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Post by The Walk of the Penguin Mich on Apr 28, 2015 14:34:03 GMT -5
I haven't tried to make overpayments on the AmEx, but my Citi card doesn't allow it. I've tried to schedule a payment for a week or so out, with charges I knew were pending but would clear by the time the payment went through, and it won't let me. So no, no getting a negative balance on the card.
We only use the AmEx at CostCo orthe grocery store, and we've bought all the big things we were going to buy for now, so using the debit card isn't a big deal.
The biggest issue is that we do a lot of shopping via Amazon. And as I said, I will NOT use my debit card for that. I'll just have to remember to pay down those purchases as they hit the card. But it also won't kill us to spend a little less money at Amazon for a few months. I've got one on my Citi card now. Have you tried just paying your Citi card through your online bill pay at your bank instead of at Citibank's web site?
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shanendoah
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Post by shanendoah on Apr 28, 2015 14:36:09 GMT -5
muttleynfelix - I hadn't realized. I am glad it worked out for you.
minnesotapaintlady - It really isn't a problem, just an inconvenience. But it's an inconvenience I can only complain about here
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shanendoah
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Post by shanendoah on Apr 28, 2015 14:37:27 GMT -5
The Walk of the Penguin Mich - there you go being all practical and giving me an option I hadn't thought of - how dare you think outside of my box like that
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Post by The Walk of the Penguin Mich on Apr 28, 2015 14:40:42 GMT -5
The Walk of the Penguin Mich - there you go being all practical and giving me an option I hadn't thought of - how dare you think outside of my box like that I aim to please!
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joemilitary
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Post by joemilitary on Apr 28, 2015 14:45:58 GMT -5
I know this guy named Dave Ramsey and he has this thing called the envelope method. Just put your money in envelopes
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Tiny
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Post by Tiny on Apr 28, 2015 14:59:41 GMT -5
I know this guy named Dave Ramsey and he has this thing called the envelope method. Just put your money in envelopes We soooo need an emoticon with a smilely that splurts pop/coffee/beer/wine all over a monitor... cause now I have to go replace the paper towels I keep at my keyboard for such emergencies...
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dondub
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The meek shall indeed inherit the earth but only after the Visigoths are done with it.
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Post by dondub on Apr 28, 2015 15:14:40 GMT -5
Hi Bonny,
Seems unusual that cards paid off every month, with minimum payment totals in the $40 range, could possibly warp someone's debt ratio enough to mess a deal. The UW will use the minimum payment if you just show a statement that gives the $#.
I think their cash flow is sufficient to handle the way they use the cards so cash is king. Keep the liquidity at hand and continue to pay the cards off each month. Nothing wrong with that, especially the -0- interest part.
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CarolinaKat
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Post by CarolinaKat on Apr 28, 2015 15:20:37 GMT -5
Hi Bonny, Seems unusual that cards paid off every month, with minimum payment totals in the $40 range, could possibly warp someone's debt ratio enough to mess a deal. The UW will use the minimum payment if you just show a statement that gives the $#. I think their cash flow is sufficient to handle the way they use the cards so cash is king. Keep the liquidity at hand and continue to pay the cards off each month. Nothing wrong with that, especially the -0- interest part. Example: Let's say I have a card with a $10000 limit and a $50 minimum payment. I charge ~1500 of living expenses on the card. I pay it off in full when I get the statement, so I am never charged interest. However the CC Company reports the $1500 as my 'current balance' because They report it to the agency on the day before the statement is sent to me. So to the agency, it looks like i'm Carrying $1500 in debt, when I really paid if off before there were interest charges.
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dondub
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The meek shall indeed inherit the earth but only after the Visigoths are done with it.
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Post by dondub on Apr 28, 2015 15:38:40 GMT -5
True to an extent and you have a minimum payment on that balance. The next month the credit agency gets an update so if it has been paid off and then recharged for current expenses they will know that too. Not really a big deal, but if that bothers anyone it's time for a debit card.
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Blonde Granny
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Post by Blonde Granny on Apr 28, 2015 15:44:27 GMT -5
I know this idea is right up there with washing dirty clothes down in the river while pounding them on a rock....but has anyone EVER heard of writing a check? If not, I'm sure youtube or some where online instructions have been posted allowing all you youngsters to learn how it's done.
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CarolinaKat
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Post by CarolinaKat on Apr 28, 2015 15:45:51 GMT -5
I know this idea is right up there with washing dirty clothes down in the river while pounding them on a rock....but has anyone EVER heard of writing a check? If not, I'm sure youtube or some where online instructions have been posted allowing all you youngsters to learn how it's done. I do that several times a month, but I'm not going to write a check for online purchases, that's silly.
