The off topic thread 4.0

[SM]

Yeah, but many will be irresponsible and reckless and have no idea how to manage their debt. You're obviously an exception to the rule which is good.

I reckon it's a culmination


I don't know, I haven't really thought about it.

We don't struggle though.

Wife and I get paid on alternating weeks.

Some goes to home loan
Some goes to an annual expenses account (IE for insurances etc)
Bulk goes to long term savings
Remainder stays in every day account

And if your every day account is getting low but you know you'll be able to afford something when your next pay comes in? I just don't really understand the concept of someone delaying buying something purely because the company they work for has deemed that they'll get paid fortnightly/monthly when you can - free of charge - choose to buy things when you want from the same amount of money.

Plus you can get points - I paid for about $300 of my flights to Melbourne from points earned on my Credit Card (though this does incur an annual card charge so not exactly free) - you get a credit rating, as Fwoy says you get the benefit of your cash sitting in your offst, etc. etc.

There's no downside if you have a shred of self control.

And what triggered this conversation was gambling mechanisms on credit cards. I'm of the opinion that we don't need to be treated like children. If people want to ruin their lives with debt then sucks to be them but those of us who can actually manage our finances shouldn't be punished. I mean we already have Super as a mandatory savings program, how much more do we need the government holding our hand with our finances?

 

[Cruyff14]

Yeah, plenty of self control which definitely is not an issue.

I just prefer not having a CC, doubt I'll ever get one.

Each to their own at the end of the day, and if you can keep on top of it, definitely not a bad thing.

 

[SM]

Yeah, plenty of self control which definitely is not an issue.

I just prefer not having a CC, doubt I'll ever get one.

Each to their own at the end of the day, and if you can keep on top of it, definitely not a bad thing.

If you have self control what are you afraid of? I just can't really get my head around it. Seems you have a baselessly negative association with credit cards?

Just seems strange to me but I guess financially illiterate people (speaking generally not at you) tend not to look into the benefits of things?

 

[Cruyff14]

What we have works now, we pay as we go. Most of our utilities are in credit or we owe very minimal come bill time. We always have enough money in the bank and if we fall into a difficult situation, we have our other accounts we can lean on.

 

[Cruyff14]

On a different note, dad had a check up at Peter Mac yesterday. The cancer cells have slightly decreased and his liver function has also improved. Nice to have some good news in all of this.

 

[Thistle]

You don't think having a smooth cash flow instead of a lumpy one is beneficial?

Do you hang out for pay day because it means you can to buy a new shirt or book or whatever?

With proper budgeting you can do all this with the need for a credit card.

If you have self control what are you afraid of? I just can't really get my head around it. Seems you have a baselessly negative association with credit cards?

Just seems strange to me but I guess financially illiterate people (speaking generally not at you) tend not to look into the benefits of things?

If you budget right you can buy most of what you want or need without without the need for one.

 

[SM]

With proper budgeting you can do all this with the need for a credit card.

If you budget right you can buy most of what you want or need without without the need for one.

Disagree, as fwoy pointed out, there are many examples of the time value of money provided by a credit card.

 

[undefined]

On a different note, dad had a check up at Peter Mac yesterday. The cancer cells have slightly decreased and his liver function has also improved. Nice to have some good news in all of this.

Absolutely fantastic to hear, mate. Every positive is a massive win. Praying that it's only good news from here.

 

[Cruyff14]

With proper budgeting you can do all this with the need for a credit card.

If you budget right you can buy most of what you want or need without without the need for one.

Yeah, I feel my wife and I really excel in this area.

Mrs is a business manager and has done a spreadsheet up to account for what goes where, we stick to it and it works like a charm.

 

[Cruyff14]

Absolutely fantastic to hear, mate. Every positive is a massive win. Praying that it's only good news from here.

Thanks mate, that's right, gotta take what we can.

Right now he is doing very well and every day he is, is a win for us.

 

[UnitedWarrior93]

Yeah, I feel my wife and I really excel in this area.

Mrs is a business manager and has done a spreadsheet up to account for what goes where, we stick to it and it works like a charm.

My gf isn’t a business manager but she manages our money and has a great spreadsheet, I let her take care of that as I’m hopeless at that sort of s**t.

So far so good, been working really well, it really makes everything so much easier/better, not sure how people out there live without having measures put in place.

 

[Cruyff14]

My gf isn’t a business manager but she manages our money and has a great spreadsheet, I let her take care of that as I’m hopeless at that sort of s**t.

So far so good, been working really well, it really makes everything so much easier/better, not sure how people out there live without having measures put in place.

Some people just don't care.

 

[Easty]

Disagree, as fwoy pointed out, there are many examples of the time value of money provided by a credit card.

I don't even look at it that way.

For up to 55 days instead of using my money to buy things, I can be earning bank interest on it.

Loyalty programs are useful benefit as well.

 

[SM]

I don't even look at it that way.

