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View Full Version : Got Rid of Credit Card!



heydude
3-19-11, 1:04am
Ok..........so after finally getting my last cash back check from Citi (they dropped the rate from 5% cash back to 1%), I finally canceled that card.

Now I have no credit cards!!!!

I find that I am spending less by having the money come right out of my checking account.

I do still have a Target card but I limit that to food purchases on a strict dollar amount so I can get the 5% cash back from them.

It is so nice to have one less account to be bombarded with advertising to transfer balances, etc.

woot woot!

eleighj
3-19-11, 9:08am
Excellent; you are free. One of the most empowering things we did on the way to being debt free was canceling the credit cards and telling them to inform Experian etc that it was was being cancelled at our request. :cool: :cool: :cool:

Make sure and watch your credit reports over the next few years as these little gems fall off.

Ed
Debt Free since 2001:~)

razz
3-19-11, 9:35am
Funny but I added one in my name only as the old one was placed in DH's name as are all the other credit items. If he dies, all our records will be frozen for as long as it takes to clear his death details so I needed to get my private credit rating. I use it once a month for a small amount and it gets paid off as do our other bills.

Spartana
3-20-11, 1:05pm
Woo Hoo!! I also don't use CC's but have several no annual fee ones I keep for emergency or travel. I also don't write checks or use a debit card for everyday purchases as I found that when I had access to all my funds in my bank acct I spent more than just using cash. Every month I get a certain pre-determined amount of cash out of my account, put it in an envelope, and each day I take a set amount out of the envelope and that's my spending money for the day. I never overspend because I never have more cash on me than that day's amount. Can't spend what you don't have! I usually have extra left over at the end of the month too.

Madsen
3-20-11, 10:30pm
I am giving the envelope system a try for 3 months, Mar-May. I use CCs and pay them off each month, but the statistic about folks spending more % when using plastic vs. cash has me curious. I've been tracking my expenses in Quicken for several years, so I'm interested in comparing this 3-month trial with my averages and see if I do actually end up spending less in the envelope categories.

Float On
3-21-11, 7:17am
I kept one credit card and requested a low credit limit ($2000), just the other day I noticed they'd bumped it up to $2,800 so I need to call and ask that they lower it again. There are somethings that I'm just not comfortable using the debit card for like certain art show booth fees that are charged 6-8 months before the show.

Spartana
3-21-11, 2:49pm
I am giving the envelope system a try for 3 months, Mar-May. I use CCs and pay them off each month, but the statistic about folks spending more % when using plastic vs. cash has me curious. I've been tracking my expenses in Quicken for several years, so I'm interested in comparing this 3-month trial with my averages and see if I do actually end up spending less in the envelope categories.

I know alot of people who spend more when using cash - or just as much - then when they used a CC. I think the way to make the all cash thing work, is to do it the way I do - only carry the amount you plan to spend and no more. For instance, when I go into a store to buy food I may only take $20 with me and therefore never spend more than $20. If I had more cash on me I might spend more. It's osrt of a reverse way of budgeting that works well for me in almost all aspects of my life.

heydude
3-21-11, 6:11pm
I totally started spending less when I got rid of the credit cards and just used my debit card. Knowing that was real money coming out of my account made me spend less.

I have also taken my debit card out of my wallet when I am pretty sure I won't be needing it. I keep some cash for emergency if needed. I find forgetting the card at home helps me to not spend a lot as well.

It is funny, I never thought it would, but it does.

Life_is_Simple
3-21-11, 6:35pm
Congratulations, Heydude!

You are free!

Your post makes me thinking about closing 1 of my CC cards. I have too many. It's oh-so-easy to open them. Harder to close them.

gimmethesimplelife
3-21-11, 10:49pm
Congrats! I just posted on getting rid of one of my cards, paying it off, and closing it out.....Feels just wonderful. Also so glad to see that I am making progress on getting out of my debt! Debt free feels a long way off to me but here is another marker on the way to that destination!!!!! Thanks for your post about ditching the card! Rob

jp1
3-22-11, 12:35am
Personally I don't think I spend more when i use a credit card. I hate shopping enough that regardless of how I'm going to pay I just go in the store and get what I need. For example today I went to safeway after work to get milk and salad dressing and that's all I bought. With my CC. The CC is just a means to pay for it and then I pay that off each month.

But everyone's different so if using cash works then do it. The key is to not be in debt and pay the interest/fees. Congratulations on eliminating this odious thing from your life!

heydude
3-22-11, 5:24pm
I NEVER thought ditching the credit cards would cause me to spend less. In my eyes, I WAS only buying what I would have normally bought. But......it actually caused me to buy less......to RETHINK what it is I thought I needed.

If you only had 3 bucks in your wallet, maybe you would have gone without dressing for a week.

Giveallup11
4-27-11, 8:00pm
I am in the process on working on my personal debt relief plan as well, and it is tough! I had used credit cards for a long time thinking, "I will pay that back," but now I realize that I was just lying to myself! So Congratulations! I am a firm believer that the best debt relief (http://www.ccrnow.com) plan is the one that keeps us accountable. We all know that things are always coming up, and we might have the urge to use it!

Zoebird
4-29-11, 12:39am
we are the same. we have one through our credit union in order to facilitate our credit score (since we don't own anything else -- no car, no house, etc), which gives us 30 days interest free. We spend about $50 per month on it, and pay it off on the 29th day. :) It's worked well for us.

It is so great being without credit cards and carrying basically no debt (I have school debt still. I look forward to being free of it!). I love paying cash for everything. :)