credit cards

NEWNEW2016 · January 2016

I am thinking about applying for a credit card (capital one quick silver), I currently do not have any credit cards, does anyone on this board have a quick silver card, if so what are your thoughts? Are there any other credit cards that are good to use before I make my decision? I just think a credit card would be good to have for Just in case crap happens purposes!

AprilZ81 · January 2016

We have multiple credit cards that we leverage for points and we pay them off each month (we usually only use one at a time).

If you do not have a credit card right now you want to make sure that you get the lowest rate you qualify for and be sure to track your spending carefully so you can pay it off when the bill comes in. Paying interest is easily avoided.

You also want to make sure there are no annual fees to have the card. Sometimes the fees can be worth it for the additional perks, but usually only for heavy card users.

I have a Bank of America Royal Caribbean credit card (earns points go help pay for vacations) that is currently our primary card. We also have a Capital One card (not sure of the card type) that we usually only use if we are out of the country or if our primary card has been compromised and we are waiting on new cards to arrive.

I recently applied, and received, an Amazon Rewards Visa. We shop heavily from Amazon at Christmas and periodically throughout the year. I only applied because it would give me an instant $80 Amazon Gift card that allowed me to get the new Cricut (an awesome crafting machine if you aren't familiar) for an amazing price. Those things NEVER go on sale... Since we get 3% back at Amazon and 2% back on restaurants, pharmacies and another category and 1% on everything else we may gradually shift this to our primary card.

csuave · January 2016

I have the Quicksilver.
Benefits are no annual fee, flat 1.5% cash back, no foreign exchange, Visa is widely accepted.

If you decide on this card it sounds like your plan is to have it and use it only when needed.

You may want to consider your timing in getting the card. If you have a good credit score you will be offered a $100 bonus for spending $500 in the first three months. I suggest waiting until you have a large purchase planned and then getting the card so you can easily take advantage of the bonus. It can take a few weeks from application to card activation so you will need to figure that into your timeline.

hoffse · January 2016

I wouldn't use credit cards for "crap happens" unless you really have no other choice because the interest rate is extremely high. If you run into that situation, see if you have time to open a card with an interest-free period so that you at least have some time to pay down the balance and figure things out before interest kicks in.

I don't have the quicksilver card, but I have a lot of other travel credit cards. Several of mine have annual fees. Whether the fees make sense depends on 1) how much you put on your cards - bigger spenders can often benefit from the higher reward tiers you get with the card fees and 2) whether you leverage the rewards well enough so that the fees pay for themselves. For people just starting out, you want a credit card that does not have a fee while you learn how to manage it.

To start out, I would personally pick either the Fidelity AmEx card or the Citi double cash card. Both have no annual fee, and both give you 2% cash back for any purchase you make (if you pay your card off in full each month). Other cards have higher category bonuses, but that becomes more complicated because it's another thing to pay attention to. For just a flat-rate, cash-back card, those two are probably the best on the market. I personally have the Fidelity card, but you have to have a bank account with them to have it. I don't believe the Citi card requires a separate bank account.

With CC's it's best to start small and see how you manage them before you shift too much spending over to them. They can be incredibly lucrative if you are responsible with your spending. H and I squeezed about $5K worth of rewards out of our credit cards in 2015, and we didn't pay a penny in interest. On the other hand, the average American household has about $15,000 in credit card debt, so that tells you that many people can't manage a credit card responsibly. Be cautious with them and treat them like a debit card so that you don't inadvertently overspend.

littlemushroom · January 2016

We have the Citi Bank Double Cash Card. You get 1% back for all purchases and 1% back on all payments. So, essentially 2% cash back on all purchases, assuming you pay it off eventually. We pay the balance in full every month to avoid interest. All purchases we make go on that card.

The main benefit to that card is there is no limits on the amount you earn bonuses for. We found cards that had more cash back for categories had limits that we would would exceed every period and end up earning the same or less than we would getting 2% for everything all the time.

After some additional research on cards that let us earn miles or points applied to travel, we found getting the actual cash back was more cost effective. The cash would get us more bang for our buck than the miles/points we would earn on the same amount of purchases.

There is no annual fee, you don't need an account with Citi Bank to have a card (we don't), and the bonus can be applied to your cc account as a credit. We figured based on our spending that we should earn about $100 each year from the card, which will go toward our vacations.

dragonstarjk · January 2016

Before I reply, I would want to know:

1)What is your motivation for having a card? Low interest, points building, travel rewards, cash back, etc.?

2)Do you have experience with other types of credit? Have you had a store card for example, or even any kind of installment loan?

3)Do you have any other kind of emergency plan other than a credit card for when things come up?

