just got my own credit card

@pinks17 (2192)
Philippines
March 10, 2009 6:11pm CST
whoa...I received my credit card last week and was able to use it right away for groceries.. I promised myself that I will use just for emergencies and most importantly for my groceries.. NOw any advices from any card holders how to use the credit card wisely..just a newbie...I know I have so many things to buy and I can just swipe the credit card and I know also how to limit myself from using it..
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14 responses
@jcj_111776 (3216)
• Philippines
11 Mar 09
Hello pinks.... All I can tell you is goodluck and a very careful consideration in using your brand new credit card. 2 years ago, my husband's co-worker offered him to get a credit card, fast and easy. Sure enough, he was encouraged and agreed. He did get his card that easily and one for me, too as a supplementary card. I was really apprehensive in using it and I kept reminding my husband to use it very wisely. But as it turned out, it was me who used the card first. The temptation was too great for me and I purchased a manual lawn mower that I wanted to buy for months. But because our monthly budget can't allow that extra purchase, there was no chance for me to buy one with cash. Then, the card entered the scene.... I did think about using the card for days and I told myself that was my only chance. So, after purchasing it, the problem soon followed. The interest was big. But eventually, we did get to pay the amount plus the big interest. And after that, we both decided to call the company and requested that our cards be cancelled. I don't want to make the same mistake again. And after that experience, it's much easier on my mind to just save up cash even if it takes time. At least, I don't have to worry about the extra expenses like the scary interest the credit card will give.
• Philippines
13 Mar 09
Yes, it is possible to cancel your credit card. I did that after paying our first and only purchase using the card. It really gets scary when the bill comes. You just need to be patient when calling them. As for my experience, I had to call the company numerous times for the card to be cancelled. In the end, my effort paid off. They just told me that the account is closed and that I need to cut the cards in two, so just to make sure it won't be used again.
@pinks17 (2192)
• Philippines
11 Mar 09
Honestly I plan to pay my first bill which I used for my groceries and call the credit card company and cancel it,I just don't have an idea if it's possible for them to cancel my credit card.
1 person likes this
@eagle_f15 (1827)
• Malaysia
11 Mar 09
I use my credit card for two things only. To buy groceries and take tuppeware stocks. Mine is a supplementary card. Paying bills are done by my husband. He uses his principal card. Taking tupperware stocks is that when my customers order the stocks from me, I would go get for them at the stockist and use my credit card to pay first. When I deliver the stock to them, they would pay me in cash then I would accumulate the cash and put it back into my account so as to pay for the credit card bill when it comes. My husband and I believe that the credit card must work for us not we become slaves to the credit card. So by using the card for taking stocks it is in a way working for us.
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@eagle_f15 (1827)
• Malaysia
12 Mar 09
Actually it's very tempting to buy certain stuff for myself at times with the credit card but with the thought of " the bill will becoming at the end of the month and I have to pay back for this item that I bought" it keeps me from buying....not easy but I just walk away from the store. So now I hardly go shopping at all except for groceries.
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@pinks17 (2192)
• Philippines
11 Mar 09
It's good you know how to use your credit card wisely.NOw I have the card..it will be a big test for me.I know that I like to buy a lot of unnecessary things but so far I haven't use my card to buy myself a new shoes,digicam and an ipod.
@bellaofchaos (11538)
• United States
11 Mar 09
never buy anything that you can't pay cash for. I would put the card in a block of ice that way you can't carry it on you and it would take you time to get it out of the block of ice.
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@pinks17 (2192)
• Philippines
11 Mar 09
Now that my boyfriend got a new job I guess I will not be using the card again.I'll just pay my first bill and well...keep and leave the card at home.lol.ofr better yet cancel it..if it's possible.hehehe.
@yaasir (37)
• South Africa
11 Mar 09
Just a word of caution be very carefull. We all start off with the best intentions as far as credit cards go however before long we all ultimately plunge into credit card hell hole of endless debt.
