As a retired accountant, I believe high credit card debt is a sign of poor financial education. I've had many clients who had mountains of credit card debt seemingly for one of two reasons. Either they did not control their spending (buying impulse items and wants rather than needs) or it never occurred to them that they could pay it off…
As a retired accountant, I believe high credit card debt is a sign of poor financial education. I've had many clients who had mountains of credit card debt seemingly for one of two reasons. Either they did not control their spending (buying impulse items and wants rather than needs) or it never occurred to them that they could pay it off. I once had a client who got a new credit card and told me the best thing about it was that he was not allowed to carry a balance (it had to be paid in full each month). I replied that he could pay off all of his credit cards each month. He looked at me with such confusion... like the idea had never occurred to him. I think many people in this country think this way.
I have never paid a cent for interest on a credit which was the only card available when I had my business in the '70's and '80's...I did NOT want to pay for something I did not get. Or, be paying for something I had already used up. Now, I have a card for Amazon purchases which is paid automatically. And, several debit cards to get pesos at the Mexican ATMs.
A Frontline video from 2009 tells the tale of what a racket it is. Low income people pay way more in fines and interest than high income people.
I told the fellow who cleans and gardens here: do not buy anything on credit. It's a worse rip off in Mexico. The population is very uneducated, even worse than those in the USA. You don't need anything you have to put on a credit card. The only debt should be for a house or a car. Interest rates on houses is now 7%...that is nothing compared to credit cards charging 29%!
As a retired accountant, I believe high credit card debt is a sign of poor financial education. I've had many clients who had mountains of credit card debt seemingly for one of two reasons. Either they did not control their spending (buying impulse items and wants rather than needs) or it never occurred to them that they could pay it off. I once had a client who got a new credit card and told me the best thing about it was that he was not allowed to carry a balance (it had to be paid in full each month). I replied that he could pay off all of his credit cards each month. He looked at me with such confusion... like the idea had never occurred to him. I think many people in this country think this way.
I have never paid a cent for interest on a credit which was the only card available when I had my business in the '70's and '80's...I did NOT want to pay for something I did not get. Or, be paying for something I had already used up. Now, I have a card for Amazon purchases which is paid automatically. And, several debit cards to get pesos at the Mexican ATMs.
A Frontline video from 2009 tells the tale of what a racket it is. Low income people pay way more in fines and interest than high income people.
I told the fellow who cleans and gardens here: do not buy anything on credit. It's a worse rip off in Mexico. The population is very uneducated, even worse than those in the USA. You don't need anything you have to put on a credit card. The only debt should be for a house or a car. Interest rates on houses is now 7%...that is nothing compared to credit cards charging 29%!
Agree. I live debt free. And when I buy my next house, it will be with cash. I’m glad I can.