Ah, okay, I always figured the only way to really be responsible with credit was to use credit cards like debit, but if a big purchase came along that I definitely couldn’t pay off within the month, I figured it wouldn’t hurt to have zero interest but wasn’t sure of the impact on my credit.
As long as you have the discipline to actually pay the thing off it’s fine. Many people think, “oh I have 0% interest, I’ll pay it off later” but never set aside the money to do so and end up accruing interest.
I never buy something on them I couldn’t immediately pay off in full when I hit buy. I’ve bought things in excess of my checking balance, but that’s because I had enough in savings (separate from my emergency fund), and my incoming paycheck would put my checking balance well above my credit card balance.
That is pretty much the right way to do credit. Treat like debit and/or find a way to have 0% interest over a few months time to spread a big cost across multiple months where it becomes affordable.
My concern is the impact on my credit from not paying back in full, even if there’s zero interest for an extended period of time. Like paying an appliance in 3 months with no interest versus the full balance before the next billing cycle. I just assume there’s a downside to having that convenience aside from them hoping I’ll fall behind.
Short term credit balances like appliances paid off over 3 months don’t affect your credit for very long. As soon as they are paid off and the balance falls off your credit report your score will rebound. It’s not worth stressing about.
We do both… both are fine. As long as you aren’t paying fees or interest, there is no disadvantage to using credit cards.
Ah, okay, I always figured the only way to really be responsible with credit was to use credit cards like debit, but if a big purchase came along that I definitely couldn’t pay off within the month, I figured it wouldn’t hurt to have zero interest but wasn’t sure of the impact on my credit.
As long as you have the discipline to actually pay the thing off it’s fine. Many people think, “oh I have 0% interest, I’ll pay it off later” but never set aside the money to do so and end up accruing interest.
I never buy something on them I couldn’t immediately pay off in full when I hit buy. I’ve bought things in excess of my checking balance, but that’s because I had enough in savings (separate from my emergency fund), and my incoming paycheck would put my checking balance well above my credit card balance.
That is pretty much the right way to do credit. Treat like debit and/or find a way to have 0% interest over a few months time to spread a big cost across multiple months where it becomes affordable.
My concern is the impact on my credit from not paying back in full, even if there’s zero interest for an extended period of time. Like paying an appliance in 3 months with no interest versus the full balance before the next billing cycle. I just assume there’s a downside to having that convenience aside from them hoping I’ll fall behind.
Short term credit balances like appliances paid off over 3 months don’t affect your credit for very long. As soon as they are paid off and the balance falls off your credit report your score will rebound. It’s not worth stressing about.