4 ms·

I don't think smart wealthy people pay a dime in service fees. I gave the privilege of collecting transaction fees on my purchases to HSBC, who charges me noth

by dade_ 10y ago

I don't think smart wealthy people pay a dime in service fees. I gave the privilege of collecting transaction fees on my purchases to HSBC, who charges me nothing. It has all the usual premium card perks, though not the latest silly ones. I'll buy my own Uber credits.

saryant 10y ago
I suppose it depends on your definition of "silly" but perks like Amex's Centurion lounges, their concierge program, hotel privileges and (of course) points all outweigh the annual fee for me.
revelation 10y ago
Smart people wouldn't pay the equivalent of a 2% sales tax to a private corporation in exchange for gimmicks. The best part is that they realized you can keep the people from finding out that they are being royally ripped off by giving every single 30 card toting person the special feeling that they are the one getting back more than they put in.
- rrdharan 10y ago
  For your logic to make sense businesses would have to charge 2% less for using cash. Very few do so.
  - hectormalot 10y ago
    If i recall correctly, this was more common but was lobbied against by the CC companies (and might not be allowed anymore in certain states?)
    - jameskegel 10y ago
      You recall wrong; cash discounts are fine
- MrRadar 10y ago
  Cash itself isn't cost-free for businesses. There's the extra time it takes to count change for customers, the mistakes cashiers make when counting change, there's the time it takes to count the register at the end of a shift, the cost of a safe to hold cash on-site, the risk of counterfeit bills (when I cashiered we'd check $50s and $100s but not $20s and lower since it would take too long), and the cost of transporting the cash to the bank (either in the cost of an armored car or the risk of getting robbed on the way to the bank (which happened at another location while I was cashiering, after that they switched to an armored car)).
  - revelation 10y ago
    Credit card processing fees in the EU are legally capped at <.3% What you are talking about may be well be true but let's be very clear here that transaction fees above that number are ripoff for gimmicks, not the equivalent of what cash handling would cost.
cycrutchfield 10y ago
If they are wealthy then they likely do not care much about service fees. Meanwhile, smart thrifty people are busy churning credit card bonuses and earning tens of thousands of dollars of free travel subsidized by people like you.
- srtjstjsj 10y ago
  Meanwhile, smart employable people earns tens of thousands of dollars at their jobs instead of becoming credit card scholars
  - jameskegel 10y ago
    That response is uncalled for. It takes a minimal time debt to secure your financial future and put the "game" in your favor- literally for the cost of making yourself abrest of the rules
  - cycrutchfield 10y ago
    It's not too hard to do both
  - Broken_Hippo 10y ago
    You'd be amazed at the very employed folks that spend time each week learning about credit cards and taking advantage of perks, on top of other things that will allow them to live a lifestyle they want. As a bonus, they get a happy boost when they get a good deal. This is just paying attention to how you spend your money and being informed about the choices you make. If you are going to get a credit card, you might as well both know what you are getting into and get the best thing for you that you can. Kinda like any other loan contract (after all, credit cards are a short-term loan).
morgante 10y ago
I guarantee you lots of smart wealthy people pay plenty of service fees. The dumb thing is not getting a card like the CSR, which easily pays for itself with the signup bonus alone.
btgeekboy 10y ago
I paid for a $50 Costco membership last year and, by using the credit card, got my annual refund check this year of over $400. Didn't pay a penny of interest. Sure seems like a reasonable deal to me.
ubernostrum 10y ago
I don't think smart wealthy people pay a dime in service fees. I suppose it depends on definitions. I like to think I'm smart, but I'm unsure whether I'd meet your definition of wealthy. However, I do have experience of widely disparate income brackets. Growing up, and during my first few years on my own as an adult, I've had experience of living at or below the poverty line. Now, I'm above the 95th percentile for income in the US. And the single biggest difference is in how I view tradeoffs of time/effort versus money. For example, I pay my utility bills online with a credit card, and the company charges me a "convenience fee" to do that. When I was younger, I had to count every penny in order to be sure I could make ends meet. Now? Avoiding the fee would be a net loss. I can estimate how many minutes of time it would take me to go dig out my checkbook, write a check, put it in an envelope, find a stamp, go to a mailbox and drop it in. And I can work out, given my salary, how much those minutes are worth: they're worth more than the "convenience fee". The same is true of many of the "service fees" you're deriding here. I've been in a position where avoiding the fees was of extreme importance, but now I'm in a position where avoiding the fees is literally a money-losing proposition in many cases. The result is that I simply don't bother below a certain dollar amount (and that dollar amount would frighten my younger self). And to be honest, it's a guilty pleasure to not care about those fees. When I was younger, I didn't realize what a sense of freedom there was in being able to just not care about a few dollars here and there.

