Is it better to pay cash for everything, or pay

[jmgconner]

We use cash or the debit card.

 

Those you of that do the envelope system, can you please explain it a bit to me.. Like how many envelopes and what is on each envelope?

 

Thanks :001_smile:

 

 

We have about 20 envelopes. The front of each envelope is labeled and has a register (like a checkbook). There is a place to note the date, where the cash was spent, how much was spent, and a running total column. My DH made it up and we printed them ourselves directly on the envelope.

 

Each month, we take the appropriate amount of cash out of the bank and put it into it's appropriate envelope. Our envelopes include school materials, children's clothing, adult clothing, gifts, home repairs, boat maintenance, boat gas, children's allowance, groceries, eating out, entertainment, etc.

 

When I go shopping, I pull out the appropriate envelope and take it with me. If I buy a shirt for myself, I take the money out of the adult clothing envelope, note the date, store, and amount spent on the front of the envelope.

 

We *love* this system. I can see at a glance how much money I've spent. We can also easily determine if we need to raise or lower the amount per month spent on each category. We used to do the same thing with Quicken, importing the information from our debit card straight from the bank, but for some reason, this works much better for us.

[runningirl71]

Not true here. I tend to think more about putting it on a credit card. Cash, I jsut spend and go to the bank and take out more. With credit, I think about that total that is coming on bill day. I don't want it to be too high. Cash is burned like fire, there and then gone.

 

Lolly, we must think a lot alike! We do this too. We have an amazon.com card that we can save points and then get gift certificates. We are frugal and really watch our money. We use You Need a Budget software and enter in all our receipts after we go to the store. We don't spend more than what our budget says, which is what we would do if we had cash too.

 

I tend to give cash freely when I have it. I'm more likely to give it away. That's not a bad thing, unless its my grocery money! :)

[SquirrellyMama]

What I hear a lot of people saying is that they use their credit cards so they can see where they are spending after the fact. What most of the cash people do is have a budget with and know what is available to spend and then only spend that money. You know what you are going to spend ahead of time.

 

We don't need a credit card statement to tell us where we are spending. We sit down at the end of each month to work on next month's budget. We have it budgeted to the penny and know where everything is going. I know I can't spend the cash in hand and go back to the bank and just get more.

 

 

Kelly

Edited October 2, 2008 by kwiech
proofreading

[mommytobees]

Ok explain to me more about the visa gift card to pay off the kohls? How do you do that?

 

I do this too.

 

What she's saying is this: (step by step)

 

I go to a store with a Store Card and pay with my Store Card. This gives you an extra discount on top of any sale, depending on the store.

 

Then, I purchase a Store gift card with my Visa (I do this at home on the computer).

 

THEN, I pay the Store Card off with the Store Gift card online, most places allow this and just don't advertise.

 

THEN, I pay the Visa amount (as soon as it clears--a few days later) and get the points on the Visa.

 

AGAIN, you have to be disciplined. You can't spend money you don't HAVE, or else you are just making debt.

 

Kris

[runningirl71]

What I hear a lot of people saying is that they use their credit cards so they can see where they are spending after the fact. What most of the cash people do is have a budget with and know what is available to spend and then only spend that money. You know what you are going to spend ahead of time.

 

We don't need a credit card statement to tell us where we are spending. We sit down at the end of each month to work on next month's budget. We have it budgeted to the penny and know where everything is going. I know I can't spend the cash in hand and go back to the bank and just get more.

 

 

Kelly

 

I do the same thing you do, except we use our credit card. We have budgeting software and keep track of every dollar we spend. Dh sits down at the end of the month to budget for the next month and we know where everything is going. We don't need our credit card statement to tell us where we are spending either. :)

[WTMindy]

We use a credit card and pay it off every month because our card gets a percentage back. Plus, you are earning interest on the amount in the bank until the end of the month (albeit a very small amount). :001_smile:

[melmac]

:iagree: The fees we pay are 2.69% of purchase price including taxes and a 25 cent transaction fee. Considering small businesses like ours (country convenience store and gas station) are only getting a profit of 25 to 40 % on most items we sell, it doesn't take much for a credit card purchase to wipe out most if not all of that profit.

 

I wish you were one of our customers. :) I cringe inside every time someone pulls a credit or debit card out, especially for something like a 20 oz. coke.

 

We pay cash for everything, don't own a credit card and don't want one.

 

 

 

From reading this thread it is clear that what is best is what works for you.

 

But there is another issue that I would like to bring up which is the cost paid by business for credit card usage. Some argue, I know, that people buy more when using CCs so business is happy to pay a cut to Visa or whatever CC company. That is not my point.

