Overall card balances surged to a record high of $963 billion in the second quarter, a 17.4% increase over last year, according to the survey. Gen Z's growth was more marked, with balances increasing 51.9% to $55 billion, representing 5.7% of all balances.
The brats, who know nothing about personal responsibility, think their credit card dept will be treated like their college loans and be wiped out by the Biden fairy's magic wand.
ReplyDeleteIt will be wiped out -- lEEeeEEgally -- after the night of the long pillows.
DeleteSlaves to consumerism
ReplyDeleteBack in my days of working on secret shit one of the things that we were trained to look for in people that indicated a security risk was "unexplained affluence". When you get to know people and find out what they do for a living vs. the lifestyle they maintain you see it all around you. Everybody owes their soul to credit card and finance companies and the PTB like it this way. Proof - If you pay off all your credit cards and debt your credit rating drops.
ReplyDeleteI had a good credit rating when I had credit card debt. I paid it off and now I have zero credit card debt and an excellent credit rating.
DeleteI do have one credit card with zero balance that I use occasionally just to keep it active, but I pay it off in full the next day.
I don't have a credit card today, been close to 10 years when I cut mine up and haven't borrowed money or got a loan longer than that so I probably don't even have a " credit rating "....
DeleteJD
a trillion closing fast 3... 2... 1
ReplyDeleteFrom the NotAlwaysRight.com website.
ReplyDeleteA customer is checking out at our large department store and is attempting to make a rather large purchase using their store credit card. It declines.
Me: “Sir, your card has been declined.”
Customer: “Why? It’s a [Store] card, and you’re [Store]. You can’t decline it!”
Me: “We would happily accept it, but it seems there might be insufficient funds on the card. If you paid some of it off, you could use it again. I can process that here for you if you like.”
Customer: “Okay, well then, let’s do that.”
He stands there doing nothing, looking at me expectantly.
Me: “Sir?”
Customer: “What are you waiting for? Let’s do that thing that you said.”
Me: “I would need a card or some cash.”
Customer: “You’re holding the card!”
Me: “Sir, you cannot pay off your [Store] credit card with your [Store] credit card.”
Customer: “Why not?”
Me: “It would be like trying to blow up a balloon using only the air inside the balloon.”
Customer: “Why are we talking about balloons?”
Me: “Never mind, sir. The point is that you have to use another card — a debit card — to pay off a credit card.”
Customer: “Why?”
Me: “Sir, you’d be trying to pay off the money you owe using the money you owe. It wouldn’t achieve anything.”
Customer: “Wait… I owe you guys money?”
Me: *Without skipping a beat* “I’m going to transfer you to my supervisor.”
I’m not paid enough to deal with that much stupid.
Reminds me of a guy I knew who believed he didn't still owe $$ on credit card after he got rid of the stuff he bought using the credit card. He simply could not understand why he should still pay for something he no longer had.
DeleteAnd just WHERE would they see an example of saving, paying as you go, utilizing credit as a short term tool, not a crutch, etc.? Certainly NOT from their parents, and most definitely NOT from the government. My wife and I have NEVER carried a balance on our credit card(s) from month to month. That is not to say that we don't rack up the occasional huge balance, but we ALWAYS pay it off that month. Having access to credit allows you to purchase something on sale rather than paying full price. It allows you to have as much as a 30 day free loan. As a tool for such things, it is outstanding. Credit card companies simply hate us for sure, but that doesn't stop them from constantly increasing our limit nor renewing our fee-free card account.
ReplyDeleteProblem is many people start off that way and before they know it the balance is higher than they can pay off so they float their payment while still using the card. Unfortunately before they will admit they need to stop using the card they have already accumulated a rather large debt at ridiculously high interest. Then the offers begin, get our card and pay off your other debts, and on and on, the circle of it never ends.... I'm an old fuck that learned this lesson from seeing my friends go through it, my family never had any credit cards when I was growing up, you saved for it then paid for it when you bought it.
DeleteEverything comes back on sale eventually..
JD
Do any of you recall any generation that didn't immediately go fill at least one credit card after that first job? I mean, a generation since credit cards became ubiquitous? I didn't but I was a non-traditional student, so had some inkling of how easy it was to get into trouble that way.
ReplyDeleteWe use credit cards much like @wirecutter (2 -- one for me, one for the Mrs.) and while we carry no balance, paying it off a few days before the due date every month, have a stellar credit rating.
I was 25 or 26 before I got my first credit card and the only reason then was to build my credit. It was a Circuit City card and for my first purchase I bought my very first color TV that I never watched. Hell, I bet it was a full month before I even took it out of the box.
DeleteNice. That's why I got my Sears card. Though I could not resist the temptation to buy some Craftsman tools now and then. Never more than I could pay off when the bill came in...
DeleteI was in my mid 30s when I got my first credit card, I was planning a long trip and found out I couldn't rent a car without one.....
DeleteJD
Isn't it considered "age-ist" or "generation-ist" or something to point out one generation's foibles compared to the rest? Unless it's boomers, of course. We're fair game.
ReplyDeleteI don't like carrying cash. I use a credit card but about six days before my payment is due I don't use it. That way I pay it off to zero balance every month without failure. There is zero interest, at least on my card.
ReplyDeleteI learned this lesson the hard way, back in the late 90s. Ran up my credit card, took out a loan to pay it down, and ran it up again. Repeated a few more times. To this day I have a VISA with a $24,000 credit limit because they just kept bumping it up. To their credit the MasterCard people never raised my limit past $1,200 which really limited the damage, even if I didn't like it at the time.
ReplyDeleteI obsessively make sure my balance is paid each month these days. It does wonders for my credit rating too.