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02 May 2012

The Author

John Frainee

John Frainee is the webmaster and a writer for the ever-growing blog, The Christian Dollar. John enjoys exploring how faith and finance interact, spending time with his wife and family, and meeting readers from all over the web. He has a Bachelor of Science degree in Bible and Christian Counseling and loves encouraging others in their financial pursuits. You can also find him on Facebook and Twitter.

Read more of John's great financial advice below or view his  other work at The Christian Dollar.

...if you like John's work, check out the blog posts from another personal finance guru who contributes to this publication: Carrie Smith
4 Reasons Why I’ll Never Own a Credit Card Again
10 Comments
4 Reasons I'll Never Own A Credit Card

The PerkStreet community is truly one of the most anti-credit card groups I’ve ever encountered, and for good reason. They understand that you don’t have to go into debt to get great perks. I find that I’m just as fired up as they are, and will never own a credit card again. Why? These 4 reasons:

1. I Don’t Like Paying High Interest Rates

Why would anyone sign up for a card that has 12.99% APR? Some credit cards have even higher rates! Gross!

Want to know my secret for not going into debt or paying high interest rates? I don’t own a credit card. That’s right! I don’t even have one in case of emergency. For that, I have an emergency fund.

2. I Don’t Like Reading Fine Print

Have you ever seen a credit card’s terms and conditions? Talk about small print! And all of that fine print is written in legal mumbo jumbo. Are you sure you know and understand all the terms and conditions of your credit card?
On the other hand, PerkStreet’s fees are straightforward and designed to be almost nonexistent for active customers. No small print there! Even PerkStreet’s fine print is easy to understand (see the bottom of their website).

3. I Get Perks Without Going Into Debt

PerkStreet has a stellar perks program that gives me 1% cash back on all my purchases. In some instances, I even earn 2% cash back! It’s a great deal and when I swipe my PerkStreet Debit MasterCard, I know that I’m spending responsibly. We’re currently earning over $300 a year by using our PerkStreet card. That’s pretty exciting.

While there are credit cards out there that are offering more cash back than PerkStreet, many of those customers will accidentally go into debt and pay higher interest, negating all their extra rewards. PerkStreet forces me to spend less than I earn, and I love that.

4. A Debit Card Forces Me to Closely Watch My Budget.

I remember when I had credit cards I wasn’t closely monitoring a budget. In fact, I don’t know if you could call what I had a budget! I knew that having credit cards would “save me” if I got into a pinch, so I handled my finances through guesswork and occasionally looking at my bank account.

Not smart. I’ve even overdrawn my bank account because of my lack of budgeting. When I got rid of my credit cards, everything changed. I saw the need for a strict budget, started saving money, and made sure I had a solid financial plan.

If you’re struggling with your budget, you might want to try a StreetSense course on budgeting.

Those are my reasons why I’ll never own a credit card again. Is PerkStreet’s Debit MasterCard enough for you? Leave a comment and let us know!

John Frainee is a Customer Columnist here at PerkStreet, and the webmaster and a writer for the ever-growing blog, The Christian Dollar. John enjoys exploring how faith and finance interact, spending time with his wife and family, and meeting readers from all over the web. He has a Bachelor of Science degree in Bible and Christian Counseling and loves encouraging others in their financial pursuits. You can also find him on Facebook and Twitter.

10 Comments
  • Jimbojake

    Well you do not have to carry a balance that means no interest plus a credit card has a lot better perks credit is not bad it’s bad management of credit that gets people my rule is if I can not pay it off when I get the bill I don,t buy it periord

  • StealthBomber

    Points 1 and 2 are nonsense…

    I have owned several credit cards and never payed a penny of interest. (Ok, one time in college..). With the invention of online banking, you can pay your bill there. Also online is the ending date of the billing cycle – this is when the interest will be applied. If you miss your payment date, the interest is charged on the balance. If you are smart and can manage time and money in a decent manner; you sign on, and transfer a lump sum towards the amount on the card. Most cards even allow front-loading of money. You also pay interest rates on things like cash advances, balance transfers, but I don’t mess around with those.I will say that most people treat a line of credit like a line of credit. This is where they are wrong; credit cards are a game, and you can lose if you are not paying attention. The payoff is more though. (BOA – 1% everything, 2% grocery, 3% GAS). 
    Point 2 – seriously? Did you read the fine print when you signed up for Facebook, Gmail (pick your mail account), when you bought that new car, signed up for any online banking etc etc etc? I had to read fineprint when I signed up for PerkStreet…
    Point 4 – A credit card forces me even more ;) Not dissing PerkStreet, its a fantastic idea, and great for people starting in their financial adventures. I would say its geared more around college kids who need to learn to control their spending without going in debt as easy. 

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=8342150 Christian Stewart

    I just think debt is dumb. No other reasons needed.

  • Jamiebrown989

    I really dont understand how perkstreet does there business they close peoples accounts without proper authorization and then hold their money hostage until they feel like releasing it I will never own another online account and I will never recommend perkstreet to anyone they are very unprofessional!!!!!!!!!!!

  • StealthBomber

    Ive never heard of the closing of accounts randomly – what evidence do you have of this? I also have never been treated unprofessionally by them…

  • http://Twitter.com/KylePs80 Kyle Psaty

    Hey guys, Just stepping in here to make sure everyone knows that PerkStreet takes a lot of pride in our customer service. We try to work with all our customers to make sure they understand what’s going on without their accounts if funds are being held for any reason. We certainly make mistakes, but we do everything we can to minimize them. We understand that this is people’s money we’re holding; we don’t want to make it hard to access. That said, we have an obligation to our customers to do everything we can to make sure fraudsters are kept at bay. 

    Hope this helps. As ever, if you have any questions, please ask away. 

    -Kyle

    Kyle Psaty
    PerkStreet Financial 

  • mountainvivi

    Your credit rating is also, in part, dependent on your available credit and history.  1.  Debit cards do not provide a credit history.
    2.  Debit cards do not provide available credit (i.e., your credit rating is improved when you have credit left to use).
    3.  Also (and this is evil), your credit rating is improved when you have credit cards and use them (and pay them off).  

  • Lulu At Howisavemoney

    You can own a credit card and NOT go into debt. Like Stealthbomber says…I also use credit cards and do NOT pay interest. My credit card is paid off before the due date and I never carry a balance. I earn cash back for everyday purchases so it is better than using a debit card in my case. You can earn the perks without going into debt if you manage your card correctly and you can pay attention to your budget even if you do use a credit card.

  • http://Twitter.com/KylePs80 Kyle Psaty

    Great points, MountainVivi. People often see credit cards as playing a critical role in improving credit, but there are plenty of other kinds of loans that can help improve credit as well. I definitely agree with you on point 3 — some parts of this system seem a flawed to say the least!

    -Kyle

    Kyle Psaty 
    PerkStreet Financial

  • http://tarasthebull.com/ Taras the bull

    I agree.  One can earn perks without using credit cards ( potential going into debt).  

    tarasthebull.com

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