For up to 55 days instead of using my money to buy things, I can be earning bank interest on it.

Loyalty programs are useful benefit as well.

That's what I mean by time value of money. For those extra days you can be investing your money in other things. Whether it's offsetting interest on a mortgage or as you say, earning bank interest.

Do people realise credit cards can be free? Haha.

Or like I did, I got a card with a small annual fee which is more than offset by the frequent flyer points I rack up (think it's $190 a year and I just slashed $300 off flights with maybe half a year's points).

 

[WealstoneRaider]

Got rid of my credit card about five years ago. Only good for people who keep on top of their payments, but in honesty I struggle to see the point of them if you’ve already got a stashed current account. If you haven’t got a lot in your current account then they can cause you problems anyway, especially when you get into a situation when you can only pay off the minimum amount each month

 

[Loonerty]

Got rid of my credit card about five years ago. Only good for people who keep on top of their payments, but in honesty I struggle to see the point of them if you’ve already got a stashed current account. If you haven’t got a lot in your current account then they can cause you problems anyway, especially when you get into a situation when you can only pay off the minimum amount each month

Does the credit system work in a similar way over there? Gotta build credit to get a home loan?

 

[WealstoneRaider]

Does the credit system work in a similar way over there? Gotta build credit to get a home loan?

Yeah it does like most big loans you take out but the main criteria is that you have a steady incoming wage. You usually can borrow up to three times your annual salary

 

[SM]

I think credit cards are fine for anyone who is remotely conscious of the amount of money they're spending. Of course if you just pay for things willy nilly they're incredibly dangerous, but I guess I can't fathom how those sorts of people aren't aware of what they're doing.

 

[WealstoneRaider]

Imagine ******* your credit score so bad that you couldn’t take out a mortgage to own your first home. Would have to have no financial acumen or restraint in order to do that

 

[WealstoneRaider]

I think credit cards are fine for anyone who is remotely conscious of the amount of money they're spending. Of course if you just pay for things willy nilly they're incredibly dangerous, but I guess I can't fathom how those sorts of people aren't aware of what they're doing.

You can do everything with standing orders/direct debits straight out of your current account in reality though. Any big purchase like a car for example. I wouldn’t recommend a credit card to everyone, only those who are very prudent with their cash. Women tend to go a bit crazy with credit cards in my experience. They go full tilt spending it on clothes and s**t

 

[SM]

You can do everything with standing orders/direct debits straight out of your current account in reality though. Any big purchase like a car for example. I wouldn’t recommend a credit card to everyone, only those who are very prudent with their cash. Women tend to go a bit crazy with credit cards in my experience. They go full tilt spending it on clothes and s**t

If you have the cash sitting in your every day account and aren't relying on funds from your next pay, sure.

 

[WealstoneRaider]

If you have the cash sitting in your every day account and aren't relying on funds from your next pay, sure.

Exactly but before I got my cash windfalls I used to live off credit for a number of years and it got to me having to pay off hundreds of pounds as soon as I got paid. Eventually I stopped paying them off and just paid the minimum amount and that’s when the trouble starts. Didn’t get too out of hand but my credit card did eventually run up to about a £5000 debt. When you think about it the card is designed to * you up. They must make fortunes in interest rates through them

 

[moomba]

Just got pulled over by the police. They said I was doing 45 in a 30, which seemed feasible to me. They also said that my car was uninsured, not taxed and didn't have a MOT. I leave all that stuff to mrs moomba, but it seemed strange to me.

In the UK, if you drive an untaxed vehicle it can get seized and destroyed. And sure enough they start going through the paperwork to seize the car. By this time I'd rung mrs moomba (at 5am) and she's emailed insurance docs, and a screenshot of the government website saying the car was tax and MOT'd.

Not good enough for the police, they say that their system says that it's not taxed, insured or MOT'd. They arrange to get it towed away, apparently at my expense (£120 thank you very much).

So I have a 20 minute walk home, as I walk through the door mrs moomba is on the phone to the police. Dreadful mistake they say, their comms operator had put in the wrong rego twice. Unfortunately, the car had already been towed away so they had to drive me to the yard the car was towed to, and pay the tow fee.

Fun packed drive in to work, at least they didn't get me for the speeding.

And now have a penalty notice through the mail for driving an uninsured car. £300, 6 points on my licence. 28 days to pay or it will go to court.

*******s.

I've sent them a mail requesting written confirmation that the notice has been cancelled, if they don't I think I'll take my chances in court.

 

[Zidane98]

And now have a penalty notice through the mail for driving an uninsured car. £300, 6 points on my licence. 28 days to pay or it will go to court.

*******s.

I've sent them a mail requesting written confirmation that the notice has been cancelled, if they don't I think I'll take my chances in court.

Surely you're due some compensation out of this nonsense!

 

[jd2010]

Yeah, I feel my wife and I really excel in this area.

Pun intended?