Stupid’s Not Illegal
by Dave Ramsey
| Is there some way to put a block on a credit report prior to sending a kid to college, so that the credit card hustlers can’t get to them? |
Dear Dave,
Is there some way to put a block on a credit report prior to sending a kid to college, so that the credit card hustlers can’t get to them?
Trevor
Dear Trevor,
No, there’s not. Unfortunately, in today’s culture that’s part of becoming an adult. When you hand them car keys there’s no way to put a block on how they drive. And when they turn 21, there’s no way to put a block on what they ingest.
About the only thing you can do, Trevor, is teach your kids to the best of your ability and be a good parent – a good example. Teach them WHY debt is dumb, and show them how it eats away at their ability to save money and build wealth. And for goodness sake, don’t use credit cards yourself. Kids can smell a hypocrite a mile away!
But even after all that it’s still not illegal for people to be dumb with their money. If it were, there would be a lot more jails!
Dave
Posted by Banyan
from Utah
If you are teaching your kids how to spend responsibly, having a credit card can be great. If they know to only spend what they have, and pay off the balance in full every month, a Rewards-type credit card will allow them to get free flights, cash back, etc.
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Posted by Tiffany
from Oklahoma
I can see how credit cards can entice people with free flights, cash back, discounts, gift cards, vacation points, etc. But in this way, you are empowering your credit card company as the one holding the carrot on the stick. Why give up that control to them?
When you think about it, it takes an enormous amount of discipline to be able to pay off your balance at the end of each month. Why tempt yourself with unnecessary lines of credit? Now I admit that there are many types of purchases that are "electronic transfers" only that demand payment in the form of a credit card. However, most bank debit cards nowdays can be run as credit cards and the amount comes out of your checking. This allows you to spend money you DO have instead of money you DO NOT have.
When you add interest payments, finance charges, over-the-limit charges, minimum annual fees, etc. to using a credit card, why pay to use your money and get a free flight? When you do the math, the free flight usually doesn't end up being free.
Why not discipline yourself to save the money for a good fare? Credit card companies will rarely reward people for being "good customers." The only reason you have the rewards out there are to encourage a longer term committment to them and to possibly become a "bad customer." It's a calculated risk on the part of the credit card company, but a good investment long-term for them. Don't let yourself be that long term investment they are just dying to get a hold of.
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