Answers to your questions
- Is it too late to start working on my financial situation?
- What does God’s word say about debt?
- Without a credit card how will I handle emergencies?
- Can I really live without a car payment?
- How can I rent a car without a credit card?
- What is wrong with using a credit card if I pay it off each month?
- Don't I need a credit card to help improve my credit score?
The only thing that can prevent you from being successful in the area of personal finance is you. It doesn’t matter how old you are or how much debt you have, you can start right now and begin improving your financial picture.
There are a lot of things in the Bible that may be hard to understand, but this isn’t one of them. Proverbs 22:7 says this:
“The rich ruleth over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender.”
Being in debt is not a sin, but it puts a believer in a very difficult situation. As Christians we should strive to be a servant of Christ. However, this scripture says that when we are in bondage to debt, we can no longer serve Christ, because the lender now has control of (at least part of) our life. Jesus died on the cross to free us from the bondage of sin, but when we are in debt we find ourselves back in bondage.
One of the biggest misunderstandings in personal finance is the need for a credit card. Credit cards are not a requirement to live in the United States...or in any other country for that matter. Will a credit card make things easier? The answer to that question is probably yes, but there are other alternatives.
A new car will lose between 60%-70% of its value in the first four years that you own it. With that kind of depreciation, you have to wonder why so many people think they have to own a new car. A good one or two year old car still has plenty of life left in it and, in most cases, still has part of the manufacturer’s warranty.
When renting a car or reserving a hotel room, you will be asked to provide a credit card number as a way of providing some assurance that your bill will be paid. In most cases, you won't be able to use cash to complete this transaction. So how do you close the deal if you don't have a credit card?
Have you ever mailed a letter just to find out that it got lost in the mail? Or maybe it should have taken two days to get to its destination, but it really took four days? When your payment doesn't make it to the credit card company on time (for any reason), it is your responsibility.
First let's talk about the number one reason people want a good credit score. With a credit score around 720, you can borrow money at the best rate. Is that the only way you can get a good rate? No! Lenders today are more likely to look at your FICO or credit score first because that is the easiest way to determine if they think you will pay back a loan.