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Robert not Bobby
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Post by Robert not Bobby on Apr 28, 2015 16:00:43 GMT -5
We have successfully sold our condo in Reno. I now have a pre-approval letter for a loan to buy a new house up here without selling our current one first. Because we aren't selling our old house first (we intend to sell it, it just needs work that isn't reasonable to do while we're still living in it), our DTI is HIGH. That means that our credit reports really need to reflect that we don't have credit card debt. I use our credit cards ALL THE TIME. I pay them off each month, but I pay for everything on the cards. It makes budgeting so much easier, because I just make a couple big payments once a month instead of lots of little payments throughout the month. But that means that on our credit reports, it looks like we carry a balance (because it doesn't show that I've paid no interest in years, it shows that I have an average monthly balance of $1.5k, since that's our utilization).
So, our mortgage guy is suggesting we pay off the cards and then NOT USE THEM until the loan closes. Considering we haven't found a house we want yet (and don't want to move until mid-June or later anyway), that could be months!
How am I supposed to live without my credit cards for a couple of months! (First world problem, I know.) Yeah, first world problems (and I know you're only half kidding)...don't live within your means, live below them for a few months or years. It really won't hurt you, I don't think. And always pay the full amount on your card(s) when it comes due...that way you are taking advantage of a service, for free. Bill...$2,386.55 due June 2nd...minimum payment $15 dollars...if you pay the minimum for for the next 20 years at 20% interest, YOU WILL END UP PAYING LIKE A GAZZILLION DOLLARS. They are loan sharks. The Smiths don't have a better place than you do, and you don't have to "keep up with them".
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Post by The Walk of the Penguin Mich on Apr 28, 2015 16:26:15 GMT -5
We have successfully sold our condo in Reno. I now have a pre-approval letter for a loan to buy a new house up here without selling our current one first. Because we aren't selling our old house first (we intend to sell it, it just needs work that isn't reasonable to do while we're still living in it), our DTI is HIGH. That means that our credit reports really need to reflect that we don't have credit card debt. I use our credit cards ALL THE TIME. I pay them off each month, but I pay for everything on the cards. It makes budgeting so much easier, because I just make a couple big payments once a month instead of lots of little payments throughout the month. But that means that on our credit reports, it looks like we carry a balance (because it doesn't show that I've paid no interest in years, it shows that I have an average monthly balance of $1.5k, since that's our utilization).
So, our mortgage guy is suggesting we pay off the cards and then NOT USE THEM until the loan closes. Considering we haven't found a house we want yet (and don't want to move until mid-June or later anyway), that could be months!
How am I supposed to live without my credit cards for a couple of months! (First world problem, I know.) Yeah, first world problems (and I know you're only half kidding)...don't live within your means, live below them for a few months or years. It really won't hurt you, I don't think. And always pay the full amount on your card(s) when it comes due...that way you are taking advantage of a service, for free. Bill...$2,386.55 due June 2nd...minimum payment $15 dollars...if you pay the minimum for for the next 20 years at 20% interest, YOU WILL END UP PAYING LIKE A GAZZILLION DOLLARS. They are loan sharks. The Smiths don't have a better place than you do, and you don't have to "keep up with them". Huh?
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Post by The Walk of the Penguin Mich on Apr 28, 2015 16:28:27 GMT -5
I know this idea is right up there with washing dirty clothes down in the river while pounding them on a rock....but has anyone EVER heard of writing a check? If not, I'm sure youtube or some where online instructions have been posted allowing all you youngsters to learn how it's done. I do that several times a month, but I'm not going to write a check for online purchases, that's silly. Where does writing a check come into his?
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Robert not Bobby
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Post by Robert not Bobby on Apr 28, 2015 16:32:08 GMT -5
Huh"
I was just trying to say that you don't have to use your credit card..try to keep up "The Walk of...
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Post by The Walk of the Penguin Mich on Apr 28, 2015 16:44:17 GMT -5
Huh" I was just trying to say tha t you don't have to use your credit card..try to keep up "The Walk of...How do suggest one place orders online? The OP uses cards, and pays them off monthly. It works for her and she is not keeping up with the Jonses, or paying interest. Your post makes no sense.
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chen35
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Post by chen35 on Apr 28, 2015 16:45:30 GMT -5
Huh" I was just trying to say tha t you don't have to use your credit card..try to keep up "The Walk of...How do suggest one place orders online? The OP uses cards, and pays them off monthly. It works for her and she is not keeping up with the Jonses, or paying interest. Your post makes no sense. It's like you didn't even read the OP. She does pay her balance off each month.
