month's bills + this month's at the same time. i know once i made that switch, i felt the bite of "catching up" immediately and realized how it was another trap and it wasn't really adding convenience in the way swiping a credit card at a store does. not to mention, utilities are always hitting us with "convenience fees" anymore, lol.
i HIGHLY recommend having a credit card that doesn't have any foreign transaction fees too in case you ever find yourself in another country. It makes everything SO much easier and you're protected from the various scams you might run into as well.
Having gotten one relatively recently it's not as complex as you'd think... but then that just begs the question of what these people do to owe literally THOUSANDS, like I just pay my card off and don't go into debt, it's really that simple.
yeah, the credit card is a tool to make spending money easier. fraud protection on credit cards in the states is better than any debit card, so it's more secure than any other option (cash, checks). make your selections, zip zap, the money moves. and the user can check their spending categories because there's a record. i love that shit.
i think where it breaks down is how the time period between swiping and actually paying for the charge can decouple the two events in our minds. combine that with how crap wages are, driving down savings, and a sudden emergency expense (car repair) can give someone a balance, that is now taking on very high interest. if they can't pay it off immediately, it now makes some other typical expenses take on interest as the balance is carried.
the "credit card float" is the term that the personal finance community uses for that window and makes a big point about making sure not to pay any utilities with a credit card, because it essentially keeps you "behind" on paying bills. it took me a bit to understand that conceptually, but the recommendation is to pay all bills/utilities straight from one's bank immediately because if you lost your job/income, you wouldn't still be on the hook for last month's bills + this month's at the same time. i know once i made that switch, i felt the bite of "catching up" immediately and realized how it was another trap and it wasn't really adding convenience in the way swiping a credit card at a store does. not to mention, utilities are always hitting us with "convenience fees" anymore, lol.
i HIGHLY recommend having a credit card that doesn't have any foreign transaction fees too in case you ever find yourself in another country. It makes everything SO much easier and you're protected from the various scams you might run into as well.