 

When I buy something locally from a small business owner I always pay with cash or paper check because it is my impression that the business owner will make more money off my transaction this way. CC fees are what? Someone help me out here, please.

 

Say the fee is one percent and say I am spending $100. By paying with cash or a paper check, my local small business owner has a dollar more in his pocket. Not much, but it would seem by the end of the week this could add up if others left the national credit card companies out of this equation.

 

Perhaps a small business owner could chime in with an opinion.

 

Jane

Edited October 2, 2008 by melmac

[Jane in NC]

:iagree: The fees we pay are 2.69% of purchase price including taxes and a 25 cent transaction fee. Considering small businesses like ours (country convenience store and gas station) are only getting a profit of 25 to 40 % on most items we sell, it doesn't take much for a credit card purchase to wipe out most if not all of that profit.

 

 

Clarify one more thing for me, please. You make the same amount if I pay with cash or a paper check, right?

 

Make that two more things: do you pay the same percent if my purchase is on a credit card vs. a debit card?

 

I think it is important to support our locally owned businesses to the fullest--not only by giving them our business, but by making sure that they are able to make a profit from the transaction. Hope you and yours can keep your head above water if times get tough.

 

Jane

[mommytobees]

:iagree: The fees we pay are 2.69% of purchase price including taxes and a 25 cent transaction fee. Considering small businesses like ours (country convenience store and gas station) are only getting a profit of 25 to 40 % on most items we sell, it doesn't take much for a credit card purchase to wipe out most if not all of that profit.

 

I wish you were one of our customers. :) I cringe inside every time someone pulls a credit or debit card out, especially for something like a 20 oz. coke.

 

We pay cash for everything, don't own a credit card and don't want one.

 

Oh!

 

I will admit! When we are in a small business, esp locally, I spend dollars/ Yen. I don't want the Visa card to get my small business money.

 

Kris

[TraceyS/FL]

Clarify one more thing for me, please. You make the same amount if I pay with cash or a paper check, right?

 

Make that two more things: do you pay the same percent if my purchase is on a credit card vs. a debit card?

 

I think it is important to support our locally owned businesses to the fullest--not only by giving them our business, but by making sure that they are able to make a profit from the transaction. Hope you and yours can keep your head above water if times get tough.

 

Jane

 

I know that when i've spoken to merchants about it (the guy that owned the Mrs Fields i went to first was the one to bring it up), there is a different fee for debit vs credit. I always use my debit when i can with the pin number, and i'm going to assume that is still the cheapest since when i feed my pre-paid visa debit card into the machine a variety of places - it defaults to asking me for my pin number.

 

Credit Card/Debit Card fees are paid to a merchant that processes them for you, then sends you the money. Hence the cost.

 

SOme banks have charges for depositing checks - that would probably vary widely and i wouldn't think on a business account today it would be a factor. Although i think my DH could have like 200 checks a month without a fee on the type of account we were on.

 

Same when i was HS shopping at the convention - i gave the big guys the CC, and tried to use my cash at the little ones.

[mcconnellboys]

I find that no matter what my intent, I spend more money when I use a credit card. It's not a matter of whether or not I pay off the total bill each month for me, it's simply that I spend less when I use cash. I read something about this within the past six months or so, too. Apparently this is true for a lot of folks.....

[melmac]

Wow, I'm gonna have to work on this multi-quote business. My comments are indicated by ***

Clarify one more thing for me, please. You make the same amount if I pay with cash or a paper check, right?

 

***It depends on how well I know the customer. I will accept checks from regular customers and just deposit in bank, but if I don't know them well, the check goes through telecheck which does take a percentage. I don't mind that so much because it's sort of like insurance-I won't get stuck with a bounced check. To me that's different than having to accept a credit card for a coke and bag of chips someone is financing. :D

 

Make that two more things: do you pay the same percent if my purchase is on a credit card vs. a debit card?

 

***The percentage is a bit lower for the debit, the transaction fee is the same.

 

***I'm very partial to cash, but I know it's not the way of the world, so I just have to deal with the way things are.

 

I think it is important to support our locally owned businesses to the fullest--not only by giving them our business, but by making sure that they are able to make a profit from the transaction. Hope you and yours can keep your head above water if times get tough.

 

***Thank you for your kind words, Janet

 

Jane

Edited October 3, 2008 by melmac

[langfam]

I like to charge everything on my cc which pays me back 1-3 percent (depending on purchase). I get back anywhere from $30 -$40 per month. I pay cc off every month so no interest accrues.