by dade_ 10y ago

saryant 10y ago

I suppose it depends on your definition of "silly" but perks like Amex's Centurion lounges, their concierge program, hotel privileges and (of course) points all outweigh the annual fee for me.

revelation 10y ago

Smart people wouldn't pay the equivalent of a 2% sales tax to a private corporation in exchange for gimmicks. The best part is that they realized you can keep the people from finding out that they are being royally ripped off by giving every single 30 card toting person the special feeling that they are the one getting back more than they put in.

rrdharan 10y ago
For your logic to make sense businesses would have to charge 2% less for using cash. Very few do so.
- hectormalot 10y ago
  If i recall correctly, this was more common but was lobbied against by the CC companies (and might not be allowed anymore in certain states?)
  - jameskegel 10y ago
    You recall wrong; cash discounts are fine
MrRadar 10y ago
Cash itself isn't cost-free for businesses. There's the extra time it takes to count change for customers, the mistakes cashiers make when counting change, there's the time it takes to count the register at the end of a shift, the cost of a safe to hold cash on-site, the risk of counterfeit bills (when I cashiered we'd check $50s and $100s but not $20s and lower since it would take too long), and the cost of transporting the cash to the bank (either in the cost of an armored car or the risk of getting robbed on the way to the bank (which happened at another location while I was cashiering, after that they switched to an armored car)).
- revelation 10y ago
  Credit card processing fees in the EU are legally capped at <.3% What you are talking about may be well be true but let's be very clear here that transaction fees above that number are ripoff for gimmicks, not the equivalent of what cash handling would cost.

cycrutchfield 10y ago

If they are wealthy then they likely do not care much about service fees. Meanwhile, smart thrifty people are busy churning credit card bonuses and earning tens of thousands of dollars of free travel subsidized by people like you.

srtjstjsj 10y ago
Meanwhile, smart employable people earns tens of thousands of dollars at their jobs instead of becoming credit card scholars
- jameskegel 10y ago
  That response is uncalled for. It takes a minimal time debt to secure your financial future and put the "game" in your favor- literally for the cost of making yourself abrest of the rules
- cycrutchfield 10y ago
  It's not too hard to do both
- Broken_Hippo 10y ago
  You'd be amazed at the very employed folks that spend time each week learning about credit cards and taking advantage of perks, on top of other things that will allow them to live a lifestyle they want. As a bonus, they get a happy boost when they get a good deal. This is just paying attention to how you spend your money and being informed about the choices you make. If you are going to get a credit card, you might as well both know what you are getting into and get the best thing for you that you can. Kinda like any other loan contract (after all, credit cards are a short-term loan).

morgante 10y ago

I guarantee you lots of smart wealthy people pay plenty of service fees. The dumb thing is not getting a card like the CSR, which easily pays for itself with the signup bonus alone.

btgeekboy 10y ago

I paid for a $50 Costco membership last year and, by using the credit card, got my annual refund check this year of over $400. Didn't pay a penny of interest. Sure seems like a reasonable deal to me.

ubernostrum 10y ago

I don't think smart wealthy people pay a dime in service fees. I suppose it depends on definitions. I like to think I'm smart, but I'm unsure whether I'd meet your definition of wealthy. However, I do have experience of widely disparate income brackets. Growing up, and during my first few years on my own as an adult, I've had experience of living at or below the poverty line. Now, I'm above the 95th percentile for income in the US. And the single biggest difference is in how I view tradeoffs of time/effort versus money. For example, I pay my utility bills online with a credit card, and the company charges me a "convenience fee" to do that. When I was younger, I had to count every penny in order to be sure I could make ends meet. Now? Avoiding the fee would be a net loss. I can estimate how many minutes of time it would take me to go dig out my checkbook, write a check, put it in an envelope, find a stamp, go to a mailbox and drop it in. And I can work out, given my salary, how much those minutes are worth: they're worth more than the "convenience fee". The same is true of many of the "service fees" you're deriding here. I've been in a position where avoiding the fees was of extreme importance, but now I'm in a position where avoiding the fees is literally a money-losing proposition in many cases. The result is that I simply don't bother below a certain dollar amount (and that dollar amount would frighten my younger self). And to be honest, it's a guilty pleasure to not care about those fees. When I was younger, I didn't realize what a sense of freedom there was in being able to just not care about a few dollars here and there.