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Mardi Gras Audrey
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Post by Mardi Gras Audrey on Apr 28, 2015 19:20:01 GMT -5
Shane,
Is there a reason you are using this particular broker/lender? I just purchased a new home and went through the loan process. I use my CCs and pay them off regularly (Usual card balances range from $1k to $2500, depending on the month). When we went to underwriting, they just used the minimum payt on the cards I had a balance of. They didn't include the minimums on the other cards (I probably have 20+ open credit cards, I regularly use 2 of them, others are left overs from various sign-ups or 0% Balance transfer offers). I have $100k+ in credit lines (per credit karma) but the underwriter used a minimum payt of $25/mo for my DTI ratio (That was from the fact that I had a balance on my 2 cards of $2500 when I applied). The other open cards they didn't even consider.
I would ask the lender again and find out what exactly they will be counting. The only thing I did do as far as the credit cards was not use any of the ones who hadn't been used in awhile (i stuck with the 2 I had been using for the previous few months, even though they were new (~3 months old)). I just had to explain why I had gotten them (Chase Sapphire preferred & AA Advantage for sign-up bonus/miles)
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shanendoah
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Post by shanendoah on Apr 28, 2015 20:02:18 GMT -5
Robert not Bobby - I use my credit cards for convenience and the rewards. We already live below our means and have very little debt, which is why we're able to afford to have two mortgages out at one time, on one under-6-figure income, in a HCOLA. (See the multiple threads that have talked about Seattle's current housing market.) As I mentioned in another post, I can live without the cards. It has nothing to do with the money and everything to do with convenience. I complain here because I can complain here and people will understand, where as in RL, it feels like a humble brag, which I hate more than outright bragging.
Mardi Gras Audrey - We're using this broker because we have used him before and really like him. The concern here is that we are really towing that DTI line. Fannie would not approve our loan. Freddie did. So my broker wants to make sure we don't end up with the loan falling through at the last minute because we have a debt payment (the minimums on our cards) that wasn't figured into the pre-approval process.
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Mardi Gras Audrey
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Post by Mardi Gras Audrey on Apr 28, 2015 22:06:01 GMT -5
Can he see what your usual monthly balance is? I think it is unreasonable for them to expect you to totally stop using the cards. If I was a lender, it would be highly suspicious to me if someone had a pattern of spending money on a card every month and then all of the sudden stopped. It would make me wonder if some other shoe would drop after the loan closed (like they were now borrowing funds from relatives or another source that won't show up on a credit report but would be hit with repayt just when the mortgage payts were due). I would think as long as the expenses/charges were pretty consistent, they could use the minimums that you have for a month or two. I would cull it down to 1 or 2 cards just to make it easier but if they can see you spend $x every month, u should be able to see that's for food/utilities/gas, etc. That is just my perspective though and I'm not an underwriter (and didn't even stay at a Holiday Inn last night).
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shanendoah
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Post by shanendoah on Apr 29, 2015 10:14:07 GMT -5
Mardi Gras Audrey - If it were actual humans looking at my credit history, I would totally agree with you. But from what I can tell with Fannie and Freddy is that it's all a computer program. You enter income, current debt payments, expected debt payments, and credit score and it spits out an answer.
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NomoreDramaQ1015
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Post by NomoreDramaQ1015 on Apr 29, 2015 11:07:36 GMT -5
....but has anyone EVER heard of writing a check
I can write checks just fine. The problem/annoyance is sitting around waiting for my bank to clear them.
I stopped using checks when it took the bank 3 weeks to process my student loan payment. I called and it had cleared it on their end, but my bank was being stupid. I reamed the bank a new one but they told me that's how their system works, deal with it.
I now do everything electronically. It clears my account the moment I hit "approve/submit" and I don't have to deal with carrying balances until the transaction clears.
You may call me lazy/impatient but that is fine with me. I like my life being simpler and being able to budget with the click of a button.
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Bonny
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Post by Bonny on Apr 29, 2015 11:23:41 GMT -5
Can he see what your usual monthly balance is? I think it is unreasonable for them to expect you to totally stop using the cards. If I was a lender, it would be highly suspicious to me if someone had a pattern of spending money on a card every month and then all of the sudden stopped. It would make me wonder if some other shoe would drop after the loan closed (like they were now borrowing funds from relatives or another source that won't show up on a credit report but would be hit with repayt just when the mortgage payts were due). I would think as long as the expenses/charges were pretty consistent, they could use the minimums that you have for a month or two. I would cull it down to 1 or 2 cards just to make it easier but if they can see you spend $x every month, u should be able to see that's for food/utilities/gas, etc. That is just my perspective though and I'm not an underwriter (and didn't even stay at a Holiday Inn last night). The REAL issue is carrying two mortgages on one income under 6 figures.