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@pinks17 (2192)
• Philippines
11 Mar 09
thanks for the advise yaasir and catilda..don't worry I will try my best not to be tempted to buy unnecessary things.Don't worry I always have a cash saved in my atm card and my boyfriend has a job already and I know have someone to share my bills and expenses at home.
11 Mar 09
I,ve just got my first card through just for emergencies had a hugh bill for gettin my car fixed so needed it, didn't want it. oh well just have to put it away till next car bill.
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@pinks17 (2192)
• Philippines
11 Mar 09
I first thought of buying an aircon for my room but omg I ran out of food so i used it for groceries.I know that I have a great sense of self-control and I know for a fact that I will not splurge and use the credit card a lot.
• United States
11 Mar 09
Be careful! It's easy to use it for simple things and forget that there's an interest rate attached to it. Look at it this way, do you really want to pay twice as much for your groceries or a pair of jeans? I got my first credit card in college and used it incorrectly. I learned my lesson really quick. My broker finally told me the secret to benifiting from using credit. Get a credit card that has rewards (this is basically free stuff), pay it off every month and if you can't pay it off every month never have more than a 35% running balance. This will keep you under the radar and you will keep and build your good credit.
@pinks17 (2192)
• Philippines
11 Mar 09
I told my boyfriend that if my application will be approve for the credit card i will invest on home appliances with zero interest but apparently I ran out of food in the ref and it will be 10day s before my payday so i used for groceries..this coming payday..ill pay it whole.
@lingli_78 (12822)
• Australia
11 Mar 09
i use my credit card to pay for all my bills and daily expenses and i get my first credit card in march 2006... my advice to you is to make sure that you will be able to pay for the balance you owe every month to avoid the heavy interest that they will be charging to you... that's what i do and i never have problem with my credit cards so far... thanks God for that... take care and have a nice day...
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@pinks17 (2192)
• Philippines
11 Mar 09
With regard to our bills..we pay it cash.I make sure that I save the money from our paycheck.Yup this coming payday..I will pay my debt in cash..
• Philippines
10 Mar 09
I always tell myself that credit cards wouldn't do me any good. It can only create problems. My husband's co-worker owns a credit card and one day he was just too shock to learn that his credit had risen so high. He did not even use it. You see, he is a seaman and there was no way he could use the credit card because he was off shore - meaning, he was at sea most of the time. You must have imagined how shocked he was when he received the bill. Anyway, he called the credit card company and asked for an investigation. It was found out that his credit card had been hacked and someone from another country far far away had been using his credit card number all along, buying anything through the Internet. I wouldn't want to happen that to me. In other countries they have facilities where they can trace who is using someone else's credit cards. I don't think we have that here in the Philippines. You always get to pay your bill although you know you are not repsonsible for it. Our banks or credit card companies do not have the facilities to make accurate investigations or perhaps they are too lazy to make deeper investigations on such situations.
@pinks17 (2192)
• Philippines
11 Mar 09
[i]I thought of that too.My boyfriend got me a card as his supplementary but I didn't use it without his permission.Before if I want to buy a new shoes I had to tell him and pay it every payday which is twice a month.Now that he's in debt wiht his credit card and I got my own card just for groceries. I am so careful with identity thieft and fraud and I don't like to buy online things which I give out information.[/i]
@silverglint (2000)
• Philippines
11 Mar 09
When I first got my card, I was thinking of the same thing you are. Now I am stuck with a lot of credit cards and a lot of debt. Not that I am saying that you will be too, its just that you have to be extra careful how you use your card, I learned the hard way. Now, I am working very hard to pay off all my card debts. My advice, make sure you pay off all the balance every time the bill comes, that way, you will not be subject to any interest. 0% installment? think twice, trice and a lot of times, make sure that you really have enough budget to pay off the monthly installment plus everything else that you charge to your card, or else, it won't be 0% interest anymore...
