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08-04-2012, 01:02
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#1
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cruiser
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: Key West FL - Burlington VT
Boat: O'day 32 CC Ketch
Posts: 493
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Credit cards -good or bad?
I've managed to remain card free so far, as it seems another bill every month would help tie me to the shore. So many people I know end up in a cycle of payments that are nearly imposible to ever pay in full and be done with. Is a credit card while cruising somthing you view as required? or pass and not have the bills/mail to deal with?
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08-04-2012, 01:36
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#2
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Registered User
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Portishead UK
Boat: Dudley Dix Hout Bay 33
Posts: 139
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Re: Credit cards -good or bad?
Like anything else it depends on how you use / abuse it. Set it up to pay itself in full each month and you can avoid the necessity of carrying lots of cash. If you need local currency you can always use an ATM or even a local bank and use it over the counter. Obviously some of the more remote parts of the world may not have card facilities but in my experience of the Caribbean and Europe that is not generally the case. I personally don't like carrying large amounts of cash, but that is a personal choice. If someone uses a card to run up debts they can't pay then that would be a problem but self-inflicted for all that. As to bills and mail I've not had any for years now as I do pay in full each month and use on-line facilities.
__________________
SteveT
Somewhere at sea
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08-04-2012, 01:41
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#3
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Registered User
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: Virginia, USA & Krabi, Thailand
Boat: Wauquiez Pretorien 35
Posts: 2,819
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Re: Credit cards -good or bad?
As SteveT said, it just depends on how you use it. It can be a real asset and beats carrying a lot of cash but if you can't control your spending not having it may be better for you.
__________________
Mundis Ex Igne Factus Est
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08-04-2012, 02:27
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#4
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Moderator and Certifiable Refitter
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: South of 43 S, Australia
Boat: C.L.O.D.
Posts: 20,472
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Re: Credit cards -good or bad?
Good - when you are in charge of the CC.
Bad - when the CC is in charge of you.
__________________
All men dream: but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds wake in the day to find it was vanity: but the dreamers of the day are dangereous men, for they may act their dreams with open eyes, to make it possible. T.E. Lawrence
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08-04-2012, 02:38
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#5
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CF Adviser Moderator Emeritus
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Virginia
Boat: Island Packet 380, now sold
Posts: 8,942
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Re: Credit cards -good or bad?
For us, two credit cards and an ATM debit card for local cash is the best arrangement. The credit cards are set up to be paid off in full each month via automatic payment from our bank checking account in the States. We have Internet access to the bank account and credit card accounts in order to be able to check up on them "real time". The card we primarily use has no currency conversion fee, which is 3% on many cards.
It's a good idea to have two cards from different credit companies in case one is compromised or not accepted for some reason. We don't use the credit cards much at all, but it's nice to have them available. We've never in our lives ran up any credit card debt. There are much better ways to get a loan if you really need one.
__________________
Hud
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08-04-2012, 02:47
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#6
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Registered User
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: Virginia, USA & Krabi, Thailand
Boat: Wauquiez Pretorien 35
Posts: 2,819
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Re: Credit cards -good or bad?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hud3
For us, two credit cards and an ATM debit card for local cash is the best arrangement. The credit cards are set up to be paid off in full each month via automatic payment from our bank checking account in the States. We have Internet access to the bank account and credit card accounts in order to be able to check up on them "real time". The card we primarily use has no currency conversion fee, which is 3% on many cards.
It's a good idea to have two cards from different credit companies in case one is compromised or not accepted for some reason. We don't use the credit cards much at all, but it's nice to have them available. We've never in our lives ran up any credit card debt. There are much better ways to get a loan if you really need one.
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I second the part about two cards and make them different, i.e. one MC and one Visa. I recently ran into a situation where a vendor did not take Master Card and luckily I had added a Visa card which they did. I never had this problem in the U.S. but now a couple times in Thailand.
__________________
Mundis Ex Igne Factus Est
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08-04-2012, 04:32
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#7
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CLOD
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: being planted in Jacksonville Fl
Boat: none
Posts: 20,423
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Re: Credit cards -good or bad?
Credit cards are only bad if you are using them to buy stuff on credit longer than 1 month! I use my rewards card and make $50-100/month, so what's wrong with that!
Second Hud on a card without exchange fees for travel.
__________________
Don't ask a bunch of unknown forum people if it is OK to do something on YOUR boat. It is your boat, do what you want!
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08-04-2012, 04:36
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#8
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running down a dream
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Florida
Boat: cape dory 30 MKII
Posts: 3,118
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Re: Credit cards -good or bad?
credit cards allow you to avoid carrying cash. if you loose the card you loose no money. pay them off every month. simple.
__________________
some of the best times of my life were spent on a boat. it just took a long time to realize it.