Be aware that if this is your first time getting credit, it is likely that you might not qualify for some of the cards suggested, because a lot of the better cards will be based off of your credit score/history.

emily1004 · January 2016

I have a Chase Freedom, my husband has a Quicksilver Capital One. My perks, credit line, interest rate are better than his. Plus, he had a better credit score than me when we applied. However, we both have excellent credit. Out of all are credit cards, our Amex is my favorite, even though it has an annual fee. PP, if I were in your shoes, I would avoid any annual fee. Word to the wise, don't ever carry a balance on a credit card, and don't use it for emergencies. That's what an e-fund is for.

abrewer5 · January 2016

Looking at your other post I see you put $1200 towards an efund every month. If you continue to do this for a few more months then I would think that would be enough to cover any sort of crap happens situation. If it makes you feel more comfortable you could always save more than 3-6 months of expenses in this category.

I agree with hoffse I would not get a card for emergencies. I am one of the people that cannot use a credit card because I over spend, I fully admit that, so I would caution that unless you know for sure you'll pay it off in full every month then I wouldn't get one. You are in a great position budget wise, so it's up to you.

Now for what you're really asking: I have the quicksilver and it's ok. I keep the card open because it is one of my longer standing credit accounts (I'm 25, and I got that card when I was 19 I believe). The no foreign transaction fees came in handy last month when I booked our trip to the Bahamas! Plus I got 1.5% back on it. Overall it's a good card, but depending on what you're looking to get out of the card it may not be the best option. I also have a discover card that I like.

Good luck on your decision!

als1982 · January 2016

Between the two of us we do a fair amount of business and personal travel, so we have a Southwest Chase card and a Barclay Arrival Plus as our primary cards. Barclay has a great cash reception rate on travel expenses (including cabs, Uber, etc.) of 2.1% and Southwest usually nets us a few free flights a year, offering double points on hotels and airline bookings. Both have an annual fee, but we get much more benefit over the year than that $99 charge. We do have a Capital One Venture that we keep for longevity. It doesn't have a fee, but the redemptions also aren't event close to the Barclay card.

We also rely on our cards for emergencies, keeping only $1,000 in a liquid efund. However, we don't have children and currently live on one income and would have the ability to come up with an extra $5-$6,000 a month if absolutely necessary. Plus, we're ultra responsible with our cards.

hoffse · January 2016

als1982 said:

Between the two of us we do a fair amount of business and personal travel, so we have a Southwest Chase card and a Barclay Arrival Plus as our primary cards. Barclay has a great cash reception rate on travel expenses (including cabs, Uber, etc.) of 2.1% and Southwest usually nets us a few free flights a year, offering double points on hotels and airline bookings. Both have an annual fee, but we get much more benefit over the year than that $99 charge. We do have a Capital One Venture that we keep for longevity. It doesn't have a fee, but the redemptions also aren't event close to the Barclay card. We also rely on our cards for emergencies, keeping only $1,000 in a liquid efund. However, we don't have children and currently live on one income and would have the ability to come up with an extra $5-$6,000 a month if absolutely necessary. Plus, we're ultra responsible with our cards.

This is a good point. H and I don't keep as much liquid in an e-fund for the same reason. Any CC will buy you at least 20-30 days to figure things out, and if your savings rate is high enough, they can be used to float large expenses while you are waiting for your cash flow to catch up. But I would make sure you have a pot of money set aside or a really high savings rate before relying primarily on CC's in an emergency.

I will add that at any given time I usually have at least 1 card open that is in a 0% promotional period. Between H and I, we usually open a few cards a year, and many of them have that as a perk. While we have never used the 0% financing (yet), I could see using it the day our A/C dies and we have to come up with $8,000 between our e-fund and cash flow. Regardless of the size of our efund, I know that I will be reluctant to drain that much all at once.

als1982 · January 2016

hoffse said:

als1982 said:

Between the two of us we do a fair amount of business and personal travel, so we have a Southwest Chase card and a Barclay Arrival Plus as our primary cards. Barclay has a great cash reception rate on travel expenses (including cabs, Uber, etc.) of 2.1% and Southwest usually nets us a few free flights a year, offering double points on hotels and airline bookings. Both have an annual fee, but we get much more benefit over the year than that $99 charge. We do have a Capital One Venture that we keep for longevity. It doesn't have a fee, but the redemptions also aren't event close to the Barclay card.

We also rely on our cards for emergencies, keeping only $1,000 in a liquid efund. However, we don't have children and currently live on one income and would have the ability to come up with an extra $5-$6,000 a month if absolutely necessary. Plus, we're ultra responsible with our cards.

This is a good point. H and I don't keep as much liquid in an e-fund for the same reason. Any CC will buy you at least 20-30 days to figure things out, and if your savings rate is high enough, they can be used to float large expenses while you are waiting for your cash flow to catch up. But I would make sure you have a pot of money set aside or a really high savings rate before relying primarily on CC's in an emergency.

I will add that at any given time I usually have at least 1 card open that is in a 0% promotional period. Between H and I, we usually open a few cards a year, and many of them have that as a perk. While we have never used the 0% financing (yet), I could see using it the day our A/C dies and we have to come up with $8,000 between our e-fund and cash flow. Regardless of the size of our efund, I know that I will be reluctant to drain that much all at once.

We put our new furnace and AC on a card in 2014. It took about three months from the date of installation to pay off. After points redemption, we ended up less than $20 in the hole.

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