Comments on: “I can’t get a credit card because I don’t have income”

By: SPD301

SPD301 — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 14:50:30 +0000

I need a credit card, but I don’t have income…..WTF? This is a recipe for disaster. You absolutely do not need a FICO score to buy a house, or anything else. Just simply find a lending institution that does manual underwriting. We, as a society, have been brainwashed into believing we will always have debt and always have payments. 40 years ago less than 7% of homes had a mortgage, today, less than 7% do not. Once you can get out of debt (i.e. student loans, car payments, credit cards) this frees up a tremendous amount of monthly income, which is your most valuable wealth building tool.

But, back to the young lady at hand, it’s crazy to think that someone without any income needs a credit card. Your concept of paying it off every month works, on paper, but she doesn’t have an income!!! It also does not account for the fact that consumes regularly purchase up to 24% more when using plastic as compared to cash. Cash hurts. There is an emotional attachment and it hurts to hand it over. And it should. This will cause us to think about our purchases and evaluate them carefully.

So, what does this young lady need? A job. A means to support herself. Cash flow. Is she in school? Maybe. Does that mean she can’t work? Absolutely not!

One final word- PAY WITH CASH!!

By: Hellen

Hellen — Wed, 01 Aug 2007 19:39:34 +0000

Why the HELL are you advising her to get any kind of a credit card, secured or otherwise, when she has no income?

What kind of mental midget are you?

By: josh

josh — Tue, 31 Jul 2007 11:47:33 +0000

Not only that, but having 0 income also means she’s got no means of paying you back for whatever she puts on your credit card. The fact that she’s asking to use a credit card means she doesn’t have the money in savings either.

By: Steve from Yellowstone

Steve from Yellowstone — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 18:12:53 +0000

Rich Jerk, if you can already save to cover your expenses, why would you want to pay someone to use their money when yours is free to use?

Here is the trick for free cars. Yes, free cars for the rest of your life. Start with a paid for car. Now save that $475 payment you were going to make for 10 months. For example, your current car is worth $1500. $4750+$1500 is a $6250 car. Not bad. In another 10 months you have another $4750. $4750 + $5500 = $10,250. Hmm, not bad for another 10 months.

Now, let’s save that $475 for the remainder of that 6-year sports car loan into a good growth mutual fund. This will be about $32,000 in 52 months.

In 4 years, you can sell your car for $5k. Take $12k out of that $32k mutual fund and you are left with $20k and a $17,000 vehicle. You get a really nice 1-2 year old car free car every 6 years!

Now continue those $475 car payments into that mutual fund and save for that house and retirement. Oh, and you can retire early like this and not have to worry if the government will stick you in a underfunded overcrowded nursing home when you are old.

When you need a mortgage, take out one that is no more than 15 years and payments no more than 25% of your monthly income. Someone can look at your financial status rather than any monkey looking at your I love debt (FICO) score.

By: Steve from Yellowstone

Steve from Yellowstone — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 17:28:37 +0000

Greg, put your money where your mouth is, and prove your findings about http://www.DaveRamsey.com

BTW, it’s not a credit card that is needed at http://www.DaveRamsey.com, it’s a debIt card. He doesn’t accept credit cards or slander as you choose to.

By: Greg

Greg — Fri, 22 Dec 2006 22:34:25 +0000

( Just found this site a couple days ago so going through some old threads for the first time).

That Dave Ramsey stuff is BS and he lies. Maybe he doesnt use personal credit, but his company uses credit and is deliquent on several accounts. I pulled their Experian Commercial credit report ( yes this is legal and anyone can pull Experian or Dun&Bradstreet reports of their competitors, potential clients,etc) and his company averages about 1 late payment per month and carries debt monthly. You know the company that pushes his books, Come to Jesus credit advice,etc. That guy is a fraud and his advice HARMS his followers because mortgages with the lowest rates DO rely on FICO. he also advocates purposely paying higher deposits on utilities. Not to mention it is VERY easy for him to not use personal debt since he makes millions off his followers and uses extensive corporate debt.

BTW, if you want to order something off his website, gotta use a credit card.

By: Paul

Paul — Sat, 11 Nov 2006 20:36:02 +0000

Good advice on secured credit cards. Great way to establish credit.

By: Rich Jerk

Rich Jerk — Mon, 24 Jul 2006 10:44:52 +0000

Actually if you’re just worried about getting a credit card, its quite easy. You can get a credit card that is backed by a savings account. Basically the credit card limit acts like a debit card in that its limit is set to the amount inside your savings account. By that, the bank sees no credit risk and you get to spend as much as you put into that savings account. Easy.

By: bcnbit

bcnbit — Mon, 03 Jul 2006 17:06:55 +0000

You can be debt free and have good crdit when it comes time to buy a home. It’s called alternative lines of credit and any lender will use them. Your cell phone bill, your electric bill, and rent payments are some of the things included. If you are not discplined enough to pay off your credit card each month, then sign up for a service like Upromise and make part of the interest back. Example, my credit card interest is 9.9%, I carry about a $200 balance. If I go out to eat, I make sure it’s a place I am getting 10% back to offset any interest I may pay. Granted you don’t see the money from Upromise right away, it is invested, which means you are making more $ off it. You can cash out at any time though. As for credit scores, they are a joke. Mine is low because my mortgage balance and credit card balance are TOO LOW. It seriously tells me this when I pull my score. I thought not maxing out was a good thing, but not in the eyes of creditors. It’s like welfare, they all work to keep you on the system, otherwise they make no money. Paying for things in cash is better than credit, you actually own it. Cash is always best. As for the comment about not buying a house until you are 45. If we start teaching our kids to manage money right and put away some money for their house, just like college, at 25-30 they could put a huge chunk down and save on interest rates.

By: danny

danny — Wed, 07 Jun 2006 01:35:54 +0000

I made several stupid mistakes when it came to money while I was 18-21. It was horrible and I couldn’t get a credit card offer if I asked for one. While paying off debt I learned from my mistakes and also learned how to build back my credit. I got a secured visa with a $300 limit that I only used once a month for a meal or something small like that. I payed the bills as soon as they came and soon enough my credit score started going up and the credit card offers came rolling in(which I send straight to the shredder) So I definitely recommend a secured credit card for someone who can’t get a credit card because in today’s world it’s hard not to have one.