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08-04-2012, 04:44
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#9
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Senior Cruiser
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: gettin naughty on the beach in cornwall
Boat: 63 custom alloy sloop,macwester26,prout snowgoose 37 elite catamaran!
Posts: 10,594
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Re: Credit cards -good or bad?
most international car hire companies will only accept a credit card,for car hire.
when arriving in countries where an onward ticket is needed a credit card generally suffices for proof of funds,and the ability to buy an onward ticket.
many credit card companies include some form of insurance for the card holder
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08-04-2012, 05:08
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#10
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Registered User
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Galveston Island, Texas, USA
Boat: Amel SM 53 - BeBe
Posts: 953
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Re: Credit cards -good or bad?
Every marina we have stopped in has required a credit card on file, even though we pay cash. Best to have 2 credit cards from different banks in case anything happens to 1 of the cards. Easy to set-up automatic payment in full from your checking account. Just review the account online frequently to be certain there are no fraudulent charges.
If there are 2 of you on the boat, it is also best to have 2 ATM cards, even if on the same account. If 1 card gets stolen, lost or hacked, you can still get cash with the other card without having to wait for a replacement -- which can be a lengthy and arduous process when overseas.
We use ATM cards to obtain local currency and pay everything possible in cash because we pay no ATM fees. Using credit cards in foreign locales usually involves a foreign currency transaction fee and the CC company does not usually give you the best exchange rate. For most Americans, that foreign currency transaction fee is 3%. Money I would consider thrown away unnecessarily. You also must have a credit card for online purchases....something that happens far more frequently that I would have thought before we got out here.
Judy
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08-04-2012, 05:25
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#11
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Registered User
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: out cruising again, currently in Fiji
Boat: Sailboat
Posts: 1,466
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Re: Credit cards -good or bad?
I wouldn't go without one ore two CCs. But which ones?
We like to rent cars in places. We learned, our Mastercard did not have insurance. Only World-Mastercards and above have this insurance included.
Rental Car Insurance: Which Credit Cards Have You Covered
Outside the US, we had a few places which did not accept Master, never had a problem with Visa.
The reward are not important to us, we don't use the CC that much
Our preferred CC has no yearly charge, and no current conversion fees.
Dirk
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08-04-2012, 05:52
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#12
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Nearly an old salt
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: Lefkas Marina ,Greece
Boat: Bavaria 36
Posts: 22,801
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Quote:
Originally Posted by LeaseOnLife
I wouldn't go without one ore two CCs. But which ones?
We like to rent cars in places. We learned, our Mastercard did not have insurance. Only World-Mastercards and above have this insurance included.
Rental Car Insurance: Which Credit Cards Have You Covered
Outside the US, we had a few places which did not accept Master, never had a problem with Visa.
The reward are not important to us, we don't use the CC that much
Our preferred CC has no yearly charge, and no current conversion fees.
Dirk
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Only two cards that matter visa and MasterCard.
Dave
__________________
Interested in smart boat technology, networking and all things tech
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08-04-2012, 06:26
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#13
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Registered User
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: North Carolina, USA
Boat: Big brick box and a '62 Airstream Ambassador. Formerly Pacific Seacraft
Posts: 1,017
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Re: Credit cards -good or bad?
Credit cards are like guns in my opinion. Good for smart, disciplined people who are running their show. Bad for people who are prone to let things slip, or for the kind of folks that believe any situation was imposed upon them by the "universe" rather than their own action or inaction.
Don is right, you can make some money using if you are savvy, even though I always chafe at the idea of something for nothing....it works.
I would not own my sailboat if it were not for credit cards. I have a couple with high credit lines and long-term low interest 3-5%. Now, if you miss a payment, the rate goes sky-high, so hence the discipline. If you don't make mistakes like that, it can be a real asset to folks with little money but very good credit to accomplish important goals. There is nothing very fiscally prudent about my use of them, but life is short and I would simply not own my sailboat without them.
Citi often has some good deals, and Chase bank has some new ones too with Auto bonuses. Then there's all the car rental advantages and emergencies overseas. etc. They did me NO good in Cuba, I had to carry a bundle of Canadian cash.
Chase (no relation to above)
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08-04-2012, 06:30
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#14
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Registered User
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: out cruising again, currently in Fiji
Boat: Sailboat
Posts: 1,466
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Re: Credit cards -good or bad?
Did you have to bring in the GUNS?
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08-04-2012, 06:36
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#15
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Registered User
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: North Carolina, USA
Boat: Big brick box and a '62 Airstream Ambassador. Formerly Pacific Seacraft
Posts: 1,017
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Re: Credit cards -good or bad?
Sheesh, forgot I wasn't in the south for a moment, but an international forum where these are sensitive issues that have been beat to death. The analogy did not include worldwide cruising with guns....
Onward
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