[Rich Lee]

Originally Posted by Cruikshl

Other than a house or car, we should never have gotten away from the 90 days same as cash or lay-a-way.

Remember when you'd put an item on lay-a-way at its regular price? Nowadays, people are charging items that they "purchase" on sale only to pay 21.9 percent interest as they take months to pay it off. Losers: consumer and retailer. Winner: Visa!

[toddb]

Originally Posted by Rich Lee

Remember when you'd put an item on lay-a-way at its regular price? Nowadays, people are charging items that they "purchase" on sale only to pay 21.9 percent interest as they take months to pay it off. Losers: consumer and retailer. Winner: Visa!

21.9%?? Most credit cards are in the high 20's and low 30's, especially for those people that don't have a prayer in paying it off every month. And forget if you miss 1 payment or are late more than twice -- the rate can jump up to 10% points in a month. Granted, for most that's their own fault for charging what they can't afford (if you're making 28k/yr, you just can't justify charging a $2,000 flat screen and then whining about your credit card bill), but some people use credit just to survive... If you or I tried loaning someone money at rates that high, we'd be tossed in jail. But as long as it's an officially licensed corporation doing the loan sharking, then what the hell.

It doesn't help that they give easy money to college kids also. I remember I had my own card in college with a very low interest rate...once I left college, it spiked up to 20%. And I had no way of paying it off, so I was struggling just to pay the interest for the first 2 years. At least I got that free t-shirt for signing up when I was drunk on a spring break trip...