Discover Card is KILLING ME!!!

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

my wife and I use plastic for just about everything and only use about $200 in cash a month...so that means we are putting between 7-10k on our Discover Card each month, even when we don't make any large purchases.  We pay it off each month and pocket the 1% refund (which is NOT taxable, by the way).

But due to the economy, our credit limit has been reduced to 15k and we've gone over our limit in the last couple of months and our credit card has been declined.  So I've had to call and make additional payments mid-month to keep us from going over, which is really a pain because it changes how my funds are automatically distributed each month through my banking accounts.

But I have a couple of large purchases coming up (new telescope mount, new computer), so I called Disover today and ask for a credit increase, citing the fact that I had the account since 2001 and have paid off my balance each month

NO DICE - Discover didn't even review my account and said that due to the economy their current policy is not to increase any credit limits for those already having a credit limit of at least 12.5k - no exceptions.

Just goes to show how consumers, even those with good credit, are constrained in this environment.  And my only other credit card is for my business expenses and I would only use that for nonbusiness purposes for emergencies, because it screws up my tax accounting.  (I do not use debit cards because I want a layer of protection between my bank account and my plastic)

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

Why am I not surprised?

Protip: Practice what you preach. Stop using credit cards.

I see that your stupidity is continuing to increase.

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

Why am I not surprised?

Protip: Practice what you preach. Stop using credit cards.

I see that your stupidity is continuing to increase.

But it's terribly hard for it to keep up with the rate of your debt.

and I see your lack of reading comprehension is also continuing to increase.

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

Why am I not surprised?

Protip: Practice what you preach. Stop using credit cards.

I see that your stupidity is continuing to increase.

But it's terribly hard for it to keep up with the rate of your debt.

and I see your lack of reading comprehension is also continuing to increase.

Why do you feel the need to own a credit card in the first place, let alone use it? If you need to make transactions on-line, get a Paypal account or a debit card. I have never, do not, and will never own a credit card, and even if that means I can't be an expert consumer, I'll happily do without.

because I make at least $1000.00 per year of tax free income (which is equivalent to me making $1700.00 of taxable income) off my credit card...Because using a credit card is safer than cash...Because it insulates my banking account...Because it provides me leverage against the lender in disputes, which I would not have if I paid using cash or a debit card...Because it allows me to continue to draw interest off my own money instead of paying up front in cash...Because it supports my credit rating...And even my paypal account is tied to my credit card (which I'm sure is quite aggravating to paypal)...

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

...Because it provides a good record of purchases for tax purposes

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

In other words, you want to bilk the companies out of money. Niiiiiice.

accepting credit card rewards is "bilking companies out of money"?  P.S. we also clip coupons and plan a lot of our purchases to coincide with upcoming sales, so I have multiple ways of "bilking companies out of money"!!!

[note to self: do not use the show button anymore, just trust your initial judgment in placing someone on ignore.]

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

Just face it, you'll find little sympathy here with your credit card expenses between $96,000 and $120,000.   

who's looking for sympathy....simply giving a first hand example of how consumer spending is being squeeze by credit constraints.  Also, by forcing consumer with good credit to pay in cash, it hinders  cash flows into investments.  

Someone might have to pay for a car with cash, instead of having access to a car loan and using their cash flow for investing - though it is just hypothetical since I'm not in the market for a new car...or, someone might even forego buying a new car if credit is not available instead of interrupting their monthly cash flow into their investment account....or, in the worse case, lack of available credit could keep someone from starting a new business

trust me, it is hindering economic growth potential, which is what this thread is about

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

In other words, you want to bilk the companies out of money. Niiiiiice.

accepting credit card rewards is "bilking companies out of money"?  P.S. we also clip coupons and plan a lot of our purchases to coincide with upcoming sales, so I have multiple ways of "bilking companies out of money"!!!

[note to self: do not use the show button anymore, just trust your initial judgment in placing someone on ignore.]

Yes, it is, though not one entirely unintended on their part: the credit card companies expect rubes like yourself to attempt to do it, so that they can hammer you in the future.

"And Jesus said, 'Thou shalt live beyond thy means.'"

homer, why do you make such statement without knowledge of the individual?  I haven't had credit card debt since July 1994 (3 months after I was married) and even before that the most I ever had was 5k of credit card debt.  And since then I have made far more off of credit cards than the interest I paid.

yes, I gladly accept offers from rebates, coupons, defferred payments with no interest, sales, etc...it's simply part of being a wise consumer and a good manager of money

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

Doesn't matter. The fact alone that you're reliant on credit cards for major purchases denotes two things to me:

1. That you shouldn't be making those purchases, and

2. That you are attempting to live beyond your immediate means.

again, you have no idea of my situation.  I'm simply attempting to pay the lowest price and to defer payment so that I can keep my money working for me (earning interest, etc) as long as possible before paying the bill.  I have more than adequate means to pay up front, and could survive for years on my savings alone, but I simply choose not to liquidate CDs, stocks, etc.

