Remember two prices for stuff and your first credit card.

fuzzybuddy

fuzzybuddy

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Location
The Sticks, Northeast PA.
Remember when there were two prices for things in a store- one for cash, and another for credit cards? And it was a big deal if someone had a Diners Club Card. Remember your first credit card?
 

My first credit card: I was working in a very well-paid job and my husband was in college working on his doctorate with no job.

I applied for and was approved for a credit
card based on my income and they issued it in my husband's name with an extra card for me to use, with his name on it. Nope, I cannot have one with my name on it, nope, nope, nope. Occasionally, I was asked by a merchant if I had *his permission* to use the card.

As the old slogan said, "We've come a long way, baby!"
 
Cash or credit? Most of my utilities and/or taxes are less for cash/bank. Now some of my online accounts offer a small savings if I go auto pay (which I don't like - no due/date control). My first CC is my AMEX, obtained back in the 70's.

My first auto was a VW, total out the door price was just under $1,600 new in 1967. My one bdrm apt was $70 a month.
 

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jujube said:
My first credit card: I was working in a very well-paid job and my husband was in college working on his doctorate with no job.

I applied for and was approved for a credit
card based on my income and they issued it in my husband's name with an extra card for me to use, with his name on it. Nope, I cannot have one with my name on it, nope, nope, nope. Occasionally, I was asked by a merchant if I had *his permission* to use the card.

As the old slogan said, "We've come a long way, baby!"
Click to expand...
My sister hit that roadblock, too. And when he left her, she found out "they" had several credit cards. Guess who got stuck with the payments when the CC companies couldn't find him? :mad:
 
fuzzybuddy said:
Remember your first credit card?
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American Express 1980, still have one and it still says "member since 80". Could have gotten one sooner, but was pretty conservative with money.
fuzzybuddy said:
Remember when there were two prices for things in a store- one for cash, and another for credit cards?
Click to expand...
Some places still do, smaller merchants, service people, and a lot of fishing charters. Not unreasonable, they have to pay something like 3% to the credit card companies.
 
jujube said:
I applied for and was approved for a credit
card based on my income and they issued it in my husband's name with an extra card for me to use, with his name on it. Nope, I cannot have one with my name on it, nope, nope, nope. Occasionally, I was asked by a merchant if I had *his permission* to use the card.
Click to expand...
Ah, the good ol' days

Those were called perks, I think

OK, serious
If my lady had her druthers, we'd be living in a cave
Make that two caves
One for keeping outa the weather
One for the huge pile of money she'd never spend

Oh, and our transporation for going back and forth to town and work, would be a donkey and cart
(the cart would be her version of extravagance)

Our first card was some sorta clothing store, limited, high interest, never used. I think it was Nordstroms (go figure), then a Visa platinum or two

Neither of us liked those cards

But, then came the pre-approved ones
Had a healthy stack of 'em

They did come in handy when we did what we could to get our schizophrenic son squared away
around $40K (maybe $60K...try not to remember)
......then the payments
Took about four years to get them all to zero

Funny thing
when living at the cabin we had zero bills
paying insurances was our only 'credit history'
and that was auto pay
Think we could get a loan to buy a house in town?
No
We had to scurry and get a card, use it, pay things for a few months
to 'show a history'
Even though we had a stack of money....just not in the bank.

We still have that card
Use it about once ever six months to keep it fresh
Zero interest
But the pay cycle is less than monthly, so no auto pay if you wanna keep it at zero interest

We still hate credit cards
 
fuzzybuddy said:
Remember when there were two prices for things in a store- one for cash, and another for credit cards? And it was a big deal if someone had a Diners Club Card. Remember your first credit card?
Click to expand...
I've had contractors that are cheaper for cash, some of them I think genuinely because of the CC fees, but others I suspected they were cheating on their taxes.

Lately I've been painfully aware of the grocery stores offering better prices for members, because I've been travelling and using different stores. I finally signed up for Wegman's and Giant member/loyalty programs, then yesterday I happened to shop at a Safeway, so had to pay the higher prices. :confused:

My very first CC was a department store and it was sort of accidental. There would be tables at the mall where they would give a free gift for applying for the CC, and they'd always refused me because I was a low-paid clerical worker, so I was in the habit of applying just to get the current free gift. But after I returned to university, when I applied I summed up all the money my parents were spending for my tuition/housing/etc and put that as income with the source being 'allowance from parents'. I was sure that if a person with an income from full-time work wasn't acceptable that someone living off an allowance would be extra not creditworthy. But, I was wrong, they accepted my application!
 
My parents had Diners Club.

I never thought anyone would give me a credit card. Then a friend said that was ridiculous, and went to the bank with me to get one. I was in my early 40s.
 
HoneyNut said:
I've had contractors that are cheaper for cash, some of them I think genuinely because of the CC fees, but others I suspected they were cheating on their taxes.
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I pay most contractors in cash, $100 bills. I've always found it gave you better service, and as you say sometimes a discount. However I never pay ahead, and usually just use people I know.

Never ask them about taxes, not my business...
 
I got my first credit card at 26(1986) from a local bank near where I lived. I still have the same card, though the instution has changed names several times. I'm 62 now, it's the only credit card I've ever had and I've never once made an interest payment.

You asked about remembering two prices, "cash or charge", and I do. These days I use my card for everything unless theres a cash discount. Sometimes I still feel guilty if I buy a fifty cent using my card, it's like I'm cheating the merchant out of their profit. I still do it though.
 
Alligatorob said:
I pay most contractors in cash, $100 bills. I've always found it gave you better service, and as you say sometimes a discount. However I never pay ahead, and usually just use people I know.

Never ask them about taxes, not my business...
Click to expand...

The trick with that is wait until they quote you a price, then ask for the cash price.
 
No I don't remember the two prices. I do remember my mother said that some day you'd be able to buy groceries with a credit card. And of coarse, now you can.

I got my first credit card well into my 30's. A Visa. I tried to get a Mervyn's card to try and start credit but they wouldn't give me one.
 

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