The underwriter has some leeway especially if there is a lot of other liquid assets like retirement or taxable accounts. Shane's broker is telling her she's on the edge so watch the CCs. 50% DTI is HIGH so he's doing her a favor because he knows she can handle it.
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cronewitch
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Post by cronewitch on Apr 29, 2015 22:08:37 GMT -5
Prepay the cards. This month tomorrow I will be charged a 6 month car insurance on my credit card so last week I put an extra payment in that more than covered it. Yesterday I bought 4 new tires so now my balance is around zero but it i had paid an extra thousand last week it would still be zero or less tomorrow. The tires were a surprise purchase because one blew on the freeway and they were all old so time for all new.
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resolution
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Post by resolution on Apr 29, 2015 22:20:30 GMT -5
I like the idea of prepaying the cards through your bank's bill pay so you keep a negative balance. If that doesn't work out, you can always buy one of those refillable VISA debit cards that they sell at Walmart, that are normally used by people that can't get credit cards. Just refill that with enough to pay your bills as you go.
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Phoenix84
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Post by Phoenix84 on Apr 29, 2015 22:27:38 GMT -5
I'm not sure I understand, can't you just use your debit card?
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taz157
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Post by taz157 on Apr 29, 2015 22:36:16 GMT -5
....but has anyone EVER heard of writing a checkI can write checks just fine. The problem/annoyance is sitting around waiting for my bank to clear them.I stopped using checks when it took the bank 3 weeks to process my student loan payment. I called and it had cleared it on their end, but my bank was being stupid. I reamed the bank a new one but they told me that's how their system works, deal with it. I now do everything electronically. It clears my account the moment I hit "approve/submit" and I don't have to deal with carrying balances until the transaction clears. You may call me lazy/impatient but that is fine with me. I like my life being simpler and being able to budget with the click of a button. In our case, the problem/annoyance is getting my ILs to cash the checks we send them. We borrowed money from them at a reasonable interest rate and do pay them back every month. (And the interest income they receive is claimed on their income taxes as I prepare their return every year.) (Also, they'd rather get the interest income instead of the bank even though we have excellent credit.) They always want to make sure we are okay, so they hold checks even though we tell them we are fine and to cash them. As of 2 days ago, they are holding 9 checks. DH and I have been talking about trying to pay it off by the end of this year, and I'm sure that will be fun trying to get them to cash the check for that one!
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Bonny
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Post by Bonny on Apr 30, 2015 11:11:27 GMT -5
....but has anyone EVER heard of writing a checkI can write checks just fine. The problem/annoyance is sitting around waiting for my bank to clear them.I stopped using checks when it took the bank 3 weeks to process my student loan payment. I called and it had cleared it on their end, but my bank was being stupid. I reamed the bank a new one but they told me that's how their system works, deal with it. I now do everything electronically. It clears my account the moment I hit "approve/submit" and I don't have to deal with carrying balances until the transaction clears. You may call me lazy/impatient but that is fine with me. I like my life being simpler and being able to budget with the click of a button. In our case, the problem/annoyance is getting my ILs to cash the checks we send them. We borrowed money from them at a reasonable interest rate and do pay them back every month. (And the interest income they receive is claimed on their income taxes as I prepare their return every year.) (Also, they'd rather get the interest income instead of the bank even though we have excellent credit.) They always want to make sure we are okay, so they hold checks even though we tell them we are fine and to cash them. As of 2 days ago, they are holding 9 checks. DH and I have been talking about trying to pay it off by the end of this year, and I'm sure that will be fun trying to get them to cash the check for that one! Are you close to their bank branch? You could just do a direct deposit into their account. Some banks will also allow you to mail a deposit into an account if you have a deposit slip.
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taz157
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Post by taz157 on Apr 30, 2015 11:22:33 GMT -5
No, we aren't local to their bank as they use a bank in the stare they live in and we haven't lived in that state for 8 years. We are just use to it.
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raeoflyte
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Post by raeoflyte on May 1, 2015 9:25:50 GMT -5
I pay rent to my parents and had to open a separate account for it specifically because my parents sit on checks and waiting for the rent check to clear would have been way too frustrating.
I pay them babysitting money too (even though I know they just put it in the kids college fund) and that I tend to give in cash. I figure the cash might entice them to at least spend a little on themselves too.
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