If you had taken the time to read the initial post, and if you were reasonable and understood anything about money, you'd see that this is not about gong into debt; rather it is about how the restriction of credit is forcing diversion of cash flow in consumers with good credit.  And if the lack of credit is forcing diversions in cash flow, then it is certainly hurting economic growth because businesses, even those with strong balance sheets, are having to forego investments in order to divert cash to meet their daily business activities....which is one of the reasons why businesses are sitting on trillions of dollars in cash and not expanding and hiring.

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

Again, I don't care. If you rely on credit cards for major purchases, then you ought to expect to get dicked over. That applies to anyone.

considering Discover Card is a legal source of free tax-free money for me and my family, I don't exactly see it that way, in fact, I've probably made at least $20k of tax free income off of credit cards over the last 20 years  (i really make a killing when clients send me on business trips and I get to charge reimbursable expenses on my own credit card - I get the full amount of the expense back from the client, and I pocket the tax free cash reward from Discover). 

In any case, your inability to recognize wise uses of credit has missed the point that the shrinkage of credit available to financially sound consumers is a microcosm of what is going on in the larger economy.

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

I hope no one other than Einzige has missed the point of this thread - jmfcst wanted to brag.  And now he has, and we have listened.

Good for you, jmfcst, for the high income.  Kudos, enjoy it.. or at any rate what ever passes for 'enjoy' in your case.  You are very right to value your social position and its material reward, and to remind others of their inferior position.  This is good old fashioned simian behavior, and nothing the rest of us have any basis to question. 

I present my submission to you in (symbolic) kind:

my financial enjoyment comes in the freedom of driving a paid-off 1997 Corolla with 218k miles, living under the warm roof of a modest house, brown bagging my lunch, and making sure I don't become a burden to others so that I'm in a position to help others

but I would have preferred this thread remained on topic instead of digressing to respond to extremes of those who either hate credit under any circumstance and/or make sexual slaves out of the poor.

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

jmfcst, if you're living so frugally, how could you possibly be racking up 7 to 10K in ordinary monthly personal expenses unless you have at least a half-dozen kids? 

when you find the answer to that question, please clue me in….

 it’s a family of six, my wife and I have 4 kids: 3 girls (14,9,5) and 1 boy (12), 2 male mini-weiner dogs, 1 female hairless cat, 1 female corn snake, and 1 male(?) beta fish.  our food bill alone is around 2-2.5k per month, even before we eat out…our gas and toll expenses are >$500 month, and that’s not including maintenance…and I don’t even want to mention our clothing bill…

here’s our 2009 Discover Card breakdown…. I can’t remember making a single large purchase in 2009, in fact, I’m sure we didn’t make one…though I did buy a couple of pistols and a TV, but all that together could not have totaled more than $2k because that’s the only new durable items in my house…I have nothing new to show for the rest of the spending:



...and this doesn’t include stuff like mortgage,  insurance,  misc checks written for stuff like school lunches and mother’s day out that just nickel and dime me to death, petty cash, taxes, tithes, gifts to charity, and savings.

…and now you know why I don't have a car payment, why I drive a 1997 Corolla and have a loaf of bread and a jar of peanut butter stuck in my desk…

...ok, this is starting to depress me.

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

and it doesn't include utilities

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

However, it would seem to me that one potential solution to the 12.5K cap would be to have your wife get a card in her own name.

a card in her own name?  yeah, only if I can use your name and address for billing purposes!  oh, and also, be sure to review the monthly statement and forward all questions to her...(I can get away with saying that - she doesn't read my posts)

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Another is to get a second card from another issuer that also offers a cash back reward.

I used to have a couple of other visa non-business card, but once the meltdown occured in late 2008, they sent me letters saying they were closing the account!!!

in fact, because of our current credit squeeze, a week ago I dug out our CapitalOne card which we hadn't used for a couple of years and called the number on the back and the account was closed - and I don't think I was the one who closed it.

So, yeah, looks like I going to be looking for an additional card.  I'd be up the creek if my client decided to send me on a trip (though I haven't had to travel for business purposes since 2007)

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

here's a good example of a company that wants to expand and hire, but can't due to lack of credit:

You must be logged in to read this quote.

