chapter 13 bankruptcy

[BKDotCom]

We're not translating Mayan script here.  You pay cash, save/invest and don't use credit cards.  The results are obviously on the up side.  If you use credit cards, you're obviously not making the most out of your money.

Like the others have said, this is complete bunk.
If you pay your statement off in full by the due date : no interest.  I haven't payed interest in 10+ years.   And if you have a rewards card... well the upside is definitely on the side of the plastic.  Plus all the protection/insurance that plastic provides.
Is spending your hard-earned money on crap you don't need a good idea?  No.   But I can do that with cash just as easily as with credit card.    Spending is spending.   Stay well within your means.

Do you keep your cash in a bank, or under your mattress?

[nathanm]

It's kind of gauche to make comments like that. But the last member who is likely wealthier was banned   See what it got him/her?

It's called an example, sir. An illustration of how borrowing money can be profitable, whether through interest rate arbitrage or through borrowing it to buy/start/expand a business. An illustration of the insanity of a hard line "debt free" stance. (as opposed to the position that borrowing for consumption is a bad idea, which I think everyone can agree on)

TUalum, that's great news. It's nice to see someone getting the benefit of the ridiculously low federal funds rate!

[Cats Cats Cats]

Like the others have said, this is complete bunk.
If you pay your statement off in full by the due date : no interest.  I haven't payed interest in 10+ years.   And if you have a rewards card... well the upside is definitely on the side of the plastic.  Plus all the protection/insurance that plastic provides.
Is spending your hard-earned money on crap you don't need a good idea?  No.   But I can do that with cash just as easily as with credit card.    Spending is spending.   Stay well within your means.

Do you keep your cash in a bank, or under your mattress?

Actually with the rewards cards/credit cards in general we ALL end up paying higher costs due to the cost of accepting the cards in the first place.  Those with cash are subsidizing us with CC.

Mutual funds with their 2% ROI over the last 10 years is where its at!

[Cats Cats Cats]

thanks for the info everyone.  Greatly appreciated. This time last night, my only thought was bankruptcy after researching online.  Today is a different story.  Reading on the forums mentioned above and making a few phone calls made quite a bit of difference.  I called Chase and though they closed the account, they lowered my payments to 165 month with 2% interest for 5yrs instead of 13.49% and a minimum payment of 189.  No prepayment penalty and shouldnt affect my credit too negatively.  Time will tell I guess.  Now if the other lending institutions will be as helpful as chase was!

Sorry for the thread drift.  Get rid of cell phone, cable, internet.  $50 a month is an extra $1.25 in interest on high rate cards.  or -$1.25 a month if you use it to pay off debt.  So keep on calling, I would suggest refinancing a home if you had a lot of equity in it.  However, you probably would have a lower credit score and higher rate.  "Refinancing" to reduce debt got a bad name due to everybody 1) taking out way more than their house was worth and 2)  Getting an ARM with the lowest interest rates in history.  Obviously refinancing would depend on your circumstances and total debt vs equity.

[nathanm]

Actually with the rewards cards/credit cards in general we ALL end up paying higher costs due to the cost of accepting the cards in the first place.  Those with cash are subsidizing us with CC.

Cash has a significant cost also. It takes more time and effort to deal with, whether it be at the register or counting the cash at the end of the day and taking deposits to the bank. You're also taking on the risk of counterfeit bills. If it were that much more expensive, businesses would not take credit. At least not the ones who care about their bottom line.

That's not to say cards don't have their own cost. There is a cost involved in training employees in such a way as to reduce the chance of losing a charge back, after all, but other than checking the signature on the back of the card against the slip or electronic signature, it can all be automated.

The point being that it's not so clear cut. Except perhaps with Amex, because they charge an arm and a leg compared to Visa and MasterCard. And the small businesses are the ones that get screwed the most on fees, which is why I try to remember to get some cash when patronizing a local establishment.

[Gaspar]

Something to note.  The new financial regulation bill gives businesses the right to offer discounts for cash again.  This practice was suspended years ago because it encouraged transactions that were not as transparent to the IRS.  Many businesses went from offering discounts to just setting minimums for CC purchases.

Now businesses can post a % discount for using cash over credit card.  This is a huge incentive for businesses to promote cash purchases.  It is also a big hit to the CC companies who budget much of the margin made on vendor charges to perks like "cash back" and "miles."  Depending on it's impact, CC companies may suspend perks to make up the difference.

Best of all, businesses used to be slaves to the CC company, the verifier company, and/or the bank for additional fees that, by law, they could not recoup from their customers.  Now, I think you will see businesses simply add 3%-5% to their price lists with the caveat of a 3%-5% discount for cash.

[Conan71]

Just FYI the tag agencies are upcharging on CC transactions.

[Townsend]

Just FYI the tag agencies are upcharging on CC transactions.

That's another subject...Why do we have tag agencies?


Anyway, congrats on your first step lowering a credit car payment.

I hope they all go well.

[Hoss]

Just FYI the tag agencies are upcharging on CC transactions.

They've always done this, unless you're using Discover (which I don't understand).

It's one of the few paper checks I still write (my car tag).

[Gaspar]

Just FYI the tag agencies are upcharging on CC transactions.

I noticed that the other day.  Charged me an extra $1.

[nathanm]

Something to note.  The new financial regulation bill gives businesses the right to offer discounts for cash again.  This practice was suspended years ago because it encouraged transactions that were not as transparent to the IRS.  Many businesses went from offering discounts to just setting minimums for CC purchases.

They've always had the right to offer cash discounts. What the merchant agreements didn't allow was charging more for credit cards. It's a matter of semantics, but it makes all the difference to staying within your agreement. You could say "cash discount: 2%" or whatever. You could not say "Credit card surcharge: 2%".

The finreg bill also forced the merchant banks to allow establishments to set a minimum purchase limit on credit card transactions.

The interesting thing is that it was only Visa and Mastercard that outright refused to allow merchants accepting their cards to charge extra for credit. Amex's agreement just states that you can't treat Amex worse than other card companies. Discover has never cared one whit either way, which is why tag agencies could take it and charge a surcharge.

Although I attempt to have cash for the local folks, if they try to charge me more or require a minimum purchase, I won't shop there anyway. Sometimes I just don't have cash on hand, and it's usually a heck of a lot more convenient to find another place to buy whatever than it is to go to a bank.