@pinks17 (2192)
• Philippines
11 Mar 09
I have another offer from another credit card company.It's good that I am contented now with my credit card bec.the limit is just too low but regardless it's not a 35k worth of card..I know how to limit myself from using it....so far...lol
@Leykon (577)
• Canada
10 Mar 09
I have one card that I use only for emergincies,the rest of the time I use good old cash.that way I know how much I can spend and it stops me from inpulse buying.Plus when you use credit cards your always paying more as there is interest.so my advice is stick to the cash. Hope this bit of info helps .Have a good day
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@pinks17 (2192)
• Philippines
10 Mar 09
[i]When I applied for a card it was just for fun...I thought the bank will not approve my application.A week after I have my credit card.I use cash most of the time. thanks for your time leykon.[/i]
@bubblyapple (2653)
• Philippines
10 Mar 09
My advice: GIVE IT UP! I know you don't want to hear this but credit card is just trouble even if you "PROMISED" yourself that it would just be for emergencies. Why do you have to use credit cards if you can pay in CASH. That is better. Remember credit cards have monthly interest and other fees. Why pay all these fees if you don't have to, right? So if you can, GIVE IT UP NOW!
@pinks17 (2192)
• Philippines
10 Mar 09
[i]I was about to call the credit card company to cancel my application but what's so ironic,I lost the company's phone number and when I went out the house the delivery man handed me the mail and OMG it was my credit card..I just don't have any idea what will happen if you cancel it. I already used it for my groceries[/i]
@neildc (17239)
• Lapu-Lapu City, Philippines
11 Mar 09
I was just like you when I got my first credit card. I was so excited at that time. So I bought almost everything that I need, take note, "needs". Because I know what are my needs and my family's. I know how to spend wisely. I know that I will only use my credit card when needed, most of the time, in emergency cases. But something went wrong, and a big problem came. So I used the card. Unintentionally, I didn't pay my dues. I stopped paying the bank and now, with two accounts, I can't pay them even if I wanted to. Because it blew up to a great amount. Now, I don't have a credit card and I will not get one again... Just an experience of mine...
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@pinks17 (2192)
• Philippines
11 Mar 09
[i]Neil is already in debt with his credit card and if you will check it was all for groceries.Now that he has a job again he will just pay it every payday and with regard to mine..this payday..I'll make sure that I will pay whatever I spent for our groceries.. You know what I want right now?an ipod,digicam,a new pair of chucks but I am not being tempted to use my "own" credit though I bring my credit card everyday.I have a ready cash but then again..I still have my cellphone and can use it for camera and a walkman,I still have an almost new chucks shoes which I bought last december so I guess..I still don't need those things....yet...control..control...control..[/i]
@rberon1985 (5359)
• Philippines
11 Mar 09
I'm happy for you that you have get your own credit card. Is it HSBC?Citibank?BDO?Standard Chartered?I work with credit card for 10 months now. And based on my experienced, a lot of people are suffering because of it. When you owns a credit card, it is very important that you are intelligent and wise. Once you have purchase, it is very important that you settled it on or before the due date to avoid charges.I have some clients who is almost getting crazy because with the problem with credit card. I also advice that you should not give your credit card information to other people. When someone has swipe your card, you will be suffering from fraud. So take good care of your card. It is hard to dispute one particular purchase. I hope i can help you with this tips. Have a great day!!
1 person likes this
@pinks17 (2192)
• Philippines
11 Mar 09
My boyfriend have me as his supplementary for citibank card and his limit got high to i guess 95k and mine is just from bpi bec.that's our company's bank and the minimum limit is just 10k.
• United States
10 Mar 09
I'm with bubblyapple. Its too tempting to spend money on a credit card that is suppose to be "emergency use only". Just be careful with spending because you will tell yourself its important and when your looking back at your bill wondering how it got so high that will be why. If you have self control then great and stick with it. A lot of people who have credit cards aren't that fortunate! Goodluck!
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@pinks17 (2192)
• Philippines
11 Mar 09
So far I used it once and I am going to pay it on my next payday.It's just so happened that I ran out of food inside my ref and my cats ran out of food as well and it's just 6days before my first payday.