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please read the whole article, it demonstrates how the credit markets are still frozen

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

Looking at that pie graph from Discover, I believe jmfcst is married to Imelda Marcos.

no, she dresses pretty modestly.  Discover Card has a very broad definition of "Merchandise".  It's not extravagant shopping, rather it is just basic odds and ends...here's a snap shot of the last couple of weeks that feel under the category of "Merchandise":

1/27/2010   CLAIRES # 6253 MAGNOLIA TX    $58.01
      
1/27/2010   PETSMART INC 1765 MAGNOLIA TX     $41.43
      
1/27/2010   WALGREENS #6864 MAGNOLIA TX    $12.72
      
1/28/2010   ABERCROMBIE T W TX    $24.14
      
1/28/2010   CARLTON CARDS #0579 THE WOODLANDSTX    $9.82
      
1/31/2010   ACADEMY SPORTS #31 TOMBALL TX    $43.29
      
2/2/2010   AEROPOSTALE.COM 877-289-2376 PA    $21.62
      
2/3/2010   APL*ITUNES 866-712-7753 CA 14970779    $3.23
      
2/5/2010   JILLY BEAN ACCESSORIES MAGNOLIA TX    $79.97
      
2/5/2010   TOYS 'R' US THE WOODLANDSTX    $25.96
      
2/8/2010   PETSMART INC 1765 MAGNOLIA TX     $32.92
      
2/8/2010   WALGREENS #3233 TOMBALL TX    $69.26
      
2/9/2010   WWW.NEWEGG.COM 800-390-1119 CA 34877450    $132.98
      
2/10/2010   WAL-MART SC - #3390 THE WOODLANDSTX CASHOVER $ 40.00 PURCHASES $ 16.24    $56.24
      
2/10/2010   WAL-MART SC - #3390 THE WOODLANDSTX    $91.93
      
2/10/2010   WALGREENS #6864 MAGNOLIA TX    $12.18
      
2/11/2010   AMAZON MKTPLACE PMTS AMZN.COM/BILLWA LIC7V1PQ3AW    $14.97
      
2/11/2010   RESERVATIONREWARDS.COM 800-732-7031 CT    $12.00
      
2/12/2010   CREATIVE CHRISTIANS MAGNOLIA TX    $8.49
      
2/12/2010   CREATIVE CHRISTIANS MAGNOLIA TX    $74.36
      
2/12/2010   TARGET MAGNOLIA TX    $279.71
      
2/14/2010   OFFICEMAX, INC 1409 MAGNOLIA TX    $78.67
      
2/14/2010   OFFICEMAX, INC 1409 MAGNOLIA TX    $135.46
      
2/14/2010   TARGET MAGNOLIA TX    $100.87

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

Petsmart and Creative Christians.  There's the source of your poverty.

how much can two mini-wiener dogs and one cat eat?

and the Creatvie Christians was a one time stop...my son and I stopped in because it was next door to the Chinese place we were eating in prior to taking him to meet his Scrabble buddies.  He found a $9 book he wanted and I bought my wife a $75 charm bracelet for Valentines’ Day, which was all I got her (no card, no roses, no chocolate, no dinner out).

Most of the stuff bought at Target and Walmart was probably food and household items.  The ToyRUs purchase was because I stopped in and bought 2 Rubik's cubes because my 8 year old daughter is building a cube solver with a Lego Mindstorms kit.  The NewEgg purchases were made by me for my computer.  The $210 OfficeMax purchase was a computer desk and two desk chairs – we’re giving my 8 year old a computer in her room for her birthday that’s coming up in a week.

We're not buying expensive stuff …we're just really not watching what we're spending and it adds up in a hurry.  

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

Creative Christians was a one time stop...my son and I stopped in because it was next door to the Chinese place we were eating in prior to taking him to meet his Scrabble buddies.  He found a $9 book he wanted and I bought my wife a $75 charm bracelet for Valentines’ Day, which was all I got her (no card, no roses, no chocolate, no dinner out).

I'd have skipped the Chinese place and splurged on the dinner myself.  Replacing casual eating out with in-home meals is the quickest way to save some money.  However, taking a kid to play Scrabble boggles the mind.  Are there no kids in your neighborhood that he's friends with?

we didn't have time to go home, his Scrabble meeting was right after church.  He's one of the best Scrabble players in the country for his age (6th grade) and he has to travel around Houston and play adults in order to find competition.

What costs a lot of money is having kids in activities - it comes with a lot of added costs like having to eat out because of not having time to go home and cook a meal.

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

Btw, Torie and jmcfst.  You're the types of persons using credit cards who are the most likely to get their limits cut, both now and in the near future.

Basically, you're not profitable.

That sucks. But I have not received a "dear John" letter yet. Hey, at least based on my history, I am a low credit risk, no?  And the card companies do get fees paid by the vendors, and they make more money off me than someone whose charges are $700 a month or something, and pays off the card on time every month, no?

Actually, Torie,  you're a credit card company's nightmare.  They can't make any money on you

but don't they still get a portion (1-2%) of every purchase I make?