Locked: Are All Of You Paying Ridiculous Fees With VISA?

the old school lesson to use a CC: pay it the moment you use it.

how many ppl can't get this lesson eh?

Don't apologize. A lot of us consider the guy saying that as being stupid...take care.

Oh, and just so you know, apparently a lot of RFDers never had ANY debt and always, always pay EVERYTHING IN CASHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH...

Really? You've never heard of the grace period?

MusicBox wrote: ↑ This is my new policy now. Paid off my VISA and don't use it only when I have to (where they don't accept MasterCard). They are not making a red cent from me ever again. Not a smart business move because if they would be at 10% interest I would carry balances over, now I'm not.

You'd carry a balance on a CC if interest were 10%, but not at 20%? I think the difference is 20% should motivate you more to hit the forums or even call around to see what options are available to you for interest reduction.

TD offers a low interest card, it's the Emerald. You could product switch ($29 AF I think) and reduce the interest to probably around 12-14%. Still a burden if you're stuck with a balance. Here's what I recommend to EVERYONE

1. get a line of credit if/while you can. Benefits are that it'll keep your utilization low (if nothing else) because you'll have unused CL, looks good on your credit report. It also allows you to pay off credit cards when you're hitting tough times and incur lower interest (<10%). That means you can enjoy higher rewarding credit cards with normal (20+% interest), but always pay off balances on time and not get hit with their interest rates
2. If you have a uLOC (most act like bank accounts), you can pre-auth pay your credit cards in full on the due date out of that. You can still manually pay the card with chequing or savings, but at least you'll automatically never incur the 20+% interest
3. An alternative for lower income earners and/or those already stuck with high utilization can get a low interest card. At least you can move balances to the low interest card and incur less interest while paying it down
4. If you carry a balance on uLOC or low interest card for more than a few months, definitely consider grabbing a card with a balance transfer promo. Consider the promo rate, but also the promo period. Whether you need 3, 4, 6, or 10 months. On existing cards, you may even get an offer for 12 months. Imagine, TD offered many of us 0%/12 months on existing cards at 3% BT fee. Although the 3% fee kills the deal for those who wish to stuff borrowed money into a savings account, heck if you need 12+ months to pay off debt, then it can be worth it (and OP you have CL with TD CT).

Another lesson for the OP:
- a Visa is not a Visa is not a Visa, and
- a MasterCard is not a MasterCard is not a MasterCard.

In other words, each card is different, and the interest rate (as many other features) is set by the issuing financial institution, not by Visa or MasterCard.

You may want to have more than one Visa, or more than one MasterCard, in your wallet.

adrian2 wrote: ↑ Another lesson for the OP:
- a Visa is not a Visa is not a Visa, and
- a MasterCard is not a MasterCard is not a MasterCard.

In other words, each card is different, and the interest rate (as many other features) is set by the issuing financial institution, not by Visa or MasterCard.

You may want to have more than one Visa, or more than one MasterCard, in your wallet.

Yes, and from different financial institutions.

I've always wondered what kind of people would actually carry a balance on their credit card....

To date I've not paid a dime of interest on a Credit Card

Remember CCs are not "Extra Dollars to Spend" its there for emergencies and temp purchases that you can pay off.

Techiedude wrote: ↑ To date I've not paid a dime of interest on a Credit Card

Remember CCs are not "Extra Dollars to Spend" its there for emergencies and temp purchases that you can pay off.

I (and probably a lot of RFDers) take it one step further and use CCs to make money through churning.

gei wrote: ↑ I've always wondered what kind of people would actually carry a balance on their credit card....

aside when it's deliberate via BT's, many newly weds, young parents, those who've totalled their car, perhaps had an emergency overseas funeral to attend, lost their job or are simply big spenders and don't earn enough to cover the spend. also gambling, drug, alcohol & prostitution addicts.

oh look at the thread downvotes. OP wasn't looking for advice.

arkane wrote: ↑ I (and probably a lot of RFDers) take it one step further and use CCs to make money through churning.

Why would I use a card that doesn't benefit me. I've gotta live, may as well have a return