toyota visa card

im not sure if this should go here, but i got my monthly bill in today and it has a toyota visa card promotion where when u use it you get points to use for parts, services, and acc. has anyone got this card and if so is it worth it?

 

It's a credit card...If you've got one...You've got enuf.

 

Agreed! 100% I don't even have a credit card.

 

I have one for "just in case" Don't always have X dollars cash for emergencies..but I do have an emergency fund that I can pay the card off with.
I get some rewards from my debit card too tho...so that kinda offsets it.

 

i only have one, just for little stuff... i hate bills but i was wondering if anyone had got this card cause it says u get points for using it and then u get discounts on toyota stuff. didnt know if it was worth it or not?

 

I got it when I bought my extended warranty through Troy of Greenfield Ma toyota. I had the $$ up front to buy it, but he said if I signed up for the card I would get a $75 rebate off the purchase price plus 0% for the first six months.
My credit is good, I only have one other card which is paid off so I said what the heck, why not? Plus it helped Troy, who done a great service to many members of the forums selling this warranty at a fraction of cost over many, many dealers.

My card is already paid off & the rewards you earn only can be redeemed at a dealership fwiw. IMO, if it wasn't for buying the extended warranty thru Troy, I wouldn't have it.

 

I just got a Toyota Visa card w/same points for parts deal. Also came w/a smoking 2.9% for the first year. We use it for stuff like gas, groceries and beer. I don't carry around much cash (certainly not $50 for a fillup)So if I use it to buy stuff I have to buy anyway I get free stuff or service at Toyota. Sounds like a win-win to me

 

I recommend at least two credit cards.

No, you shouldn't get into upside down debt up to your eyeballs. But you SHOULD live your life through credit cards for the consumer protections they offer. I have one low-limit card ($2k) for living expenses...gas, groceries, fun stuff, etc. and one high limit ($10k) for emergencies. The high limit hardly ever gets touched. I put about $100 a month on it just to keep the large amount of unused credit from working against me on my credit report.

ALWAYS have enough cash on hand to pay off all balances in full. In other words, if you have credit cards with $5k in available credit, have $5k liquid cash on hand that is in a lockbox to be used only if you need to wipe your cards clean in some emergency.

Debit cards are NOT "just as good" because they're much more vulnerable to identity theft. The delayed payment process (grace period) of credit cards protects you as a consumer much more diligently against fraud. You can dispute any fraudulent charges with the CC company, and you don't actually end up losing that cash. If someone gets ahold of your debit information, they can clean out whichever account(s) it's linked to, and they have those funds in cash money. It's gone.

ALWAYS PAY OFF YOUR BALANCE IN FULL EVERY MONTH. I cannot stress this enough. Credit card interest rates are ABSURD and COMPOUND. Once you start down the downward spiral of only paying a portion of principle or, god forbid, the minimum, you're screwed. Treat them like charge cards...balance to be paid off in full monthly. Period.

 

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ive got 2 cards, about to cut the Chase one up..Outrageous apr.around 29%

my cabelas one(visa) has cash back rewards..I use that card everywhere, and pay it off every month. So I spend money, have no intrest on that card, plus i get free stuff from cabelas

 

If you follow the rules, it doesn't matter what the interest rate is

Yeah, rewards programs are nice...just don't get tempted into overusing the card because of them. It's often cheaper to just buy the "reward" outright rather than paying interest on your CC balance to earn it there.

 

i had a balance of about 2K for a while, and got tired of paying 50-100 per month in intrest, so i managed to pay it all off, and now just use it once a year to keep it open since its got a nice limit(4K) for emergencies.

The other one gets used, but gets paid off in full every month, in installments. Like i just put $380 on it from vacation..When the statement posted while I was on vacation, i put $80 down on it. Then, when I got paid i put $150 down on it, so my balance is now $150. This week ill put the rest of the $150 on it, and pay it off before the end of the month. Not sure if this helps any, but i've been doing it forever since I got the card, and I get approved for most of the bigger purchases I need to make.

 

Main thing is just to pay the balance off by the end of the grace period. I only get paid once a month...have to budget a bit more, but on the other hand it's nice to get all the bills and everything taken care of in one day of hassle.

 

I have learned my lesson with credit cards...I bought my first house when I was 20 and it seemed after that I could any credit card at anytime. I quickly racked up $15k in credit card debt by the time I was 23. I never thought I could get out of it and considered filing bankruptcy. LUCKILY I landed a decent job that paid out quarterly bonuses and I was able to pay them off within 1 year. I now keep 2 credit cards I use for Sirius Radio Subscription, Redbox, "on-file" card with Blockbuster, etc or to use online for purchases but I always pay in full at the end of the month. Only debt I have now is the wife's auto and my house. Tacoma is paid off too!

 

^ Sweet! I am glad for you

I am seriously in debt, it sucks. the card companies are loving it though...

someone I know mentioned that card companies are going to try and charge an interest rate for people who pay their cards off each month. of all the cards I have I still have one that is my main purchase card and I pay that thing off every month no matter what so hopefully the card companies will not go after that one too. if they do do that it will force people to use their debit cards to avoid interest and fraud will sky rocket beyond belief.

edit for the original poster.. you can find good rewards cards that are not limited to Toyota rewards only. 1% reward value is average and some offer more % for certain purchases. keep in mind the low actual value of the rewards, like $50 worth of rewards would require $5,000 worth of purchases, etc

 

I have a Capital One.. whats in YOUR wallet?
..I get 2 points for every buck spent and I pay it off monthly - rewards and no interest!

 

my opinion, capital one is the worst

my credit record still reports 2 late payments 7 years later from
capital one, only neg. thing good luck closing that account

 

Those 2 late payments will stay on your credit at least 8 yrs even if the account is closed. Most people don't realize that once you open an account with any creditor it stays on your report 8 yrs or longer.

I work in the loan & finance industry and I review people's credit all day long. Most of my customers think that when their account goes into collections and reporting on their credit report they can pay it off and it will be removed from your credit report. Once it's on there it stays for at least 8 years.

 

I have 3 CC but have only ever used 1. Does it hurt my credit to show unused credit lines? My credit history is perfect, but I do have some smaller college loans and a truck...
The 1 card I use (Citibank Drivers-Edge) has a high limit. I pay for everythingI buy on this card. I regularly spend $800+ a month but pay it off in full every time...

 

Yes. Large amounts of unused available credit hurts your credit rating. Also, this works against your debt ratios. Banks/CC companies/etc view "available credit" (i.e. unused balance of your CC) as debt in your debt ratio. This is because you can use that credit and turn it into debt at any time and it is NOT collateralized (in other words, there's nothing to repo. If you eat dinner and pay with VISA, then default on the VISA, how are they supposed to repossess the steak?)

If you have unused credit cards, CANCEL THEM. If you're going to keep them open, spread your spending around...it doesn't take much. Just put $700 on your primary card each month, and $50 on each of the others.

As always, pay off all balances in full before the end of the grace period.

Also, look into yearly fees. Banks are bringing those back hardcore these days. Make sure you're not getting hit for $100-$200 yearly just to have all this unused credit hurting your report...